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.