Back to Business

It's time to get back to business - on so many levels.

After a summer of job-hunting and resume-writing, I've finally settled down at a job I love: writing and editing educational books for children. Now that I feel settled in this crazy new life, I'm ready to get back to making this blog the best it can be.

After tonight's preseason game, it looks like the Sabres are ready to get back to business too.

A 9-3 rout of the Flyers was exactly what I needed to get back into the swing of blogging. It may have only been a preseason game, but it felt close enough to the real deal. The crowd was chanting, "Sweet Caroline" was playing, and it felt good to be back at the arena after an offseason that felt too long once again.

The best part of the game wasn't Stafford's highlight-reel goal. It wasn't even Kaleta's fight - as thrilled as I was to see my first fight of the season. It was getting to share it with two of my best friends and watching one of them experience a game at the arena for the first time. Explaining all of the best parts of the game I love so much and sharing the fun of seeing a game like that in person reminded me of why I love blogging. Writing this blog is another way of sharing all of the parts of the game I love with some pretty fantastic people. It's a way to celebrate games like tonight's and commiserate together over the bad games that are sure to come.

As I left the arena tonight, the goal chants still ringing in my ears and the smile still on my face, only one thought was left in my mind. It wasn't which defensemen were going to make the opening night roster, and it wasn't whether or not Stafford has turned a corner. It was: Is it Friday yet?

It felt good to be back. It felt a lot like coming home.

Intensity

It started like this...

featured a player playing like this...

Photo curtesy of Yahoo Images

and ended like this on the ice...

Photo curtesy of The Buffalo News

...and off the ice in high-fives, hugs, car horns happily honking, and chants throughout the parking lots.

I'll have more to say tomorrow; I'm emotionally and physically drained from such an amazing night. The intensity in that game - from both the teams and the crowd was something I had missed so much over the last few seasons. The playoffs are truly a different animal, but I think we showed tonight (in the first and third periods at least) that we can face that animal head-on.

Fifteen more to go until the ultimate goal is reached. For tonight, though, I'm only thinking about one - one game, one win, and one unifying moment for the city.

Quick Hits

Some random thoughts as I steel my nerves for the Sabres-Sens game tomorrow night:

*In my last post, I said that Paul Gaustad was challenging Pat Kaleta for his spot in my father's heart. Apparently, Patty took that personally and then went on to have two amazing games with two shorthanded goals. Both were impressive, but I especially liked the one on Lundqvist. It was a shot with a lot of confidence, and it was so unexpected. I always love seeing grinders get recognition, so I am very happy to see him in the spotlight. Plus, I like when other people get to see their underappreciated favorite get some love from people other than them, so I'm happy for my dad!

*Speaking of underappreciated favorites, I am really missing Goose out on the ice. I never noticed how important his face-off skills were until we were without them. At least he's improving, though, so hopefully he'll be back soon. I really wish he was playing tomorrow - he's the only one I trust to give Chris Neil a beating.

*In NFL news, J.P. Losman is reportedly heading to Oakland. I finally get to use my "I don't think you're a failure, J.P." tag again! That's pretty much the extent of how much I care about that news. It's nice to see him back in the NFL, but the Bills this season have drained a lot of my energy in terms of the effort I put into my football fandom. It's hard for me to care about a sport when my team is so irrelevant in it.

*I forgot to say this in my last post, but my thoughts and prayers go out to Mike Grier and his family after the passing of his mother. As someone who lost someone close to her around Christmas, I know that's not easy. Kudos to him for coming back as soon as he did, and I'm sure he's getting all the support he needs from his teammates and coaches. They really are a family, and I hope that comforts him.

*Tomorrow the Sabres play in Ottawa. Just saying that makes me start to shake involuntarily. I have come to dread Ottawa games like I dreaded Calculus class - the feeling of failure just hangs around it. I'm hoping that they prove my exceedingly low expectations ("just don't get embarrassed") wrong, but I'm not planning on a win. You may call that being negative, but I call that being a Sabres fan for the last four years. Again, let's just hope they prove my pessimism wrong.

What We Needed (and One Thing We Didn't Need)

After the torture that was Sunday's life-draining Bills game, Buffalo fans needed a lot of things to keep morale up for what was looking to be a long fall and winter for sports lovers in WNY.

Even if tonight was just one game, at least we have the Sabres to thank for giving us some of those things that our fan experience had been lacking recently:

• Offensive production
• Solid coaching and a good game plan
• Team tenacity
• The ability to beat a proven winner (or even a team that maybe wins some games every once in a while)
• Rookies who are actually used effectively and productively on the team
• A leader who makes a big play (or save) when it's called for
• Excitement - Buffalo fans just want to believe in something and feel passionate about something. That's hard to do with the passionless football being played right now, but it was a different story inside HSBC Arena tonight.

Tonight was an important night in my house - as Goose (my favorite) and Pat Kaleta (my dad's favorite) scored their first goals of the season. It's always a good feeling to watch the guy you cheer the hardest for put it in the back of the net, and I honestly thought I was going to have to wait a lot longer for Goose's first goal. Those post-goal high fives always feel the best when it's the guy on your jersey who just put your team up by another goal.

The only negative aspect of tonight's game was the loss of Thomas Vanek. Just as the team was finding its offensive stride, its star scorer goes down. I guess I'm just happy it's now instead of down the home stretch.

I know that this game could have been a fluke, but I was highly impressed with the product put on the ice tonight. It gave Buffalo fans something to really cheer about and thoroughly enjoy watching - which is something we could all use a little more of lately.