After 82 NHL regular season games and an unforeseen Olympic run, if you don’t think Ryan Miller is the best goaltender in the sport of hockey today—I truly don’t know what to tell you.
While the rest of his Buffalo teammates forgot you’re required to skate and play in the second period of opening playoff games, Miller stood on his head—stopping 23 of 24 Boston Bruins shots to somehow keep his suddenly lifeless team from getting run off the ice.
Fortunately for Buffalo, by the end of the period Craig Rivet’s scorching slap slot found the upper corner of the Bruins net and propelled the Buffalo Sabres to a 2-1 victory in grabbing game one of the best of seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal in front of a jam-packed, exuberant sellout HSBC Arena crowd.
Daisuke Matsuzaka was the star attraction on Thursday afternoon in downtown Buffalo, but Fernando Martinez and the comeback Bisons stole the spotlight.
Martinez sent the Herd to their first walk-off victory of the season when he drove home Alex Cintron in the bottom of the 10th inning of a 3-2 win over the Pawtucket Red Sox.
Matsuzaka was making his second rehab start of the season for the Sox Triple-A affiliate, this time against the Bisons. He was solid through six shutout innings, giving up just three hits and striking out two with no walks.
If you’re a Boston Red Sox (I’m not) who was looking for any extra motivation to check out the Bisons at Dunn Tire Park, pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, AKA “Dice-K” will be making a rehab start this afternoon for the Pawtucket Red Sox.
The game is scheduled for 4:05pm.
Matsuzaka has been sidelined with neck and back injuries. He had a five inning setback-free start in his last outing and is scheduled to have one more rehab start before returning to Boston within the next two weeks.
He went 18-3 in 2008 before struggling to just 4-6 in 12 starts last year before injuries cut his season short.
There’s bad news on the injury front for the Buffalo Sabres; head coach Lindy Ruff announced this morning that Jochen Hecht had to have another procedure done on his injured finger. He will be out for at least a few weeks, meaning he won’t be available at all for the Sabres in the quarterfinal series against the Boston that starts tonight, and perhaps longer.
Hecht had 21 goals and 21 assists for Buffalo this season and his playoff experience will be missed against the Bruins.
The Buffalo Sabres are back in the playoffs for the first time in three years as champions of the Northeast Division. Their first test? The Boston Bruins, who did not live up to expectations this season after recording the most points in the Eastern Conference last year.
The Competition
The Bruins were a scary team in 2008-09. They had a powerful offense led by a first line of Milan Lucic, Marc Savard and Phil Kessel, while Zdeno Chara (who won the Norris Trophy for best defenseman) and Dennis Wideman were the backbone of one of the top defenses in the league. In net, Tim Thomas led the NHL in save percentage and goals against average en route to the Vezina Trophy. Most importantly, the Bruins were mean. Lucic was a wrecking ball, while Shawn Thornton could enforce while putting in a solid 10 minutes of physical hockey on the fourth line. Those two combined with Chara’s looming presence for a group that could impose itself at will. And impose they did, all the way to the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference and only one point shy of the Presidents’ Trophy.
The University at Buffalo baseball team erupted for nine runs in the top of the fifth including 16 unanswered runs en route to defeating Niagara, 21-4 on Wednesday evening at Sal Maglie Stadium. In the mid-week victory, the Bulls improved to 15-15 overall.
Holding a 5-3 lead after four complete innings, the Bulls erupted for nine runs, their most runs scored in an inning this season, to take a 14-3 lead. With the bases loaded, senior shortstop Jacob Rosenbeck drilled a two-RBI shot to left center, following an RBI single by senior designated hitter Brad Cochrane at the beginning of the inning to give the Bulls an 8-3 lead. Next up, freshman third baseman Alex Baldock belted a two-RBI base hit into left center to further the Bulls’ lead to 10-3.
You can’t draw up a Home Opener much better than what played out at Coca-Cola Field for Home Game #1 of the 2010 season.
