Spoiled Rotten

Oh, Sabres.  You shouldn’t have.  Another win?  For me?  *blushes happily*

5 Things

1. WOOOOOOOOOOOOO, and AAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  The Sabres had NO BUSINESS WHATSOEVER getting any points out of that game.  (Not that I’m complaining.)

2. Lindy Ruff is doing a really good job.  Let’s look at the evidence:

– The Sabres are first in the division.
– Whatever “The System” is, it must be a good one, because the Sabres keep winning even though we have no clutch scorers.
-Our defense and goaltending just keeps humming along.
– Lindy pulled Miller juuust at the right moment against the Pens, and he somehow knew to give Staffy the penalty shot.
– (And here’s my favorite one) His post-game comments to the press were SUPER cranky tonight.  Let’s face it, as fun as it was to get the two points, that was still a pretty atrocious game.  For some reason the Hockey Gods have been tilting the ice in our favor, but these slow starts are getting lame.  So, Lindy was pretty crotchety about the whole thing.  I appreciate that about him.  Lindy seems to be very synced up with this team.  Unlike past seasons when you got the feeling everyone was tuning him out, this year I get the sense that his disapproval will get results.  And so far, he appears to be administering his disapproval well….
– …or at least he’s administering his disapproval differently. He benched Pommers and Goose tonight?  That’s a wacky new trick.  Way to mix it up, Lindy!

3. GOOSE GOT BENCHED?  ON THE SAME DAY HE DIDN’T MAKE IT ON THE OLYMPIC TEAM?  That’s HARSH AND WRONG.  I’m outraged on his behalf.  HONK!  Poor Goose.

4. What the heck happened to Mike Grier in the third period? I looked up and all of a sudden Mike Grier was spinning around with his stick and gloves fluttering all around the ice. “Mike Grier exploded!”

5. That game really was a hoot.  I’m not going to lie, as soon as they went down 2-0 I had TOTALLY resigned myself to a big fat ugly loss.  Good work proving me wrong, Sabres!  (Maybe next game we can just skip the whole, “going down 3-0” part of the game and return to boring old wins.  Just a thought.)

Sabres vs. Thrashers, 3/14/09

Pregame

Remember me?  That chick who used to blog about the Sabres?   Well, I’m back baby.  Last week I meandered away from our little slug clad anti-heroes.  I just couldn’t care about them.  But then I went to the Panthers game.  My mission going into the arena was, “Don’t let them put you in a bad mood.”  I enjoyed that game immensely, and I think I probably would have enjoyed myself even if the Sabres had played themselves out of the playoff race.  A switch has been flipped in my approach to this season.  Frankly, I’m assuming they are going to miss the playoffs now, which sounds depressing on the surface, but in reality my new bad attitude has allowed me to enjoy hockey again.  The season is going to be over before we know it, and I might as well enjoy the games we have left.   It’s crappy hockey, but it’s still hockey.

Mood: Tired, dude!  I’ve been violing like it’s going out of style.  When I’m not playing the viola, I’m sewing little square scraps of fabric together.  My life is very glamorous.
Favorite Sabres: Let’s see, who is on this team again?  No, no, no NOT him, um, no, no, no, maaybe, no, no, oh HELL NO, no, nope, oooh!  Patrick Lalime!  Patrick Lalime is a hero, and don’t you forget it.
Least Favorite Sabre: Jason Pominville is just freaking me out now.
Prediction: Thrashers win 3-1.  Sorry.
Fabric representing my hope for this game: Black and gray plaid.  I have replaced the time I used to spend thinking about hockey, with time spent thinking about fabric.  I have a disease.  My name is Kate, and I’m addicted to looking at fabric online.  You can expect this blog to morph from nonsense about hockey to nonsense about fabric any day now. (Fabric and hockey are pretty much the same audience, right?)  Anyhoo, I’m predicting this game will be a boring old square of black plaid.

Black plaid isn’t really bad, it’s just a little lame.  Kind of like the Sabres.

After the 1st (1-0, Thrashers)

Mood: Unimpressed.  That was pretty uninspired.  The Sabres look tight, and they are being out worked by the Thrashers.
Favorite Sabre: Max.  I’ve had a weird burst of affection for Max since he’s returned from his injury.  It’s not like he’s been hugely effective or anything, but he often looks like the only Sabre on the ice who really gives a damn.  Sure, he usually just skates spastically around before taking a weird angle shot that deflects directly to the opposition, but whatever.  At least he looks like he’s trying.
Least Favorite Sabre: Jason Pominville is never scoring again.  I don’t think he’s even trying to score anymore.
Fabric representing this game so far: camouflage that appears in normal street clothes.

