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Posts Tagged Buffalo Sabres

NHL Photo of the Day

Feb 9

Posted by EB in NHL Photo of the Day | No Comments

Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images

Hockey players have long memories and definitely have a good enough memory to recall when Buffalo Sabres netminder Ryan Miller was plowed over by Boston Bruins Milan Lucic earlier in the year, sparking a media frenzy over the cowardliness of the Sabres. It seems the Sabres were doing good record wise before that point, but have fallen down to near bottom of the Eastern Conference. Perhaps all that media attention was too much.

Last night saw the Bruins at the Sabres. Sabres Head Coach Lindy Ruff was not behind the bench after breaking a rib earlier in the week to a freak accident in practice. Sabres fans were worried.

Have no fear for Ryan Miller and the Sabres stepped up their game, nearly unrecognizable to the Sabres of late, but more to the Sabres that were expected to play this year. The final score, 6-0 in favor of the Sabres. Miller was solid, Tyler Ennis, Ville Leino, Jason Pominville and Andrej Sekera all had two point nights, and Lucic of the Bruins had a target on him all night long.

The two teams went back to old-time hockey; three fights and four 10-minute game misconducts assessed. It’s good to know the Sabres still have some fight left in them and that playoff hockey is around the corner.

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Fantasy Hockey Friday

Jan 20

Posted by Chris in Fantasy | No Comments

Two weeks ago, we brought you an in depth breakdown of team stats around the NHL that could help give a better indication on how your goalie may fare on any given night against any given opponent. This week we turn the tables a bit to analyze more team stats, but this time focus on the impact of these stats for forwards and defenseman.

A good Fantasy Hockey league setup has roster positions and bench positions so that on some nights, when most everyone on your team is playing, you have to make the tough decisions regarding who to bench and who to play. So as a Manager, how do you decide which players to play and which to sit?

Sometimes it comes down to a “hunch” or intuition. Obviously your star players will likely get spots because they are more likely to put points on the board. Players on hot streaks may also get the nod over someone that is slumping. Or you may choose to go by which team any given player is playing against that night.

For instance, if you’re trying to decide between two players, and one is playing against the New York Rangers while the other is playing against the Tampa Bay Lightning, you may want to consider playing your guy against Tampa Bay. Why? Because Tampa Bay averages 3.47 goals against per game while the Rangers average 1.98 goals against per game, meaning there is a greater probability that your player will score against Tampa Bay.

Here is a breakdown of the top five teams in the league with the lowest goals against averages per game:

New York Rangers (1.98)

St. Louis Blues (1.98)

Boston Bruins (2.02)

Los Angeles Kings (2.13)

San Jose Sharks (2.28)

Similarly, here are the worst five teams in the NHL with the highest goals against averages per game:

Tampa Bay Lightning (3.47)

Columbus Blue Jackets (3.22)

Carolina Hurricanes (3.17)

Ottawa Senators (3.08)

Toronto Maple Leafs (3.07)

The Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders also have averages of 3.00 goals against per game or better as well.

You can also get a good idea of how your players will fare by looking at which goalie he will face that night. And these numbers don’t always correlate with the team average.

Boston has a low enough team goals against per game average, but backup netminder Tuukka Rask actually has a lower goals against average than starter Tim Thomas. This means that your player is more likely to score on Thomas than on Rask, but the likelihood that he will score against Boston at all is slim.

Consider the Colorado Avalanche as well. As a whole, the team averages 2.85 goals allowed per game. However, goaltenders Semyon Varlamov and J.S. Giguere have basically split time, but Varlamov’s goals against average is much higher at 3.00 goals against per game than Giguere’s 2.12 goals against per game. So if Varlamov gets the start, play against him with confidence.

The Philadelphia Flyers have a similar issue with Ilya Bryzgalov (3.00) and Sergei Bobrovsky (2.42). Thankfully for Fantasy Managers, Bryzgalov gets the majority of the starts with 30 this season compared to Bobrovsky’s 14.

It doesn’t happen often when you have a full slate of games and have to make the tough choices as a manager on whom to bench and whom to play, but knowing the odds can help you make the right decision in the future. It’s not fool-proof by any means, but it’s a step in the right direction.

