Game Recap (ED. NOTE- THAT GAME WAS AWESOME)

(ed. note- About halfway through writing this Game Diary I realize that a lot of the stuff I wrote at the beginning of the diary was all wrong-headed.  So, I went back and made some notes.)

-Holy crap do I wish Vincent Lecavalier was a Sabre.

-Holy crap do I wish Jochen Hecht was not a Sabre.

-Remember that time Lecavalier and Hecht fought?  That was awesome.  If they fought again right now I might be rooting for Vinny. 

- I love it when a guy scores a goal and then immediately points to the guy who gave him the pass.  Vanek does that all the time.  Because he’s awesome.  Vanek has good manners, even in the heat of the moment.

(ed. note- At some point in here the score got to be 3-1, Lightning.  I really wasn’t paying super close attention to be honest.)

- The Lightning are an incredibly exciting and awesome team.  They’re just plan better than the Sabres. (ed. note- *cue hilarious foreshadowing music*) The Lightning are a good example of how quickly things can change when the right man takes over a franchise.  Have hope, Sabres fans!  Things can change.  Two years ago the Barry Melrose was coaching the Lightning and Stamkos was a bust, and now look at them!  They rock. (ed. note- They do not rock.)

- You know, even though the Sabres are currently losing 3-1, I still like this game.  Is anyone else just totally calm about the Sabres?  It’s Pegula.  I believe again, because now I’ve got some patience.   (ed. note- I REALLY BELIEVE AGAIN!  THANK YOU HOCKEY GODS!)

-Is there a guy in a Sabres Steve Bernier jersey sitting right behind Brian Engblom?  That is WEIRD.  If you’re the guy who ran out and bought that jersey the day after Bernier’s impressive debut against Nashville two years ago, aren’t you also the guy who has a closet full of jerseys?  And if you own other, non-Bernier jerseys, shouldn’t you be wearing one of those to the game?  Is it possible that this guy only owns one Sabres jersey, and that jersey is a…Bernier? (ed. note- The guy in the Bernier jersey is OBVIOUSLY LUCKY, and if Pegula is smart he’ll pay the Bernier-guy to travel around with the team, and wear his Bernier jersey in the first row behind the benches at every game. MAKE IT HAPPEN, PEGASAURUS!)

(ed. note: NOT weird!  HE’S A LUCKY CHARM AND I LOVE HIM!)

-Jason Pominville needs to score some goals.  Or at least be remotely visible on the ice. (ed. note- This actually still stands.)

- Huh.  The Sabres just tied it!  I did not see that coming.  It’s definitely easier to score when the opposing goalie is flat on his back.  The Sabres should send old Staffy out to trip up the goalie more often.  This game is now hilarious because the home fans are MEGA cranky and booing all over the place.  Can’t say I exactly blame them, although Staffy was just falling.  He didn’t mean nothin’ by it. (ed. note- The crowd should’ve saved their booing and just stood up and gone home.  The ax…it was hovering.  To say the least.  WOO!)

- WHY did Lindy put Niedermayer out on the 3-on-3?  WHAT POSSIBLE JUSTIFICATION COULD THERE POSSIBLY BE FOR NIEDERMAYER ON A 3-ON-3?!  WHY LINDY, WHY? (ed. note- WHY?!)

- Wow!  Tim Connolly just scored.  I repeat.  Tim Connolly just score the go ahead goal. That goal was nice work by Stafford, Ennis and Connolly. 4-3, Sabres.

- I am definitely losing my, “TRADE STAFFY NOW!” resolve.  Now I’m kind of like, “WE’RE WINNING THE CUP, AND STAFFY IS GOING TO BE THE MVP!”

- Okay, the Sabres just scored AGAIN.  This is the best game EVER!  (Except for possibly this game, which was also against the Lightning.) 5-3, Sabres.

- Why haven’t they pulled Roloson? (ed. note- I should be the coach of the Lightning.)

- HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Tampa Bay Lightning, WHY did you leave Vanek all alone right in front of the net?  Are you guys retarded? (ed. note- Yes!  THEY ARE!)  6-3, Sabres.

- Okay, Staffy.  You can stay.  It’s decided.  Tell us how much money you want, and we’ll have Pegula’s lawyers write up the contract.  IT’S A “MOOOORE BRAAAAAAINS” HAT TRICK! 7-3, Sabres.

- Aw, Vinny scored.  I love that guy.  I wish he was a Sabre.  Have I mentioned that recently? 7-4, Sabres.

- Well.  I think I speak for all Sabres fans when I say, “EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” (ed. note- EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!)

-If you’re not jazzed after that one, we can’t be friends.

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!  WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! THE SABRES ARE NEVER LOSING AGAIN! (ed. note- It’s been far, far too long since I’ve said, “The Sabres are never losing again.”  Welcome back, Sabres.)

4 Things

1. Man, the Leafs sure do deliver, do they?  As most of you know, I’ve only been a fan for a few years, but in that time, the Sabres have absolutely OWNED the Leafs, particularly at HSBC Arena.  In a weird way, the Leafs are sort of our heroes.  Whenever we’re feeling down in the dumps because of an unsettling loss to the Penguins, in swoop the Leafs to dry away our tears.  It’s like clockwork.  Thank you, Leafs!