Great pitching, check! Clutch hitting, check! Throw in great weather and a great crowd and it was a perfect start to the baseball season in Downtown Buffalo.
R.A. Dickey tossed a complete game and Chris Carter drove in four as the Bisons defeated the Pawtucket Red Sox, 8-2, on a gorgeous Wednesday afternoon in front of 13,323 Opening Day fans.
The National Lacrosse League today announced Buffalo Bandits rookie defenseman Chris Corbeil has been named Rookie of the Week for Week 14 of the regular season.
Corbeil returned to action against Toronto on Saturday after missing three games with a knee injury. He posted two points (1+1) and collected 10 loose balls in Buffalo’s 13-10 win against Toronto. Through 10 games this season, Corbeil has recorded eight points (3+5) and grabbed 67 loose balls for the Bandits.
Corbeil and the rest of the Buffalo Bandits travel to the Sunshine State to face off against the Orlando Titans on Friday night. Ball drop from Amway Arena is slated for 7:35 p.m. ET. Fans can listen to the game live on KB 1520 radio or watch the action on nll.com Continue reading ‘Bandits’ Corbeil named NLL Rookie of Week’
We know the wait is killing you as the Buffalo Sabres get ready to begin their playoffs with a quarterfinal series against the Boston Bruins Thursday night.
As if you needed another reason to get excited about the playoffs, let’s look back at the classic overtime Brad May goal on April124, 1993 as the Sabres ended a long first-round playoff exit drought by eliminating the Bruins.
Boston had ended Buffalo’s postseason five consecutive times before the goal.
Now that the 2010 NHL playoff matchups are set, the Boston media spin machine is cycling on full speed. They’ve got some folks convinced that an upset is brewing. Truth be told, there must be something in that dirty water.
Check out a few of these pearls of wisdom courtesy of some overzealous scribes from the self-proclaimed “Hub of Hockey”:
“Regular season numbers favor Bruins in matchup with Sabres.”
“The Bruins enter the playoffs riding the momentum of a 3-game winning streak.”
“The biggest advantage in this series for Boston will be Tuukka Rask.”
Let’s assume for a moment on this lovely Wednesday morning that a weekend report concerning the Buffalo Bills‘ apparent lack of interest in Notre Dame QB Jimmy Clausen are accurate. If you’ve been here longer than, say, a day and a half, you’re probably aware that I find that notion insane. But we’re assuming here, so let’s continue to assume that the report, courtesy of Michael Lombardi, is spot on.
We know that GM Buddy Nix covets a quarterback with the requisite arm strength to cut through the icy, wintry winds that plague Ralph Wilson Stadium in late November, December, and dare we dream, January. Nix also prefers a great deal of college experience, production and big-game exposure. We also know, courtesy Lombardi and every other talking head that has paid the slightest bit of attention to Chan Gailey’s coaching career, that the Bills’ new head coach prefers an athletic quarterback that can make plays on the move.
The Buffalo Sabres today announced they will host a “Party in the Plaza” two hours prior to the start of each home playoff game during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs. This year’s parties will be bigger and better than ever — including the addition of a 40’ x 120’ tent that will guarantee each party happening rain or shine; and extended hours that will allow fans without tickets to stick around and watch the game on a big screen TV.
The pre-game festivities get underway at 5 p.m. on Thursday before the start of Game One, and 11 a.m. on Saturday prior to Game Two outside HSBC Arena, in the Plaza area located near Perry and Illinois St. Fans can enjoy live music from the Strictly Hip, along with concession food and drink available for purchase throughout the night. There will be appearances from special Sabres guests and Sabretooth.
But the party doesn’t stop when the game ends! There will be drinks available for purchase after the game, along with music and coverage of the Lexus Shootout post-game show on the big screen.
Each party will take place rain or shine with free admission, as a game ticket will not be required for entrance to the party.
Tickets for Buffalo’s four potential home games in the first round of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs are now on sale at the HSBC Arena Box Office, all tickets.com outlets in Tops Markets, online at www.sabres.com, tickets.com or charge by phone at 1-888-223-6000.
