Happy Holidays!

Today is my favorite day of the year. Ever since I was a little kid, I've always loved Christmas Eve. Between the big Polish dinner we make tonight and opening gifts with all of my cousins, this is always the day I dream about what will be under the tree tomorrow morning.

In that spirit, I present you with my Buffalo Sports Christmas list for the coming year (and Santa, if you're reading this, all of us tortured Buffalo fans have been very good again this year, despite our teams' circumstances).

All I want for Christmas is...

* A healthy Buffalo Sabres lineup for the first time in a long time

* A Bills win over the Patriots on Sunday. I would love nothing more than to knock them out of the playoffs.

* A new coach for the Buffalo Bills (preferably someone with more than one facial expression)

* Paul Gaustad to return to the ice as soon as possible

* A way for Nate Gerbe and Chris Butler to stay up with the big club

* A veteran backup quarterback behind Trent Edwards next season

* To see Maxim Afinogenov in another team's jersey come deadline day (if not sooner)

* A goal scored by Jason Pominville that isn't an empty-netter

* Thomas Vanek to take back the lead in goals from Jeff Carter

* More interviews with Jaro Spacek using the word "pigeon"

* To see all of the years of heartbreak and dreams of "next year" fade into oblivion with that first championship.

* A safe, healthy, and happy holiday season for all of the Buffalo Bloggers and our readers.

Merry Christmas (or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa or whatever it is you celebrate)! May you and your families have a joyous holiday season!

Nothing says Happy Holidays like puppy nap buddies!

Dear Santa...

With only three days left until Christmas, I figured that Muckers and Grinders needed to get into the holiday spirit.

With the blizzard around us and the clock ticking down for last minute shopping, I figure that even the athletes of Buffalo must be thinking about what will be under their tree come Christmas morning.

With that in mind, I present a look at some of the Christmas wish lists of our very own Bills and Sabres, written in their own words to the big man at the North Pole:

Dear Santa,
This Christmas, all I would like is a win to close out the season. When I said I wanted consistency last year, I didn't mean having the same record all the years I was a coach. That makes me very frustrated, and if you could see my face right now, I'm certain you would know. All that being said, I have tried to be a good coach this year; ignore all those "naughty" people who may say otherwise.
Enthusiastically waiting for your arrival,
Dick Jauron
PS: I've heard many people say that I should ask for a personality this Christmas. I do not know what that is, but it sounds great - maybe you could leave one in my stocking?

Dear St. Nick,
I don't know what I did to tick you off last year, but it had to be something big to get that 10-game losing streak under the tree. If you're thinking of that again this year, just send coal; I can use it to light a fire under my team.
Lindy Ruff

Yo Santa!
i know i wuz pretty naughty this summer and everything, but i tried to do right by taking the blame for the running game being so bad (when even u know that wasn't my fault). i guess all i want this year is for everyone to forget my little "problem" this summer - oh yeah - and a new offensive scheme that gets me more carries would be nice, too.
Thanx!
Beast Mode!

Santa,
Save all the gifts for the poor and sick children of the world, all I'm asking for is world peace.
Sincerely,
Paul Gaustad

Dear Mr. Claus,
As Yoda says, "A Merry Christmas will you..." - oh screw it! I just want a job next season, ok?
The best third string QB ever,
JP Losman

Dearest Santa,
I tried to be a good boy this year, taking my naps on time and sticking to the system as best as I could. All I really want are some better hockey sticks, maybe ones that aren't made of glass that shatter on contact.
Thank you oh so much,
Jason Pominville

St. Nick,
I'm just going to keep asking for the same thing every year until I get it, and I'll hold out the milk and cookies until I do. I want BIG $$$. I know that my Pro Bowl status should be enough to convince you of how nice I've been; don't listen to the fans who only pay attention when I mess up.
No treats for the reindeer either if I don't get it,
Jason Peters

Santa,
Take Max back to the North Pole with you this year. I'm sure he'd like it up there; he can give away things for a living then.
Emphatically,
Sabres fans everywhere

Happy Thoughts for a Friday

There is no better way to start a weekend:

*The Sabres just stole another two points yesterday after that improbable comeback in Minnesota. I will admit that I was ready to call it a loss after Miller scored on himself, but, once again, these boys have taught me never to count them out. Not that I like seeing them fall into holes to begin with, but it is nice to feel that they can always find a way out of them. The cardiac kids are back, and, besides the frayed nerves and racing heart, I have never felt better about that.

Royzie proves that white boys can jump; he actually looks like a normal-sized hockey player here.

By the way, my Unsung Hero of the Game goes to the Sabres Defensemen for playing another sound game and chipping in offensively to help us secure the win (especially Sekera, Paetsch, and Tallinder).

*The Bills are headed to Miami for what I think will be a good test of how we're handling our success. The Dolphins have already given the Pats fits, but I think we'll be ready for the "Wildcat" offense. By the way, does anyone else think of High School Musical whenever they hear "Wildcat offense"? I laugh every time picturing Chad Pennington bursting into song and dance while calling plays.

*All signs are pointing to Buffalo being host to the 2010-2011 World Junior Championship. This is such a huge honor for this city, and I can't wait for it to happen. It's about time the entire world saw what a true hockey city Buffalo really is.