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NHL Photo of the Day

Jan 19

Posted by EB in Media, News, NHL Photo of the Day | No Comments

Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

Chicago Blackhawks 20 year-old rookie Andrew Shaw celebrates after scoring on Buffalo Sabres goaltender Jhonas Enroth. Shaw was brought in to replace injured and suspended Daniel Carcillo. The young forward has played on all 4 lines since joining the team, scoring 5 goals and 1 helper for 6 points in his only 8 games played. It is unknown if he will play with the team for the remainder of the season as Carcillo wilnot return this year, but if you’re fantasy team is looking for some depth and you have a spot to mess with, Shaw may be worth picking up.

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Buffalo Sabres trade talks increase while team struggles

Jan 18

Posted by Chris in News | No Comments

The Buffalo Sabres appear to be in a state of disarray after an embarrassing loss to the Detroit Red Wings Monday night in which they let up five goals in the first two periods, prompting head coach Lindy Ruff to pull netminder Ryan Miller, and at times looked displaced and heartless.

Several players sounded off about the loss, including Miller, who is a native of Michigan and played in front of family and friends last night.

“It’s embarrassing,” said Miller, whose brother Drew plays for the Red Wings. “I got family and friends here. Everybody came to watch Drew and I play. At least they got to watch Drew perform.”

Buffalo captain Jason Pominville also commented on the loss stating, “The injury excuse isn’t what this team is about. We have enough guys in the lineup to win games and we’re not doing it right now. We have to find a way.”

The Sabres currently sit 11th overall in the Eastern Conference – seven points out of a playoff spot. Injuries have hampered the team, but key offseason additions have failed to live up to expectations as well. Ville Leino, who scored 54 points last season, including 19 goals, only has 10 points so far with three goals. These numbers are far from what the team expected when they signed Leino for a $4.5 million cap hit over the summer.

Miller himself has also struggled in net, posting a 3.12 goals against average along with a .898 save percentage – some of the worst numbers of his career.

“It’s not good hockey. It’s not good from top down,” Miller said of the team’s play along with his own. “I need to be better. I can’t seem to find a night where I can get in a groove.”

Going 2-6-2 over the last 10, the team’s recent struggles have prompted early discussion about their intentions come trade deadline time. Unless things dramatically improve over the next few weeks, the Sabres will likely be sellers. But who on the roster might be on their way out?

Brad Boyes, Paul Gaustad and Jochen Hecht are all potential unrestricted free agent that may have some value. Outside of those three, Tyler Myers is an interesting name to consider. Some rumor mongers have suggested that Buffalo may be willing to part with Myers as he has not developed like the team had hoped thus far. Myers is in the last year if his entry level contract before his new contract kicks in next season with a $5.5 million cap hit. Still, the likelihood that the team trades Myers remains slim for the time being.

Until then, Miller seems adamant that a roster overhaul won’t change what currently plagues the team.

“If you guys really think there’s going to be any kind of trade made anywhere that’s going to affect this team any more than we can affect it in this locker room, you guys are just … I don’t know,” said Miller. “I don’t know what to think because there’s no such trade.”

Coach Lindy Ruff also sounded off on the team’s recent woes and recent trade speculation surrounding the team.

“I’m under the premise that a one player trade deal can work at times,” Ruff said. “I’ve seen a lot of them where it doesn’t have any impact. The only way you’re going to succeed is by uniting as a team and getting through this.”

Ruff continued: “One player isn’t going to make a difference. A lot of times that one player leaving is a good player, and you’re getting a player from another team that had been having a tough time over there. It can work in situations. There are other times when it doesn’t make any difference at all.”

The immediate future looks rough for the Sabres as they face off against the Blackhawks, Jets, Blues and Devils before the All-Star break at the end of next week. All of those teams are playoff teams right now and the Sabres desperately need the points if they intend to make a push for a playoff spot themselves.

 

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Todd Bertuzzi’s 360 Spin Goal

Jan 17

Posted by Eddie in Media | No Comments

Last night in the Detroit-Buffalo game the Red Wings set a franchise record with 15 consecutive wins at home. In addition, Pavel Datsyuk passed the 700-point plateau with three assists in the game. All-Star goalie Jimmy Howard recorded his fifth shutout of the season as the Red Wings routed the Sabres 5-0.