Not cute.

After the 2nd (3-1, Sabres)

Mood: Relieved.  I was getting worried that I was going to have to think of a fabric worse than camouflage and the very thought was making my head spin.  Also, WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Summary of events: First the Sabres were like, “Hm.  Is a diaper worse than camouflage?  Can a diaper even be considered fabric?  Isn’t a diaper something you make out of fabric?”  But then they were all, “Hey, let’s stop trying to think of a fabric uglier than camouflage and try to score some goals.”
Favorite Sabre: Maxim Afinogenov.  You know what?  Common sense be damned.  I love him.
Least Favorite Sabre: Still Pommers, but maybe slightly less so because he appeared to TRY to score at least once in that period.
Fabric representing this game so far:

after the first goal:  Lily Posy from Baskets of Flowers

Kind of prim, but still a cutie.

After the second goal: Bluebell Posy from Baskets of Flowers

oooooh.  KEY-UTE!

After the THIRD goal: AH09 Gold from (my beloved) Garden Party

Like a ray of sunshine, Max and Vanek team up for prettiness.

After the 3rd, OT, and a shootout (4-3, Thrashers)

Mood: Grossed out, and incredibly sad for Patrick Lalime.  Poor bastard.

Summary of Events: The Sabres give up a shortie to make it 3-2.  Jason Pominville fails to clear the puck with three seconds to go, and the Thrashers tie the game.  Then, somewhere in Edmonton, Ales Kotalik chuckles wryly as twenty million Sabres fail to score in the shootout.

Fabric representing this game: Cloth diaper.

Just be glad I chose a clean diaper.

Sabres vs Atlanta 11/7/08

Pregame

Mood: I am a SUPER grumpy gus right now.  I took an absolutely disasterous nap this afternoon.  I wasn’t feeling great, so I thought I’d lay down for just a second.  An hour later I woke up disoriented and IN PITCH DARKNESS (Damn you Fall Back!  Daaaaamn you!  *shaking fist at sky*), feeling even WORSE than when I started my nap. Ordinarily I am a big proponant of naps and lolling about, but not today. I have a pounding headache and a crick in my neck, and I blame my nap.
Favorite Sabre: Dan Ellis, we hardly knew ye.  In case you weren’t aware, to make room for Jochen, the Sabres had to get rid of someone else on the roster.  All of Buffalo has been abuzz with speculation that Stafford would be sent down to Portland.   (He doesn’t have to clear waivers.)  Well, in the most anti-climactic move EVER, the Sabres waived the new dude.  Seriously, I wouldn’t recognize Dan Ellis if he walked into my living room in full hockey gear and said, “Hello, my name is Dan Ellis.”  I’d be all, “…..who?”  Not that I wanted Staffy to get demoted, but waiving Dan Ellis is totally devoid of drama.  This is like the time on Lost they killed off that couple who was supposedly on the island the entire time but who we NEVER saw until the episode that was devoted entirely to them being killed by that weird spider that paralyzes you and convinces everyone that you’re dead so that you wind up being buried alive. Wait, the big cliff hanger is that you killed off waived the new guy?  Yawn. [HILARIOUS UPDATE: Apparently the dude’s name is Matt Ellis, not Dan Ellis.  Sorry Matt Ellis, you deserve better than the likes of me.]
Least Favorite Sabre: Derek Roy is the new Thomas Vanek.
Summary of thoughts: I’m cranky. I hate everything.  Shut up, Tim Connolly.
Snack representing my hopes for this game: The dreaded Whitman’s sampler.

Sure, one of these might be a delicious caramel, but at LEAST one of them is filled with DISGUSTING Maple flavored nougat.  It’s going to be hard to relax tonight.  I can just tell.

After the 1st (2-1, Sabres)

Mood: I have a terrible headache.  For the first time EVER, I kind of wish Rick would use his inside voice to call the game.
Favorite Sabre:  It’s so good to see Yo-Yo and Goose.  Jochen looks a little rusty, but whatevs.
Least Favorite Sabre: Staffy is a healthy scratch.  Harsh.  Also, totally warranted.
Summary of thoughts/events: After giving up an unfortunate goal, they settled down and took control of the game.  Robie just said they were trapping.  Seriously?  That period seemed kind of zippy.
Snack representing my hopes for this game: San Pellegrino and popcorn

A really solid snack.  One of my favorites.

