Things are really starting to take shape at Ralph Wilson Stadium as the Winter Classic is just four days away, and the excitement is being felt all around town.

This afternoon, Outdoor Rink Wizard Dan Craig and Senior Veep Don Renzulli gave their daily update, which was also broadcast via NHL.com to media across the continent. Things are running smoothly, the men reported, and they are within 6 hours of their timetable to have everything up and running and completed, time which they should easily make up.

Craig stated that 42 tractor trailer loads of equipment had been brought in thusfar, and there is now a half inch coating of ice, and the playing surface has been painted white. While all the boards and benches are now in place, Craig indicated that the painting of the lines and logos won;t take place until Sunday, and the glass should be installed by Sunday night. Another interesting thing - they might actually “make snow” on Monday night to cover over some of the tarped areas on the field and give the entire floor a clean look.

I asked where they plan to place the cameras and platforms, and they replied that the main camera towers will be placed at center ice, while broadcast platforms for NBC and CBC will be erected in the corners in the tunnel end zone. Just for the record, about 2000 “obstructed view” seats were not sold and will be tarped over, in the areas which would have been blocked by the platforms.

A half inch of ice is now down and the playing surface is painted white

Yesterday was the first day that the media could access Ralph Wilson Stadium to observe the progress on transforming a football stadium into a hockey venue.

The last scenes we saw were on television Sunday night, dramatic images of workers struggling to lay a tarp on the field in the teeth of horrific winds and precipitation which followed the Bills/Giants game that afternoon. But considering the crummy conditions that night and through Christmas, things are actually moving along quite well.

The National Hockey League has set up its operations in a trailer adjacent to the Bills Fieldhouse, and they are conducting daily briefings at 2PM in the press box, open to the media. This afternoon Dan Craig, NHL Facilities Operations Manager, and Don Renzulli, Senior VP for Events and Entertainment, made a presentation to outline the work that has been performed so far.

“We’ve compressed about 72 hours work into 48 hours” said Craig, who admitted that the weather was an impediment on Sunday night but the work that needed to get done got done. Craig bears a great deal of experience in managing and orchestrating an event of this magnitude, with the experience of running the outdoor games at Michigan State and at Edmonton.

So said Sabres coach Lindy Ruff tonight at HSBC Arena, as the Philadelphia Flyers came to town. The hype meter was off the wall, as former Sabres Martin Biron and Daniel Briere were making their first return to Buffalo since their departures last season.
Both received warm applause during the warmups and intros, but the adulation quickly turned to boos once the game started, especially when Briere touched the puck during play.

For the pregame, the game night staff pitched the “Say Hey Say Yeah” flick, and instead showed a pretty good video montage titled “The Rivalry Continues”, rolling out highlight reel moments between these two teams. While the memorable playoff goals and OT triumphs were fun to watch, goalies Garth Snow and Steve Shields going at it in the ’97 playoffs is the signature memory seared in my mind. Good stuff!

The game took on a physical tone early on, with both teams throwing punishing hits and checks, and while Philadelphia seemed to have the early edge in that department, Buffalo then took control of the play. At 11:41, Marty Biron made an incredible save on a rebound shot by Paul Gaustad, stopping the puck literally in midair on the goal line. Even Drew Stafford’s goal at 17:51 required a video review, as the puck crossed the goal line before Derek Roy tapped it with his stick while in the net. At the end of the first Buffalo led 1-0.

The big debate on the radio this morning seemed to be if Danny Briere and Marty Biron will hear boos from the hometown crowd tomorrow night.

Please.

Talk about making something out of nothing. First of all, nobody is going to boo Martin Biron. While he never became the dominant goaltender many thought he would, he still was a solid goalie, and one of the most popular players on the team. He spanned multiple generations of great Sabres teams, and gave us fans great quotes every time he got near a microphone. Plus, he gave us the classic miked-up quote of “Yo-Yo’s mad; go Yo-Yo”, when Yochen Hecht got in a fight.

As for Briere, I realize he left to go elsewhere. But the Sabres never made a serious, market value offer for him, and Philly did. He was a hell of a Sabre, and people forget that he almost beat the Hurricanes all by himself two years ago in the Conference Finals. I found this paraphrased quote from the Captain Milquetoast show this morning on why Danny didn’t sign with Montreal very interesting: After playing them eight times a year, it just didn’t feel right. Daniel Briere, a French-Canadien, is hated in Montreal because he didn’t sign with his hometown team. Good for him. Screw those Frenchies.