Kukla's Korner Hockey
Category: Buffalo-Sabres
Buffalo is Feeling the Hate
by Alanah McGinley on 04/26/07 at 10:16 AM ET
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From Mark Herrmann at Newsday,
There is nothing like a little hatred to get a team going in the playoffs, according to Sabres coach Lindy Ruff. In other words, if Sean Avery didn’t exist, they would have had to invent him.
You could say that this was a classic case of an agitator agitating in reverse, although no one did say it after the Sabres beat Avery and the Rangers, 5-2, in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal. Neither side acknowledged that by talking big before the series, Avery might have stirred the Sabres into something bigger.
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Sabres May Meet More “Old Friends”
by Paul on 04/25/07 at 12:06 PM ET
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from Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News,
The Sabres knocked off the Ted Nolan-coached New York Islanders in the first round of the playoffs. They’re not looking past the Rangers, but it shouldn’t stop anybody else. If Buffalo can dispatch New York and Ottawa beats New Jersey, the Sabres would reacquaint themselves with Senators General Manager John Muckler.
Of course, this journey wouldn’t be complete without Dominik Hasek. The Dominator was back to his old tricks in Detroit. He helped keep the Red Wings’ hopes for another Stanley Cup alive when they beat the Calgary Flames in the first round.
Reminder for first-time riders on the Sabres’ bandwagon and anybody who hasn’t graduated from high school: Nolan, Muckler, Hasek and Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn were embroiled in a power struggle for the ages after Buffalo won the Northeast Division title in 1997.
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Sabres Not Worried
by Paul on 04/25/07 at 10:43 AM ET
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from the New York Times,
Renney expressed doubts that the Sabres, who finished with the league’s best record during the regular season, were the “cream of the crop.” And the voluble Avery said he would be out to “hurt” the Sabres.
“It’s psychological warfare,” Buffalo goaltender Ryan Miller said. “I don’t think anybody in here is going to play that game.”
He added: “We’re just going to worry about hockey. We’re not going to worry about the off-ice, in-between-whistles stuff, which is apparently what they’ve already started.”
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Ruff & Briere
by Paul on 04/24/07 at 03:20 PM ET
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Lindy Ruff and Daniel Briere took part in an NHL tele-conference today…
Q. Both teams had quick series. How was the layoff for the Buffalo Sabres? How did you deal with it?
LINDY RUFF: Well, we took one day off. We took the Saturday, anticipating the series may start as early as Wednesday. We had a light day on Sunday, two good practices leading into Wednesday. It worked out that we anticipated playing Wednesday.
Q. When I looked at the stats, it’s been a while since you met the Rangers. I guess you were all involved in games early on in the year, three of those in overtime, one shutout. We all know that a four-game series can be close. What do you expect from the Rangers?
LINDY RUFF: Well, I expect them, as they played in the playoffs, finished off the regular season, to be a very tough opponent. They’ve proven here in the four games they played Atlanta that they’re a different team than when we played them in December. Even though when we played them previous to that we won in shootouts and I think three of them went to overtime, that right now they’re a different team. They’re deeper. They have offense coming from deeper in their lineup. Their goaltending has been fabulous. It’s going to be a tremendous test.
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, | KK Hockey | Permalink
A Shocker
by Paul on 04/24/07 at 12:15 PM ET
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from The Maven,
By rights, I should never let emotion get the best of me when it comes to predicting Stanley Cup playoff series.
Granted, I lost it the other night, suggesting that the Rangers will sweep the Sabres.
That’s a stretch; but there’s no doubt in my mind that the Blueshirts will beat Buffalo – and I’ll make it in five games.
The Rangers have better goaltending – Henny Lundqvist over Ryan Miller – and have jelled at the right time.
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Avery Getting Psyched
by Paul on 04/24/07 at 11:59 AM ET
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from the Buffalo News,
The New York Rangers haven’t had a game in six days, so their players have had a lot of downtime to fill. Avery has been using his to visualize his opponents in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
“I’ve just secretly been making up things in my head about guys on their team that they’ve done to me so I can identify with them when we’re going in a corner,” Avery said Monday in New York. “I’ve already decided I hate all those guys, so we’re not going to have any problem with that.”
Hate is a common word when discussing Avery. His peers named him the most hated player in the NHL in a poll by the Hockey News, and he won in a landslide. Avery got 66 percent of the vote while Nashville’s Jordin Tootoo placed second with just 6 percent.
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
No Shadow On Jagr
by Paul on 04/24/07 at 10:46 AM ET
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from the Buffalo News,
The Eastern Conference semifinal between the Sabres and New York Rangers will start Wednesday, and both teams have a player who fills an important niche. The Rangers have Jagr, one of the most potent offensive players of his generation. The Sabres have Chris Drury, who earned Selke Trophy votes this season as the NHL’s best defensive forward.
It would seem logical for the Sabres to make sure Drury is on the ice whenever Jagr is. But the Sabres enjoy making other teams adapt to them, so coach Lindy Ruff said Monday he will not alter his game plans just to make sure Drury and his wingers shadow Jagr and his linemates.
“No. No,” Ruff said. “We didn’t do any changing on the fly this year. We didn’t pour anybody over the boards. We’ll get matchups that we like.”
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Rangers Belong
by Paul on 04/24/07 at 12:21 AM ET
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from the New York Times,
“I don’t know if they’re the cream of the crop right now,” Rangers Coach Tom Renney said of the Sabres. “They’re certainly one of eight teams left, and a good one. I’m not going to suggest I don’t want to give them credit, but we’re where we are because we belong here, too.
“One thing I will say is we are a different team than we were three months ago. Buffalo is what they are. Maybe we’re a little less familiar to them than they are to us. They are a good team. I’m not going to take anything away from them, but I’m not going to pump their tires, either.”
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Rangers Will Test Sabres
by Paul on 04/23/07 at 11:54 AM ET
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from the Buffalo News,
“They’re a balanced attack,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said Sunday. “It’s come from a lot of different places. They’ve got younger guys that have been in the scoring department, but I think it’s overall balance. They’ve played sound defensively, and their goaltender has been very good.”
The sixth-seeded Rangers are paced by Jagr, who figures to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when he hangs up his skates. The 35-year-old won back-to-back Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh during his first two seasons. Mario Lemieux did the bulk of that work, and Jagr wants to return the favor to the youngsters on his team.
“I love the players I am playing with,” Jagr said last week. “When I was young, Mario gave me the Cup. I always wanted to help the younger guys like Mario helped me.”
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Top Players Perform
by Paul on 04/21/07 at 10:08 AM ET
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from Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News,
The Sabres dismissed the Islanders in five games because Briere and Chris Drury performed while Satan and Yashin mostly disappeared. Briere had a goal and four assists, Drury four goals and an assist, the two co-captains working in symphony. Satan finished with a goal and two assists after waking up in the third period. Captain Yashin? Zip. Again.
“The line between winning and losing is so thin, you need everybody,” Sabres defenseman Teppo Numminen said. “If your best guys are playing their games, it’s huge. They’re so talented that they can break a game and be the difference.”
Filed in: NHL Playoff Talk, Buffalo Sabres, | KK Hockey | Permalink
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About Kukla's Korner Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
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