After the 2nd (4-3, Sabres)

Mood: Extremely entertained.  My headache is slightly improved.
Favorite Sabre: Thomas Vanek is so very enchanting.  He’s the opposite of a slag-faced whore.  He’s…a square-jawed hero.  DUDE, is Thomas Vanek a Sexy, Passionate Warrior?!  No…he can’t be.  My mind is blown.  I need to lay down.  My headache is coming back just THINKING about this….
Least Favorite Sabre: I dunno, I’m kind of getting a kick out of them tonight.
Summary of thoughts/events: This game is a mess.  Everyone is scoring every three seconds. If the Sabres were trapping in the first period, they must be reintroducing the Thrashers to the wild in the second period.  Good thing the Thrashers are running their own wildlife preservation society.  (Does that joke make any sense?  See, I was equating trapping in hockey, to trapping animals.  The opposite of trapping animals is setting them free.  I’m trying to say that this game has been devoid of defense.  Get it?  Good jokes always require a lot of cumbersome explanation.  That’s why I try to stay away from good jokes.)
Snack representing this game thus far:  A big sloppy ice cream sundae.

It’s a redonkulous game.

After the 3rd (4-4)

Mood: I’m mildly irritated that this game is going into overtime.  That was TOTALLY a goal.  Vanek was robbed.  This has been an enjoyable game (I can dig sloppy hockey from time to time) but I’m ready for sleeps.

At the end (5-4, Atlanta)

Summary of thoughts: Well, that sucked.  Sloppy hockey is only fun when the Sabres win. They really should have won that one.  I’m going to bed.

Gross

Sabres Vs. Thrashers 2/1/08

Pregame

Mood: Concerned.
Favorite Sabre: Hmm. I’m feeling Nolan Pratt tonight. I know! Weird! Is he even playing?
Least Favorite Sabre:

Animal representing my hopes for this game: Turkey. Ornary and dumb.
Prediction: Lazy Sabres.
Summary of thoughts: I’m kind of scared that the Thashers are going to try to hurt someone. Eff you in advance, Thrashers!

After 1st (0-2, Thrashers)

Mood: I do not heart them. At all.
Favorite Sabre: Meh. Rob Ray.
Least Favorite Sabre: Derek Roy. SHAMEFUL DIVER
Animal representing my hopes for this game: frozen game hen

Prediction: This game will continue to blow, but the Devils are coming back.
Summary of thoughts: DUDE! Mark Recchi! Why don’t you get a helmet that fits? Your FOREHEAD is bright red! I’m sure they can adjust your helmet so that your noggin isn’t so squeezed!

After the 2nd (3-2, Sabres)

Mood: Entertained
Favorite Sabre: Goose. Listen, I know I go on and on about Goose, but really, it was TOTALLY his righteous indignation over that waved off goal that got these guys back in the game. That was some quality work. Hee!
Least Favorite Sabre: I’m sticking with Derek Roy, but only half-heartedly. He did take that stick pretty hard in the shnozz.
Animal representing my hopes for this game: Owl.
Prediction: Well, something is going to happen. It seems like the Thrashers might totally lose their shit.
Summary of thoughts: I got so used to watching them lose and lose and lose that I totally forgot that the game isn’t over after the opposing team scores the first goal! Which is not to say it’s over now. No. No, there is still plenty of time for disaster. Also, the bit with Robi in front of the blue screen like a weatherman is hilarious.

At the end (4-5 SO, Thrashers)

Mood: Horrified. On so many levels.
Favorite Sabre: Ryan Miller. Please be okay please be okay please be okay.
Least Favorite Sabre: Brian Campbell. Nice hustle on that third Thrasher goal, buddy.
Animal(s) representing my hopes for the future: Three, single-cell amoebas. Pray for them.

Summary of thoughts: That was terrible. Crunchy is hurt. We lost another shoot-out. Vanek just makes me horribly, horribly sad. BUT, we got a point, and you know what?….They didn’t suck. That was a pretty feisty game.

I have held my tongue on the shootout until now. THAT GAME, was a tie. Shootouts are lame.