*The latest sabres.com interview with Ryan Miller is pretty hilarious. I love that he's able to laugh about what happened yesterday. I especially love when he discusses exactly how he is going to repay his teammates for bailing him out. Somehow, the image of these guys walking through Disney World never fails to make me smile. I especially like that Ryan mentioned EPCOT, which is my personal favorite park:

Am I seeing things, or is that the Pigeon behind Ryan? If so, that means he's pulling ahead in the race to take him home for the summer.

*Speaking of the Pigeon, this week's episode of The Sabres Show contains the intermission feature on the newest member of the team. I love listening to Spacek all the time, but there's something special about how he says "pigeon":

Other things I love about this video include:
The random outbursts and cooing noises while Spacho is talking (I'm putting money on Petey and Mair being the guilty parties)
The bird "flying" by Spacek during the interview
Petey saying that Spacho is a pigeon but he "doesn't really know what that means"
Patty Lalime being generally adorable and snuggling his invisible pigeon

All this adds up to probably one of the dorkiest locker rooms in the NHL, but that's what we all love about them. They can laugh together, joke together, take care of stuffed animals together. They are closer in October than most teams are in April, and that has to account for something. Chemistry matters on a team, and ours is stronger than ever. The proof is in the standings.

Here's to hoping these happy thoughts carry over into a very productive and happy Buffalo sports weekend!

In 1992...

• The Sabres picked up a goalie by the name of Dominik Hasek from Chicago.
• Aladdin was tops at the box office
• Bill Clinton became the President (and had yet to meet Monica)
• I was starting preschool
• The Bills were on their way to their third Super Bowl with an 11-5 record

A LOT has changed since the Bills last went 3-0, but the feeling of hope it gives this city remains the same.

I know it was more nerve-wracking than it was supposed to be. I know Jason Peters got blown up all day long. I know we need to get our running game going stronger than it has been.

But once that kick sailed through the uprights and the clock hit 0:00, none of that mattered.

I know it's cliche, but "good teams find a way to win." When we needed him the most, Trent came through with the poise that has quickly become his trademark. Now, we're 3-0 and alone atop the AFC East (thank you, Ronnie Brown). How strange yet wonderful does that sound?

In hockey news, the preseason starts today! Some random notes before they drop the puck:

• I'm very happy that we re-signed Darcy for two more years. I think Darcy unfairly became the scapegoat for the team's numerous problems last year. I can only hope the events of this summer have shown people what a smart GM he really is.


• Paul Gaustad hurt himself already. He bruised his shoulder in the first scrimmage, and Lindy thinks he won't play until at least the weekend. The same goes for Thomas Vanek, who pinched a nerve in his knee on Friday. All I know is that I have tickets to Saturday's game, and I strongly hope that I can see Goose out there.


• In sad news, Lindy is going to break up Hank and Toni! No more Tallydman! I feel like US Weekly reporting on the split of Bennifer. I suppose it's good to see new defense partners, but I will miss those two together.

Hope Lives - A Day in Pictures

Week 1: Bills (34) over Seahawks (10)

Why a Monday morning has never felt better:

Suddenly all those crazy hopes just got a lot less crazy. I'm drinking the Red, White, and Blue Kool-Aid and loving every second of it.

The Bills Make Me Wanna...

Shout? Cry? Laugh? Hurl sneakers at the TV while yelling obscenities at JP Losman?

The answer to all of these has been, at some point in my life or another, yes. Today, though, I want to focus on a different verb.

Today, the Bills make me wanna hope.

It's the start of a new season, and with it comes all of the blind optimism that we in Buffalo are famous for. Some people like to laugh at our faith in a team that has let us down over and over again, but I think it's one of the best things about us as fans. By December we may be jaded and bitter, but in September, Bills fandom is quite a lovely place to be.

Ryan over at the Roost said pretty much everything I want to say on this topic (if you haven't read his post yet, you really should). I think we've all lost people in our lives who were huge Bills fans. Both of my grandfathers were season ticket holders, but it's my dad's dad that I'm thinking about today. He was the most passionate and loyal Bills fan I think I'll ever know, and sometimes it hurts to think that he got to accomplish everything he wanted out of life - except to see his team win the Big One that he traveled to four Super Bowls to see.

Still, my grandpa never lost his hope. I guess that's where I get it from. I know I could talk about our new defense, or Trent Edwards, or Jason Peters, or why Paul Posluszny is on the injury report already, but I don't really feel like it.

I feel like talking about how excited everyone is to see a team that has missed the playoffs since I started watching football religiously. I feel like talking about the happiness in my dad's eyes as he and my aunt went off to the Ralph today.

This team could very well break our hearts all over again, but that's just the thing. In Buffalo, we willingly offer those hearts to be broken in exchange for the mere chance that this could be the year, this could be our year.

There's still an hour to kickoff, and by the time I get home from work today, the whole season could be over or it could be just beginning the push to the playoffs.

Today in honor of my grandpa, I choose to hope. I hope that this city will be right for once, that maybe, just maybe, our fragile hearts will stay in one piece.

In answer to the eternal question, yes, I am ready for some football.

Go Bills!