Looks like things are in place for the tailgate party on Tuesday.

Where: Lot 5B. Pull into Drive 5 and take it to the road that separates lot 5B (Tundra) from Lot E (Camry). Hang a right and we’ll try to park as close to Abbott Road as possible. Twoeightnine whipped up a little BfloBlog / WNYMedia sign so keep your eyes open.

When: Whenever. But we’re going to shoot for 9:00.

Who: It’s the D-List of local bloggers and BfloBlog commenters. And you.

What: Definitely BYOB. If you want in on our grub, drop me a line. If you want my cell number, shoot me an e-mail.

Why: Do you really need to ask?

If you’re coming, feel free to leave a comment.

Checking out the progress of work at Ralph Wilson Stadium this afternoon, there on the ice was Dan Craig, NHL Facilities Operations Manager and the guy in charge of this entire affair. But he wasn’t just on the ice - he laced up a pair of skates and was giving the surface he had built a whirl. “It felt good. We’re almost at the point we were in Edmonton four years ago at this time.”The place is really taking shape. Walking into the stadium today, I was absolutely amazed at how they got this place tidied up, a far contrast from the dreck and mess in the concourses, ramps and seating bowl the other day. Crews are still dashing around the building getting ready for the big event. Down on the field, the ice has been painted, the glass is up, the zamboni is applying water and smoothing the ice. And now they’re actually trucking IN snow to give the field a neat cosmetic appearance.

Today’s 2PM daily briefing was a more crowded affair - media from national outlets and from other cities were in attendance, and joining Craig and Don Renzulli was NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, who was piped in to the briefing via teleconference from New York City.

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.