Buffalo Sabres: Best moments from the Goathead Era’s 2005-06 Season
With the Buffalo Sabres revealing their alternate Goathead Era jerseys, let’s relive some of the best moments from the last time they wore the look.
The Buffalo Sabres released their alternate jerseys for the upcoming season, the black goathead jerseys are back. As Sabres fans know, those jerseys were worn during the glory days for the franchise. While we don’t know if the Sabres will be as good as they were in the late 90’s early 2000’s, we do remember a lot of good memories while the team was wearing them.
So let’s flash back to the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs as I will give you some of the greatest moments with the black goathead uniforms during the 2005-06 NHL Season. Are you ready relive some of the greatest times in the old uniform from one of the greatest seasons in Buffalo Sabres history? Keep reading.
Best Buffalo Sabres moments from the Goathead Era: Moment # 1 – Brian Campbell Hit on RJ Umberger
First up, Brian Campbell laying the boom on RJ Umberger. This is a favorite by a lot of Sabres fans. In Game 1 of the first round during the 2006 playoffs, Buffalo was taking on Philadelphia. In overtime, Umberger received a pass until Campbell came out of nowhere and lowered the boom.
Poor Umberger was on the ground for a few minutes before making his way off the ice. I won’t say what happened later in the game because that’s next on the list but when I think of the black goathead jersey, this moment really stands out to me.
Moment #2 – Daniel Briere Goal
As if the crowd wasn’t charged up enough from the hit, moment Moment #2 got them even more pumped. In double overtime, Daniel Briere gave Buffalo the 1-0 series lead. On a delayed penalty, Briere had other ideas as he would end the game.
Moment #3 – JP Dumont Goal
After beating the Flyers in Round 1, the Buffalo Sabres would take on the Ottawa Senators in the second round. Up 2-0 in the series, Buffalo would look to take a stranglehold on the series at home. Once again, we have another overtime goal as a favorite moment and spoiler alert, the last moment is another overtime winner.
A few minutes into overtime, Buffalo would prevail with a goal from JP Dumont. It sent Sabres fans in a frenzy and most importantly, it gave Buffalo a 3-0 series lead in a series they would eventually win and make the unprecedented trip to the 2006 Eastern Conference Finals.
Moment #4 – Daniel Briere extends the Eastern Conference Finals
Are you noticing a trend? All of these moments are all during the same postseason and my last moment was the last time Buffalo wore the black goathead during a game. After beating the Senators, Buffalo would meet with Carolina in the Eastern Conference Finals. Trailing in the series 3-2, the Sabres had to win if they had any hope to return to the Stanley Cup Final.
Entrenched in a 1-1 game in overtime, Buffalo was hoping not to lose at home. A familiar hero would emerge once again. Daniel Briere would send the series to seven games as he shot the puck from the point. It hit Cam Ward’s shoulders and somehow found its way into the net.
This goal sticks with Sabres fans. Even though Game 7 was heartbreaking, that season was something special. The team was awful to start the season then caught fire as the year went along. After Game 6, players were talking about how loud the building was. Players thought the building was going to collapse because of the crowd.
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And once again, we have reached the end of yet another article outlining the rich history of the Buffalo Sabres. So what was your favorite moment during the Goathead Era’s final season? Let us know in the comments.