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1. Matt S says:

   January 5, 2009 at 12:13 pm

   “Certainly not to predict what is going to happen against a bad Ottawa team tomorrow”

   Heatley will have 2 or 3 goals, Spezza will also score, and the Sabres lose 6-2.

   Same script, different game. Isn’t it always that way against Twattawa?
2. Jonathan says:

   January 5, 2009 at 12:28 pm

   I don’t know. Things feel different. Lindy is going to stick to his plan. He didn’t want to treat them like children, but he finally realized he has to.

   Now I know why Pominville was struggling, he was worried about the closing of his new house.

   In Todays Buffalo News.

   9123 Curry Lane, Jack Devere Development Inc. to Jason J. Pominville, $775,000.

   Living Large!
3. Scott says:

   January 5, 2009 at 1:28 pm

   Lindy has said that he’s out of coaching tactics, having to rely on that musical chairs nonsense to get this kids playing.

   Still, he has a big trump card in his hand.

   Jochen Hecht is self-admittedly one of the softest players on the Sabres roster this year, and he is still wearing a captain’s “A.”

   Captains lead on the ice, and the example he is setting out there is one without heart.

   I say it’s time for Lindy to play the tump on Hecht, and rip that “A” off his jersey.

   Then, sew it over the hocket heart of the player who has shown the grit and determination all season long – Paul Gaustad.

   Brian Burke is very interested in having Gaustad’s determination on his olympic squad. It’s time for the coach south of Ontario to pay the same heed to his real on -ice leader.
4. trevor says:

   January 5, 2009 at 1:30 pm

   @1: “..and the Sabres lose 6-2.”

   I couldn’t disagree more. Sabres lose 5-2.
5. PA Pete says:

   January 5, 2009 at 1:44 pm

   Hecht is a chronic underachiever and one of the reasons we never know if the team is going to show up from night to night.
6. Kevin says:

   January 5, 2009 at 2:10 pm

   Funny thing about Hecht is, I never seem to notice him, good or bad. Two years ago when everyone was talking about what a solid two-way player he was, I never noticed. And when Lindy called him out the other day I was mildly surprised, because I just hadn’t noticed.

   Maybe I have blinders for the guy, or maybe he is so invisible I just look right past him. Regardless, I love the thoughts on Gaustad.
7. PA Pete says:

   January 5, 2009 at 3:14 pm

   “Funny thing about Hecht is, I never seem to notice him”

   Therein lies the problem, Kev
   This is the friggin NHL
8. LevysGhost says:

   January 5, 2009 at 3:48 pm

   Kevin,

   Maybe I’m just getting fooled again, but I think you’ll see the Sabres play more consistently. Ottawa seems to bring out the worst in them (or we bring out the best in Ottawa), but tomorrow’s game will go a long way toward showing that the Bruins game wasn’t a fluke and that they have taken Lindy’s warnings seriously.

   If not, and we go into the tank yet again it is time for management to put some sting into Lindy’s benchings and roster moves. Unload a couple of the invisible players. Then, next time a guy gets benched, he’ll wonder if he’s next on the trading block. Too bad it might have to come to that. You’d think that living the NHL dream and all that comes with it would have these guys ready to sacrifice and go full-out every night.
9. In DA BUFF says:

   January 5, 2009 at 9:29 pm

   This season in a lot of ways reminds me of last year…but…we still have more than 1/2 a season left…we are only 2 points behind Carolina…6 points behind the Rangers and Devils…7 behind the Canadiens…January would be a nice time to start closing the gap and start moving up…a trade would be nice…but for what? I’d love GM Darcy John to surprise with an interesting deal…but that ain’t gonna happen. I hope Rivet stays healthy the rest of the way out.
10. TheTick says:

    January 5, 2009 at 10:16 pm

    A truly healthy Rivet (remember him bulldozing in front of Miller?) makes a big difference. Connolly healthy enough not to have bits and pieces falling off would be nice as well.
11. Gambler says:

    January 6, 2009 at 12:45 am

    @5 Hecht is a “chronic underachiever”? Have we forgotten last season, when he scored a career-high 22 goals, and put off wrist surgery for four months so that he could finish out the season? He’s underachieving right now, sure, but chronically? He was one of the few guys who showed up every night last year!

    I think the fact that you don’t notice him is usually a testament to his good play. Think about a good defensive dman, you don’t notice him until he makes a mistake, because his job is all about position. He’s not out there to make dazzling plays, he’s there to keep the other team from making them, and that doesn’t necessarily get you noticed.

    I’ll be the first to admit that he’s not been working nearly as hard enough as he should and can this season, but I think part of that has to do with what Dave mentions in the next post. While Connolly’s been busy falling apart, Hecht’s been thrust into the role of second line scoring center, and that’s just not something he’s good at. As much as we want it from him he’s never going to have great hands and he’s never going to have a scoring touch, but that doesn’t mean he’s useless. If it takes Lindy ripping his A off and handing it to someone else to give this team a kick in the pants, by all means, but I think trading him would be a major mistake, and we would find out in his absence just how much he’s been doing for this team.
12. trevor says:

    January 6, 2009 at 10:28 am

    Connolly, as always, is the key.