Buffalo - October 31, 2014 - Following every Sabres game, we’ll be taking a little look at the previous night’s action with a little segment called “good, bad and ugly”. Expect a loooooooot of ugly.
The Good
Perhaps the foot-in-the-ass from head coach Ted Nolan actually worked, because the team came out playing well and set the tone early thanks to a scrap between Chris Stewart and Milan Lucic. Few guys in the league can hold their own against Looch, but Stewart did well for himself and energized the Sabres early.
Not only that, but the Sabres actually managed to score with the man-advantage! Yes, sadly, it was the first power play goal of the year for the Sabres, but at least the proverbial monkey is off their back. Until the next huge 0-for streak, anyway.
On the whole, this might have been one of the best performances of the year from a team that doesn’t turn in many positive performances.
The Bad
I almost feel bad for criticizing them for this because the Sabres are rarely in games these days, but they have to find a way to close when they do have the lead. Holding a 2-1 lead with about 5:30 left, Brad Marchand beat Jhonas Enroth to knot things up and then collected his second in overtime for the win.
This season is going to be one of a lot of losing – like A LOT – so the Sabres need to be better when they hold the lead. It’s bad enough that they’re rarely even in games these days, so it’s got to hurt just as badly when they come so close only to fail.
The Ugly
I hate stupid Brad Marchand’s face so much, so him collecting a pair of goals in the final 6:50 of play is really a spur to the rear.
As a fan of a terrible team, I’m more apathetic than anything else, but I still reserve a special place of hatred in my heart for the Maple Leafs and the Bruins. I’m definitely for the huge amount of losses the Sabres will need to secure their future, but it never stops being tough to lose to those two teams.
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When not inanely bantering about the Sabres, Ryan Womeldorf can be found here and at TwoPadStack.net talking all things hockey. He's usually got a lot to say, but sadly most of it is wrong. If you have any questions, feel free to contact him at rwomeldorf@hometownhockey.ca
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