(Aside to the Hockey Gods: Thank you for your glorious Leaf-related bounty.  In no way, shape, or form do we as Sabres fans take your blessings for granted.  We approach every game that the Sabres play with reverence and respect, including the Leafs.  We do this for you.  Amen,)

2. A few days ago I tweeted that I’m excited that the Sabres will have a First Lady.  I was speaking, of course, about Kim Pegula, Terry’s wife.  This is something new for Sabres fans, because Tom Golisano is unmarried and  dates women 30 years his junior.  Monica Seles seems cool and all, but she’s no First Lady.  That’s for sure.

What I did not anticipate was the emergence of the Pegula daughters on twitter.

Now look.  I’m sure the Pegula girls are awesome.  Of this I have no doubt.  From what I’ve read, their tweets are fun and interesting.  And I can hardly blame them for enjoying the twitter-attention that suddenly came racing their way when their parents bought the Sabres.  Nor can I blame Sabres fans for being interested in the girls, because short of one brief camera shot of Pegula sitting next to Larry Quinn in Pittsburgh, we’ve had exactly ZERO exposure to Terry Pegula.  We’re desperate to hear about him and his family, and at first glance it was fun that his daughters were being so approachable on twitter.

But, you guys, these are teen-aged girls. I believe the oldest of the two is seventeen-years-old.  It’s NOT healthy, for them or for us, for a couple of teenagers to be our primary source of Pegula-information.  I am decidedly uneasy about this turn of events. 

When I decided to write about this issue, I included a whole section that listed in detail all the ways in which this was headed straight for disaster.  It started with, “sooner or latter Terry Pegula is going to do something that pisses people off, and it’s a TERRIBLE idea for people to have a way to air their grievances directly to his children,” it traveled through to, “some people are EXTREMELY RUDE online,” and it finished up with, “I don’t even want to THINK about the multitude of ways in which these young heiresses can be objectified by unscrupulous jerks.”  But, in the end I decided that all of those things are issues that the Pegulas will have to decide how to handle as parents.  It’s really none of our business.  The only thing about the Pegula girls on Twitter that really effects Sabres fans is this:  This deal is NOT YET DONE.  If somehow some sicko on Twitter manages to ruin this for everyone by harassing the Pegula daughters I am going to BURN THIS CITY TO THE GROUND WITH RAGE.  The LAST THING we need is Terry Pegula pissed off at us before the deal EVEN GOES THROUGH.

If I’m the Pegulas, (after rolling around naked in my bank vault of cash) I immediately grant an interview to take the edge off the curiosity in Buffalo, in the hopes that the local paper will not be so hard up for personal information about me that they link to the twitter accounts of my teen-aged children.  Then, I demand that my daughters lock down their twitter accounts.  And if one of the girls resists and refuses to privacy-protect her account, I tell them, “WELL THEN, NO MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR INHERITANCE FOR YOU, YOUNG LADY.”  And yes, I would shout at them in all-caps.  That’s how good parents do it.

AND GET OFF MY LAWN! *sprays twitter with the hose*

3. For the first ten (or so) years of my adulthood, I had absolutely no inclination towards gardening or houseplants.  I’d buy a cactus, only to watch it slowly die of thirst.  A cactus.  Dying of thirst.  On my watch.

Perhaps it’s just my withered old age, but I’ve gotten increasingly interested in plants, and now I probably have two dozen potted plants in my house.  I really think that plants are the absolute best way to cozy up a room.  Better than fancy carpets, better than beautiful artwork, a nice healthy plant says, “This is nice place to live!”

If at some point in your life you’ve been a plant killer, I encourage you not to give up.  Keep trying!  If you’re inclined to by plants, but have a difficult time keeping them alive, I suggest you invest in an attractive flowerpot for your new plant.  Flowerpots are inexpensive and really fun to shop for in my opinion.  I like the pots almost as much as I like the plants, and when I started buying pretty pots for my plants I immediately started taking better care of them.

This is my new plant.  I call him Sideshow Bob.  It cost $8, probably because it’s got some worrisome brown spots on its leaves.  Poor guy.

Hey, yellow-potted friend!

4. As I’m sure you’re aware, today is Superbowl Sunday, and, more importantly, today is the Puppy Bowl.  This year, Sabres fans should pay special attention to the Puppy Bowl, because we have a local contestant. This puppy’s name is Lindy. At the suggestion of someone on twitter who I can’t remember (although I suspect it was the fabulous and alluring @reigningfrog), I’ve spruced him up a bit.

Make us proud, Lindy.

Come Back Soon, Sabres. I Miss You.

Sometimes when the transfer of ownership of your favorite sports team is making you a little kooky, what you really need to do is watch a good, old-fashioned donkey derby.

If a donkey derby doesn’t put a spring in your step, nothing can.

 

It is NOT Tom Golisano Appreciation Day ANYMORE. Infact Today Is “Tom Golisano, Don’t Let The Door Hit You On The Way Out” Day.

I just….

Please go away now Tom Golisano and Friends.

I think we can all agree that this little trick the Sabres have pulled with Darcy’s top-secret-contract-extension-which-just-so-happens-to-correspond-with-the-sale-of-the-team raises a Hechtload of dicey questions. But…whatever. These wackadoos will be gone soon.