Todd Bertuzzi has been on a tear after starting the season off slow. In the first 14 games of the season he had only three points. But he’s turned it on as of late with 20 points in his last 24 games. In tonight’s game he had a goal and two assists and one of the best goals you will see this season as he slid a backhand spin-o-rama past Ryan Miller for the fourth goal of the game. He was pulled seconds later when Darren Helm scored 13 seconds after Bertuzzi. Miller didn’t have a good stretch of hockey between the first and second periods as he allowed four goals in a goal of 6:21 between the first and second periods.

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Ryan Miller run over by Jordan Tootoo in first game back

Dec 4

Posted by Chris in Media | No Comments

Ryan Miller returned to the lineup last night after missing a month of action thanks to a concussion sustained during his run-in with Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic. However, it appears as if open season on the Buffalo Sabres goalie may have continued into last night as Miller had yet another run in, this time with Nashville Predators forward Jordan Tootoo, who seemingly drives the net hard and then leaps into Miller. Miller responds quickly to the incident and climbs on top of Tootoo and throws a few good lefts at his head. The rest of the Sabres players on the ice come to the aid of their goalie and get involved in the scrum as well.

This video can be viewed two ways. First is the obvious conclusion. Tootoo, known for being a gritty player who plays on the edge, saw the opportunity to run Miller and took full advantage of it. The other view is that Tootoo simply couldn’t stop after being shoved from behind by Sabres defender Christian Ehrhoff and tried to leap over Miller and avoid contact.

Personally, I think it’s a bit of both. Tootoo sees the opportunity to drive the net hard and obviously takes it. He receives the shove from Ehrhoff and loses the puck and has enough time to pick up his head and see that he is about to collide with Miller. Tootoo leaving his feet seems to be a result of the collision with Miller, not a conscious effort to avoid Miller. In fact, looking at the slow motion replays in the video, there appears to be no effort to avoid the collision at all.

Tootoo was assessed with a game misconduct on the play. Miller stayed in the game and the Sabres ended up beating the Predators 3-2.

What do you think? Did Tootoo run Miller on purpose or was the collision purely a result of Tootoo being unable to avoid contact?

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Milan Lucic Runs Ryan Miller

Nov 14

Posted by EB in News | 1 Comment

Over the weekend, Boston Bruin Milan Lucic ran over goaltender Ryan Miller of the Buffalo Sabres. Lucic was assessed a 2 minute minor for charging while Miller eventually left the game with an upper body injury. What could seem an intentional or unavoidable based on your viewpoint, an argument seems to be developing; are goalies free game if outside the crease?

According to the NHL Rulebook, rule 42.1, Charging as it pertains to goalies:

…

A goalkeeper is not “fair game” just because he is outside the goal crease area. The appropriate penalty should be assessed in every case where an opposing player makes unnecessary contact with a goalkeeper. However, incidental contact, at the discretion of the Referee, will be permitted when the goalkeeper is in the act of playing the puck outside his goal crease provided the attacking player has made a reasonable effort to avoid such contact.

Lucic has a hearing with league disciplinarian Brenden Shanahan about the incident. There, Shanahan will decide if the collision was indeed unavoidable or if Lucic intended to hit Miller. If the hit is deemed an actual hit, expect Shanahan to come down hard on Lucic for his actions. Like it or not, a goaltender is a pivotal part of the game, one that needs to be protected against unneeded and unwarranted hits.

The teams will face each other 5 more times throughout the year.

HWB is participating in “Movember” to raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer Research. Make a difference, make a donation.

 

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Tim Connolly injury worse than expected

Oct 14

Posted by Chris in News | No Comments

Toronto Maple Leafs center Tim Connolly may be out longer than initially anticipated thanks to an upper body injury sustained during practice at the end of September.

“I don’t really know if it’s day-to-day now,” said Connolly after a short skate at the Mastercard Centre this morning. “It may a little bit longer, but I can’t really speculate. I can’t just give you a guess of how long it’s going to be. I’d like to just to give you guys some more information, but whether it’s a week or two weeks before I’m playing I couldn’t tell you.”

Connolly initially suffered the injury during a Maple Leafs practice on September 26th. After sustaining the injury, Connolly took time away from practice and was initially deemed as day-to-day. However, when Connolly returned to practice last week he was unable to take contact and saw any improvements to the injury come to a halt.

“That’s what I did initially,” Connolly said. “Just took a few days [off] right away [and the] swelling went down, pain level went down. Then got back out there and thought it would just be pain tolerance. But it was pretty severe and that’s when we realized it was going to take a little bit longer so I had to back off some of the shooting and puck-handling and even grinding up against the boards, things like that.”