University at Buffalo wrestler Dan Bishop, who suffered a life-threatening spinal injury at the Mid-American Conference Championships in early March, returned to his home in Whitehall, NY today.
Bishop was released from the Sunnyview Rehabilitation Center in Schenectady today where he has stunned – and won over – staff with his rapid recovery. From the time he arrived there in mid-March, Bishop has gone from standing with help, to walking with a walker and now is walking on his own.
“Yesterday I walked 45 minutes without a walker,” said Bishop. “It kicked my butt, but I was really happy to go that far. I feel great and have no pain at all, outside of getting tired pretty quickly.”
Canisius College junior Steve McQuail (Wantagh, N.Y.) earned his second award in as many days when he was named the ECAC Division I Player of the Week. McQuail was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Monday.
In five games last week, McQuail hit .562 (9-for16) with 10 runs scored, three home runs, 15 RBI, a .619 on-base percentage and a 1.250 slugging percentage. The junior had two home runs in the 22-2 win at Saint Peter’s on Saturday. McQuail also had a tie-breaking grand slam in the fifth inning of Sunday’s 13-4 win over the Peacocks.
In a report published by Scout.com senior NFL Analyst Ed Thompson, he reveals that the Buffalo Bills have had a trio of first round prospects visit with the team over the past week; offensive tackles Russell Okung and Charles Brown as well as defensive end/linebacker Jason Paul-Pierre.
All three visits come across as curious given their draft stature and considering the Bills hold the ninth pick with none a likely destination at that spot.
Okung is almost certain to be the first tackle taken in the draft and will almost certainly get gobbled up by Washington with the fourth pick. Regardless if he’s a Redskin or not, there’s no way he’ll be on the board at nine.
Once upon a time, paying rookies high salaries and bonuses was a necessary part of doing business in the NFL. That was back in the days when the NFL actually had to compete for football players.
When the AFL came into existence and started offering rookies higher salaries to play in their League, they were able to steal some marquee players away from the NFL. As the AFL grew in strength and started putting a competitive product on the field, the NFL Owners were forced to do one of two things: Pay higher salaries, or do what many big corporations in America do; buy out your competitor and merge the companies. We know how that story ended.
The USFL and the World Football League, in their brief tenures, were able to attract some rookies – with NFL talent – and pay them enough money to play for their league, but by that time it was too late, the NFL had already grown too powerful – due in large part to the anti-trust exemption they received from Congress. We all know how the USFL and WFL ended.
Unless you’re the New York Jets and Santonio Holmes falls from the sky into your lap, the rest of the NFL front offices and coaching staffs are firmly entrenched and focused on the upcoming draft. Buddy Nix, Tom Modrak and the rest of the Buffalo Bills brass are working meticulously on their final board, making that list and checking it twice.
This is annually the time of year when free agents who’ve actually performed in the league and weren’t gobbled up in the first month of shopping season are forced to wait impatiently for their phone to ring. In many ways after years of service, it’s like waiting to be drafted all over again.
Take former Bills receivers Terrell Owens and Josh Reed. Quite obviously they are talented enough to find employment, yet with barely a week before the draft remain with no team to play for. Neither guy is ready to retire and become the next analyst for ESPN- Albuquerque, so they wait… and wait… and wait.
University at Buffalo diver Meili Carpenter became the first swimmer/diver in the school’s Division-I history to earn All-America status, after an outstanding performance at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving meet where she placed in the top 16 in the country in both the one and three-meter events.
Carpenter was named All-America honorable mention after placing 11th in the three-meter dive and 12th in the one-meter event at the 2010 NCAA meet, held at Purdue’s Boilermaker Aquatic Center on March 8-10. The top eight finishers in each event are named All-America, while ninth through 16th place finishers earn All-America honorable mention. Carpenter is the first swimmer/diver to accomplish this feat in UB’s Division-I era, and only the second female at UB to do so, the first being Shelly Hamilton in 1998.
The Buffalo Bills made a very low-key free agent singing on Monday, inking running back Rodney Ferguson to an undisclosed contract, the team announced.
