WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
January Edition
Andrey Makarov played well in his NHL debut Saturday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Finally – or perhaps a more appropriate word would be “mercifully” – the end of the Sabres’ long, trying season is in sight.
Three games are left. A regulation loss tonight at home to the Carolina Hurricanes or later this week will cement 30th place, ending probably the oddest campaign in the franchise’s 45-year history.
Hours after the Sabres’ 3-0 loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday, the 29th-place ... Read the full article
Bryan Trottier is one of the New York Islanders’ all-time greats. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – New York Islanders legend Bryan Trottier remembers the noise. The roar inside Nassau Coliseum would become deafening, funneling down from the stands to the ice.
“To the point where you’re reading lips,” Trottier, a Sabres assistant coach, said Friday. “Until you actually experience it, it’s just fantastic.”
The Isles are moving to bigger and better digs 24 miles away next season, the shiny Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Trottier, a Hall of Famer who ... Read the full article
Matt Moulson (26) could miss tonight’s game. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Winger Matt Moulson woke up this morning feeling ill. Meanwhile, defenseman Mike Weber woke up feeling sore.
The Sabres don’t have an extra forward. Rochester is playing tonight in Iowa, so recalling one for tonight’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks won’t be easy.
What will the Sabres do?
“That’s a big question,” Sabres coach Ted Nolan said this morning inside the First Niagara Center.
The Sabres haven’t ruled Moulson out. Defenseman Tyson Strachan ... Read the full article
Patrick Kaleta had tears in his eyes when he was presented a jersey with an ‘A’ sewn on. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – It was Wednesday morning, and before the Sabres hit the ice, Ted Nolan had some business to take care of in a team meeting. The coach handed Mike Weber a jersey, which the defenseman then tossed to winger Patrick Kaleta.
The jersey was Kaleta’s No. 36 with an ‘A’ stitched on it, meaning Weber wanted the heart-and-soul player to take over his alternate captaincy.
Emotion overwhelmed Kaleta. The 28-year-old Angola native had ... Read the full article
Patrick Kaleta wore the ‘A’ for the first time Wednesday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – It was Wednesday morning, and before the Sabres hit the ice, Ted Nolan had some business to take care of in a team meeting. The coach handed Mike Weber a jersey, which the defenseman then tossed to winger Patrick Kaleta.
The jersey was Kaleta’s No. 36 with an ‘A’ stitched on it, meaning Weber wanted the heart-and-soul player to take over his alternate captaincy.
Emotion overwhelmed Kaleta. The 28-year-old Angola native had ... Read the full article
Sabres goalie Anders Lindback tries to stop New Jersey’s Steve Bernier (18) with Andre Benoit’s (61) help March 20. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Just like that, 29th place – a precarious spot that wouldn’t guarantee the Sabres either Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel, the mega-draft prospects they covet – is back in play.
Sorry, fans, the race isn’t over yet. The Sabres’ 4-1 victory Monday in Arizona moved them to within four points of the Coyotes, who looked awful throughout the night.
The 30th-place Sabres also have a game in hand, so ... Read the full article
Brian Gionta believes Sabres fans cheered for the team Thursday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Brian Gionta wouldn’t go there. The Sabres captain knows his words carry weight.
Gionta played almost 25 minutes in the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime loss Thursday, a game in which many hometown fans rooted for the Arizona Coyotes, creating a bizarre scene inside the First Niagara Center.
Surely, the veteran heard the loud cheering for the opposition.
“No, our fans were cheering for us,” Gionta insisted Friday after the Sabres prepared for tonight’s ... Read the full article
Brian Gionta is stopped by New York Rangers goalie Mackenzie Skapski earlier this season. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Unlike his teammate Mike Weber, who ripped the hometown fans, Sabres captain Brian Gionta wouldn’t go there.
Gionta played almost 25 minutes in the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime loss Thursday, a game in which the hometown fans rooted for the Arizona Coyotes. Surely, the veteran heard the loud cheering inside the First Niagara Center.
“No, our fans were cheering for us,” Gionta insisted this afternoon. “We have great fans. We have a great ... Read the full article
Sabres goalie Matt Hackett stops Arizona’s Shane Doan on Thursday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Mike Weber spoke passionately, like a man who felt jilted. The gritty defenseman had just experienced perhaps the oddest game of his career, the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime loss to the Arizona Coyotes.
The payoff, the prize for all the “suffering” for two seasons had been laid in front of Sabres fans Thursday, creating a bizarre scene inside the First Niagara Center that will likely never be repeated.
A loss to the 29th... Read the full article
Sabres goalie Anders Lindback stops New Jersey’s Stephen Gionta on Friday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – In Europe, handling the puck is “not a big thing for the goalies,” Sabres newcomer Anders Lindback said.
The bigger rink allows them to sling it and almost act as a third defenseman. European ice surfaces don’t have those pesky trapezoids designed to keep goalies in their net, either.
Handling the puck on the smaller North American ice surface with restrictions is difficult for NHL goalies. Very few do it well.
The 6-foot-6 ... Read the full article