Buffalo Sabres Zone

Sure Boston was undefeated in its last 10 games, and sure they have won their last 14 home games, but all those numbers and streaks were meaningless as the Buffalo Sabres defeated the Bruins by a score of 4-2.  The player of the game was Matt Ellis, who was recently called up by Buffalo.  Ellis scored 2 goals and recorded an assist and played every shift like it was his last.  The effort shown by Ellis paid off and was a big factor in the win.  Great goaltending by Ryan Miller was also key, as he turned away 29 of 31 shots, including a few spectacular saves late in the game which made Rick Jeanneret nearly wet himself.  It’s clear that the locker room changes, and lines being altered has sparked this team.  I felt that the Pominville-Gaustad-Ellis line was the best today, they played sound defensively, and fore-checked which is what allowed their scoring opportunities.  This does not take anything away from the rest of the team though, who also played well.  Every line played good hockey, and it was definitely a team victory.  Thomas Vanek scored his 26th goal of the season as he tipped in a shot by Jason Pominville.  Paul Gaustad also scored to make the score 4-2 and give the team some insurance.  The Sabres were 1/3 on the power play and 4/5 on the penalty kill against a very productive Bruins special teams.  I was very pleased watching the game today.  It gives me hope that they can continue this good play for an extended period of time and hopefully ensure a playoff spot.  There is still a lot of work to do for this team, but it finally seems like we are headed in the right direction.  The next game for Buffalo is Tuesday against the struggling Senators.

On a side note, the NFL playoffs have begun and the World Juniors is coming to an end.  Slovakian goaltender Jaroslav Janus did all he could to help his team beat Sweden in the semi-finals today, stopping 46 shots en route to a 5-3 loss (the 5th goal scored on the empty net).  Sweden advances to the gold medal game and awaits the winner of the Russia and Canada game on Sunday.

-Sabs Hockey Nut

A 1pm start for today’s game against the Bruins.  The Bruins are arguably one of the top 2 teams in the league, having a 29-5-4 record which is good for first place in the East.  They also lead the league in goals for with 141, and goals against with 84.  This high scoring team is lead by Marc Savard and Phil Kessel.  The key to beating the Bruins is not only stopping these two, but the rest of their team, whose depth and balanced scoring rivals that of the Sabres team of 2006-2007.  You then have to get past their goaltenders who put up solid games night in and night out.  The Bruins have won 10 games in a row and are 14-1-1 at home while Buffalo is 8-6-3 on the road.  It is definitely going to be a tough game today and will require the Sabres to play almost perfect, for their are very few flaws in this Boston team.

On a sad note, team USA was upset by Slovakia last afternoon, falling by a score of 5-3.  The story of the game was Slovakia capitalizing on their chances, while the US could not beat goaltender Jaroslav Janus.  Janus, of the Erie Otters in the OHL, played probably his best game of his career, turning away 46 of 49 shots on goal.  A good percentage of these saves were not routine either, there were breakaways, a penalty shot, and several saves made on the 2nd and 3rd rebound.  It is an unfortunate turn of events for team USA, who have made it to the medal round the past 6 years.  The Slovaks got a quick start, taking a 3-1 lead, and the US could never recover after that, playing catchup the rest of the game.  The US was the better team overall, but just could not score, and that was the ultimate factor in their defeat.

-Sabs Hockey Nut