Ferguson is a big 5-11, 245 running back who played his college ball at New Mexico. He went undrafted last April before signing with the Tennessee Titans as a free agent on April 30. He spent a portion of last season on their practice squad after he was initially waived on September 4.
He finished his college career ranked among the Top 10 in rushing yards (3,564 – third), rushing attempts (778 – third), rushing touchdowns (34 – second) and total touchdowns (37 – third).
While it’s highly doubtful Ferguson comes to the Bills with any real expectations, it could be yet another sign that the Bills are close to trading Marshawn Lynch.
The team signed another under-the-radar running back last week in Walter Mendenhall.
For those of you out there who were a bit disappointed by last week’s news of the Humanitarian Bowl linking the MAC and WAC, today you have something to take your mind off of it. Losing the International Bowl and the Big East was viewed as a step back, even with the linking of the Humanitarian Bowl because it left the MAC without a tie in against a BCS opponent. Today the MAC gained access to, sigh, the eighth seeded Big10 team through 2013 via the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
The Buffalo Sabres today announced they will hold an online auction for the first set of game-worn home and away jerseys from the 2009-10 regular season. Each jersey will come with a certificate of authenticity.
The auction will begin at 5 p.m. on Monday, April 12 and conclude Thursday, April 22 at 9 p.m. Fans can access the auction by logging onto www.sabres.com or the auction section of www.nhl.com. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Buffalo Sabres foundation.
The Buffalo Sabres Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit foundation that is committed to enhancing the quality of life for the Western New York region. In the process, the foundation strives to assist worthwhile organizations that make this region a better place to live and work. The primary focus of the foundation is to assist youth hockey initiatives, children’s health and wellness initiatives, specifically those that serve the underprivileged and handicapped, and to provide support to non-profit organizations and groups that provide vital services to those in need in our community.
Lindy Ruff held a 15-minute press conference this afternoon following Buffalo Sabres practice and regarding the injury front, provided some promising news.
According to Ruff, center Tim Connolly skated on his own over the weekend, is expected to return to practice and could play on Thursday night when the Sabres open their quarterfinal playoff series against the Boston Bruins.
To quote Ruff he said he’s “optimistic about him practicing and possibly playing” when the playoff series begins Thursday.”
Regarding Jochen Hecht (upper body injury) and Drew Stafford (concussion), Ruff was more diplomatic with his answers, saying only that he doesn’t rule anything out.
If there is one singular position that the Buffalo Bills are most likely to address with their first-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, it’s offensive tackle. The team’s unquestionable biggest need is quarterback, but it’s not a lock that Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford or Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen are available when the team picks at No. 9 overall – or that the Bills like either enough to take them. The team may lean in the direction of a nose tackle or a pass rusher, but neither need is quite as urgent as the need for a starter on the blind side.
Last week, we discussed the growing possibility that the Bills might not be left with much of a choice at tackle, either. In a year solid on top-end depth but short on sure-fire prospects, it appears that there may be an early run on the draft’s surest OT prospects prior to the Bills’ ninth overall pick. We won’t worry about that for now; if that run happens, the Bills will have options at other need positions, and just like with any draft-day prediction, that projected OT run isn’t a sure bet to occur.
The fine folks from the Labatts Blue Pond Hockey have released a video highlight of this year’s event held in Buffalo this past February.
Although inclement weather prevented the tournament from reaching its conclusion on the final day, you must admit it looked like a great time. We especially like the Chiefs uniform at the 2:39 mark.
Check out the clip and if you’re on the fence about participating when it comes to town next year, this should put you over the top.
Daemen College had a good 2009-10 season, finishing 18-13 overall and 9-7 in AMC (American Mideast Conference) league play before seeing their season end with a two point loss to Cedarville in the AMC semi finals.
Looking to build on their success, the school has recruited three of the best players from the Western New York high school ranks to join their squad next year.
