In honor of the five goals we scored tonight, I present five random statements about the Sabres much-needed 5-0 win over the LA Kings.
1.) I'm so proud of Ryan Miller. A 40-save shutout is nothing to scoff at, and I'm glad that he's getting all the praises tonight. His play may have been iffy on Wednesday, but tonight he was rock solid in game that we couldn't lose. I hope he can carry this confidence for a while because he has every reason to be confident after a performance like that. On a related note, I love Patty Lalime's reaction to wins for Ryan; they both seem so happy when Lalime attacks him with his big bear hugs. They seem to genuinely like one another, which I think works well for a goalie tandem (and it makes for great goalie-love celebrations).
2.) My unsung hero tonight is actually a pair of players - our latest call-ups, Chris Butler and Matt Ellis. Butler played very sound hockey, and Roby praised his "grey matter," which is something that he doesn't take too lightly. He has a very accurate shot, as evidenced by his assist on Mair's goal, and he made some very good outlet passes. I also liked that, when he was complimented on his play on the postgame show, he thanked the reporter for his praise. He seems very humble, and you all know that this is how I like my hockey players.
Matt Ellis gets the nod for his hard-working effort filling in for Goose. He had some very nice hits and was rewarded for his work with a goal. I love when our grinders score, so this was my favorite goal of the night (plus it gave Peters his first point on the season!).
3.) I was surprised at the number of people in the arena despite the weather (and the Silver pricing). The snow ruined my plans for a breaking-in party for my new HDTV, but hopefully we'll play just as well on Monday against the Pens because that's my "snow date." You never know with this team, but I hope this win signals a turnaround in home-ice play. It was nice to hear "Sweet Caroline" at HSBC again.
4.) There was a lot to love about the Sabres Show tonight, so much that I have a whole blog planned for tomorrow about it. Be ready for a complete gushing session about how sweet the clip of the visit to Children's Hospital was because I swear I almost teared up seeing the kids' faces (I am such a softie!).
5.) Denis Gauthier is a scumbag, and I hope he gets suspended:
Not only does he sucker-punch Kaleta; he tries to throw an elbow at him before it. After the classless punch, he throws his hands up like he didn't do anything. Then, when Peters tried to challenge him later in the game, he ran away. Spineless moves like that make me angry like nothing else.
I hope Patty is okay; Lindy seems to think that the outlook is not good, but I hope it's nothing too serious. The only good news is that he isn't in the hospital. Poor guy, he didn't even hit anyone on that play, and he's going to be sidelined again for God knows how long.
I hope you're proud of yourself, Gauthier. I'm going to use my favorite Roby-ism and refer to you as a "gutless puke."
Am I wrong to be so worked up about that? Is this just something that Patty should expect with the kind of game he plays?
Game #34 Preview & Open Thread: Sabres vs. Bruins
18 hours ago
6 comments:
Am I wrong to be so worked up about that? Is this just something that Patty should expect with the kind of game he plays?
He should def expect to be targeted by the opposing goons. It is just part of the way he plays. Especially the fact that he is seen as a turtle by some. Just doin his job. That said, I am just as worked up by that gutless puke as you are. He figured that PK wasn't going to drop the gloves so he got him when he wasn't looking. Total classless move. I hope there is a suspension forthcoming but I am not holding my breath.
Kind of the latter. I don't know, I'm working on it...
I think Patty K does expect to be hit like that in some games, but the way Gauthier did it was run. He did draw a penalty out of it, but ended up getting his face smashed because he didn't think he was going to get punched RIGHT in the face. I hope that he's all right...we don't need his brain being rattled and destroyed in such a short time.
He should def expect to be targeted by the opposing goons. It is just part of the way he plays.
I totally agree with you on this, Jay. It's Patty's job to get punched a few times to give his team a powerplay, but I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that this crossed the line. I expect him to take a few shots from guys like Gauthier, but not in that way.
Kind of the latter. I don't know, I'm working on it...
I just read your post on it, and, once again, you cover all the bases in a way my feeble blogging skills and I could only hope. I agree that this is just going to be how it works with Patty, and that it's going to be different when teams start catching on to him.
That doesn't mean, though, that my "mother hen" instinct isn't kicking in - I always want to protect them from the gutless pukes of the world...
I hope that he's all right...we don't need his brain being rattled and destroyed in such a short time.
I hope so, too, Shelby. Patty always seemed like a big, slow puppy to begin with; his noggin doesn't need to be scrambled any more than it already is!
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