from Michael Traikos of the National Post,

There’s been no progress. No baby steps towards respectability. With two months left to play, they are out of it. And the fans, who are tired of hearing that next year will be better, are beyond frustrated and letting everyone — from the players to management — know it.

The other week, a diehard fan called Buffalo’s sports talk radio station and unleashed an epic rant directed at ownership for sucking the passion out of him. That toxicity has seeped into KeyBank Center, where fans now seem like they’re looking for any excuse to rain boos down on the players.

“There is a pressure in the space around us,” said head coach Ralph Krueger, whose team has won two straight at home heading into Sunday’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. “And we need to deal with that and we need to break that too, just like some of the habits we have on the ice that are hurting us, we need to change the environment around us and get believing that nobody is going to give us that. We have to earn that.

“We’re not just expecting people to just give it to us in an easy way. We are fighting for that right now. I think every game we play right now is important to establish our game on a more consistent basis.”

Barring a late-season miracle, the Sabres are not going to make the playoffs. They probably won’t even get close. And you won’t have to look far to see where it’s gone wrong.

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