The Wildcats have landed local recruits Mark Coppola (Williamsville South), Troy Nowak (Orchard Park) and Aaron Davis (North Tonawanda) to a an already talented mix that includes last year’s leading scorer, Devon Dawson (formerly of St. Joes high school).
Daisuke Matsuzaka was the star attraction on Thursday afternoon in downtown Buffalo, but Fernando Martinez and the comeback Bisons stole the spotlight.
If you’re a Boston Red Sox (I’m not) who was looking for any extra motivation to check out the Bisons at Dunn Tire Park, pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, AKA “Dice-K” will be making a rehab start this afternoon for the Pawtucket Red Sox.
The University at Buffalo baseball team erupted for nine runs in the top of the fifth including 16 unanswered runs en route to defeating Niagara, 21-4 on Wednesday evening at Sal Maglie Stadium. In the mid-week victory, the Bulls improved to 15-15 overall.
You can’t draw up a Home Opener much better than what played out at Coca-Cola Field for Home Game #1 of the 2010 season.
The National Lacrosse League today announced Buffalo Bandits rookie defenseman Chris Corbeil has been named Rookie of the Week for Week 14 of the regular season.
Let’s assume for a moment on this lovely Wednesday morning that a 
The Buffalo Sabres today announced they will host a “Party in the Plaza” two hours prior to the start of each home playoff game during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs. This year’s parties will be bigger and better than ever — including the addition of a 40’ x 120’ tent that will guarantee each party happening rain or shine; and extended hours that will allow fans without tickets to stick around and watch the game on a big screen TV.
University at Buffalo wrestler Dan Bishop, who suffered a life-threatening spinal injury at the Mid-American Conference Championships in early March, returned to his home in Whitehall, NY today.
Canisius College junior Steve McQuail (Wantagh, N.Y.) earned his second award in as many days when he was named the ECAC Division I Player of the Week. McQuail was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week on Monday.
In a report published by Scout.com senior NFL Analyst Ed Thompson, he reveals that the Buffalo 
Once upon a time, paying rookies high salaries and bonuses was a necessary part of doing business in the NFL. That was back in the days when the NFL actually had to compete for football players.
Unless you’re the New York Jets and Santonio Holmes falls from the sky into your lap, the rest of the NFL front offices and coaching staffs are firmly entrenched and focused on the upcoming draft. Buddy Nix, Tom Modrak and the rest of the Buffalo Bills brass are working meticulously on their final board, making that list and checking it twice.
University at Buffalo diver Meili Carpenter became the first swimmer/diver in the school’s Division-I history to earn All-America status, after an outstanding performance at the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving meet where she placed in the top 16 in the country in both the one and three-meter events.
The Buffalo Bills made a very low-key free agent singing on Monday, inking running back Rodney Ferguson to an undisclosed contract, the team announced.
For those of you out there who were a bit disappointed by last week’s news of the Humanitarian Bowl linking the MAC and WAC, today you have something to take your mind off of it. Losing the International Bowl and the Big East was viewed as a step back, even with the linking of the Humanitarian Bowl because it left the MAC without a tie in against a BCS opponent. Today the MAC gained access to, sigh, the eighth seeded Big10 team through 2013 via the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
The Buffalo Sabres today announced they will hold an online auction for the first set of game-worn home and away jerseys from the 2009-10 regular season. Each jersey will come with a certificate of authenticity.
Lindy Ruff held a 15-minute press conference this afternoon following Buffalo Sabres practice and regarding the injury front, provided some promising news.
If there is one singular position that the Buffalo Bills are most likely to address with their first-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, it’s offensive tackle. The team’s unquestionable biggest need is quarterback, but it’s not a lock that Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford or Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen are available when the team picks at No. 9 overall – or that the Bills like either enough to take them. The team may lean in the direction of a nose tackle or a pass rusher, but neither need is quite as urgent as the need for a starter on the blind side.
Daemen College had a good 2009-10 season, finishing 18-13 overall and 9-7 in AMC (American Mideast Conference) league play before seeing their season end with a two point loss to Cedarville in the AMC semi finals.