While Connolly didn’t mention the true nature of the injury, he did clarify that it is not related to his head or neck.

After spending the majority of his career with the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto signed the often-injured forward to a two year contract this summer worth $9.5 million. Over the past six seasons, Connolly has only played in 302 games out of a possible 492. His best showing during that span came in 2009-10 when he appeared in 73 games.

Toronto was evidently willing to take the chance on Connolly’s health for the chance to sign a play-making center to feed the puck to Phil Kessel. When he manages to stay healthy, Connolly is a fairly productive player and effective playmaker. Throughout the past 302 games over the last six seasons, Connolly has tallied 250 points, including 178 assists.

 

 

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Fu Man Drew Workout With Drew Stafford

Sep 23

Posted by Matt in Media | No Comments

Yesterday, The Buffalo Sabres uploaded a nice behind the scenes video showcasing some of Drew Stafford’s summer training to prepare him for the upcoming NHL season. Watch Stafford perform some of his favorite exercises from the “Fu Man Drew Workout” video below. Be sure to keep an eye out for one of Buffalo’s young and talented defenseman to make an appearance in the video as well.

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2011-12 NHL Season Preview: Buffalo Sabres

Sep 7

Posted by Matt in Season Previews | No Comments

Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabres

Tyler Myers will have a career season for the Buffalo Sabres in 2011-12

Key Offseason Additions: Ville Leino, Christian Ehrhoff, Robyn Regehr

Key Offseason Losses: Tim Connolly

Last Season Ranking: 7th in East

Offense: Much like last season, the offense will be lead by the dynamic Thomas Vanek. He had a bit of a rebound season in 2009-10, and posted 32 goals and 41 assists. His 41 assists tied a career high, and his 73 points were the most since he tallied 84 points in 2006-07. Also expected to contribute big numbers will be Drew Stafford, who collected career highs in goals and points last season, with 31 and 52, respectively. Stafford’s impressive numbers came during an injury shortened season, where he only played in 62 games. His Sabres teammates know what he’s capable of, however, and when he posted hat-tricks on four separate nights, not a single one of them was surprised. In fact, Stafford contributed seven multi-goal games last season and will be counted on to do a lot of the same in 2011-12.

Joining the Sabres crew this year will be Ville Leino, former Philadelphia Flyer. Leino excelled during the 2009-10 playoff run, after being traded to Philadelphia from Detroit, then continued his solid play into last season. His 53 points would rank fifth on an offensively charged Flyers squad. Leino was brought in to the Sabres organization with the expectation that he could continue to improve his game, and point totals as well. If he continues to battle in high traffic areas and drive to the net, Leino should make a big impact in Buffalo this season.

Another player primed for continued success this season is Tyler Ennis. Last year, as a rookie, Ennis piled on 20 goals and 29 assists. Playing alongside guys like Jason Pominville, a perennial 50-60 point scorer and Paul Gaustad, he’ll be given a great opportunity to improve. Ennis could see time playing alongside guys like Leino, Brad Boyes, Derek Roy or Nathan Gerbe as well.

Defense: An upgraded defense will put the Sabres back on track to help Ryan Miller dominate games. Christian Ehrhoff and Robyn Regehr join a Sabres defense that will be much more poised with them in the line-up. These guys bring a lot more credibility to the blue line, especially on special teams. Ehrhoff will be a monumental addition to the power-play, while Regehr will help keep the puck out of the net on the penalty kill.

After struggling in his sophomore season, Tyler Myers will return to top shape this season. If paired with Ehrhoff, they will make a very respectable top defensive unit, and will be a great threat on the power-play. As Myers continues to put size on his 6’8″ frame, he will be more of a physical threat in addition to his defensive and offensive talents. Expect career highs in goals, assists and points from Myers this season, as he continues to grow into his role.

Goaltending: As long as Ryan Miller is in net, the Buffalo Sabres will not have much to worry about. Last season, Miller continued his strong play and posted a .916 save percentage, along with a 2.59 goals against average. While neither was a career high, they were still fantastic numbers. His five shutouts did match a career high, however, and it was actually Miller’s third consecutive season posting five shutouts.

HWB Playoff Prediction: Playoff bound. The signing of Ville Leino, growth of some young talent, and defensive signings will put the Buffalo Sabres back into the race for the Stanley Cup.

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