Second Half Buffalo Sabres Shutout Boston Bruins
By Tim Redinger
I was a little timid about tonight’s game. It weighed on my mind all day – despite the recent surge of points, the standstill in the standings; facing the Boston Bruins. The Buffalo Sabres could still be to fragile for this game.
Did I say to fragile? I meant en feugo. Any doubt that the Buffalo Sabres had about being able to play with some of the best teams in the league should be extinguished after tonight. On my drive home from work tonight, Paul Hamilton was on with Schopp and the BullDog – and Paul called the Boston Bruins one of the better teams in hockey, unable to come up with a weakness in the time that the WGR550 staff had left in the segment. Oh sure, if Paul had time he would have probably been able to analyze the Boston Bruins and find out what key points the Buffalo Sabres should focus on in order to win the game.
Apparently the Buffalo Sabres, with Lindy Ruff in the press box and James Patrick the man behind the bench, found every way to take advantage of the Boston Bruins, and routed the B’s 6-0 in a game in which the Sabres controlled, dominated, dictated, and never let up on the gas. This is the type of hockey the fans of Sabres Nation expected all season, and is exactly what the doctor ordered for a team desperate to make a last stand to get into the playoffs. The game was already over by the time Drew Stafford crashed the net to score the sixth goal with just about a minute to play in the game, but the message was sent, and should be received loud and clear. The Buffalo Sabres are no longer playing games in the NHL this season, the Second Half Sabres have taken over, and are going to make things interesting.
I have to thank the guys across the hall at work; without them I would have missed the game completely. I did 70 down the thruway to get home in time to catch the rest of the game knowing I had to drive from Amherst to Cheektowaga, stop and get the wife something to eat, and stop at Target to get milk for the offspring. I missed a few seconds of the third period, but hey you can’t win them all.
The Buffalo Sabres won tonights game because they did everything right. Faceoffs, battles, they took the game to the Boston Bruins and the Bruins were not prepared for the charge. Not ready for the game or lost their damn minds, the Bruins started to get stupid late in the second and in the third period as the Sabres had solid control of their game.
The Sabres continue their home-stand this weekend with two home games, one against the Dallas Stars on Friday, and then they will play host to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday. The Sabres finish their home stand against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.
With Ryan Miller leading from the crease and continuing his inspired play, the Boston Bruins took about every page of stupid and used it tonight. The Boston Bruins should be expecting to hear from Brendan Shanahan on at least two different events. Shawn Thorton left the bench to start an altercation in the final minutes of the second period, and should have been ejected from the game, but was only handed 17 minutes in penalties. Lucic made more fans in the city of Buffalo by cross checking Pat Kaleta in the back of the head with just about three minutes to go. That is now two head shots that Lucic has taken on Sabres players.
Tonights two points brings the Sabres up to 12th, and are now only nine points out of a playoff picture, with Ottawa holding the eighth and final spot.
If anyone in the First Niagara Center wanted to use tonight’s games as a measuring stick for the rest of the season, the Buffalo Sabres did not give the opportunity to be measured. They took the measuring stick and broke it over the Bruins backs.