1ST PERIOD:


2:42- Kotalik scores his first even strength goal of the season; he has 5 PPG. Assist Chainsaw Lydman.

Sabres have scored first the past seven games.



The Stafford-Roy-Vanek line was active and they hopped on three loose pucks. In case you're scoring at home, their first shift was :46 seconds, not, 1:20 like the STL game.



2:38- Goose and LaRose exchange Christmas wishes. Off setting fouls. 4 on 4.

3:16- ECole for Interference. Sabres PP


4:18- Spach from the right halfwall finds an all alone Tim Connolly for a point bomb. 2-0 Buffalo. TC's 3rd goal. Roy gets the other A.

5:21 Scott Walker off for holding.

**** Carolina are not skating and Grahame looks shaky*********


Adam Mair just took a Brett Hedican point shot of his ankle. Mair is walking it of in the tunnel behind Buffalo's bench; Mair back on bench at 9:18.

** Jaro Spacek just went to the Buffalo room,; he passed Mair in the tunnel as he headed to the Buffalo bench. Spach returned to the bench at 10:30.



* I LOVE the way that Nolan Pratt is layingthe body tonight. He's been dominant in the first period on the walls and in front of Miller.


* Did you see the hip check that Jaro Spacek just unloaded on Eric Staal??!! What a hit! SEPERATE THE MAN FROM THE PUCK, eh?

The hip check is a lost artform in today's NHL. Too bad! Great tool to have in your box!

**********


1ST PERIOD SUMMARY:

Buffalo accomplished their stated goal. They wanted to spend the first ten minutes on top of The Hurricanes in their own end. Mission accomplished. The Canes played last night in Washington and they did not get into their hotels until early this morning. Buffalo have been lying in wait for the Canes for the past 72 hours, having last played at home vs. STL on Wednesday night.

Buffalo controlled the puck, and the flow of the game of the game for the first fifteen minutes. Buffalo were 1 for 3 on the PP.

Carolina creeped back in late due to a couple of Buffalo minor penalties to Kotalik and Stafford.

Miller stopped all 8 shots he faced; Grahame allowed 2 goal on 7 shots.


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2nd PERIOD:

Is it me, or, does the Buffalo ice seem beat up tonight. The period just started and from where I sit above Section 322, the glare of the houselights is exposing some ruts and bumps in the area adjacent to the left faceoff circle and the halfwalls in the Carolina end.

*******

Nice to see 61 pick up a lose puck at the blueline, hit the jets, beat a D man one on one, dip his shoulder, and drive the net.

*********

*** Jaro Spacek is taking a beating on the PK-- he blocked two point blank shots on the kill, with Vanek off for cross checking. He took one on the inside of his left leg that hurt him, then ten seconds later he took another off his skate!

******

Gotta love it when Ryan Miller sticksa his sweaty catching glove in a guy's face. How'd that taste Staalsie?


***********

TV takes another minor... the Buffalo PKers are flawless these past 10 games!


***

Another successful kill for Pommer, Paille, Hecht, Connolly, Lydman, and Spach.


STL gets a lot of platitudes for their PK, however, what of the Sabres? They are presently 6th with a bullet!

Remember how dreadful they were on the PK and PP, for that matter last season???


********

Isn't Trap Hockey great? Lavi saw enough of the back of Buffalo's sweaters flying by his forwards and D in the first period, so what does he do? Implore his team to wake up and skate?

NO! Drop in the speed bumps, and play the 1-2-2... yes, The Trap has made its return. Its the Prevent Defense of the NHL and I HATE IT!!

******

15:32- MAIIIRRRRR! Goose wins a clean faceoff against Brindy. Mair's 3rd of the season.


16:28- MAX FROM LONG RANGE... 4th of the season. Does this goal finally lift the Steinway piano off 61's back?



16:58 PENALTY SHOT FOR STAFFORD----- DENIED BY GRAHAME. Great save by Grahame. Drew deked, then committed, and Grahame was not fooled. He threw his left leg out and made the save.

WOW!

Carolina will end the period on the PP.

The Canes are presently 5th in the NHL on the PP.

They are a dreadful on their PK--- 29th in the NHL.

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2ND PERIOD SUMMARY:

ALL BUFFALO FROM BEGINNING TO END OF THE PERIOD.

The Canes could not skate with Buffalo in the first, so they came out a trappin in the second. Buffalo were patient and they chipped pucks off the wall and they advance through the minefield with quick, tape to tape passes wll the while, with feet in constant motion.

Buffalo scored twice on 9 shots.

Miller made six saves on six shots.

After 40, Sabres lead shots on goal 16-14. They outshot the Canes 9-6 in the period.


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3RD PERIOD:

1:16-- SHORTIE! Derek Roy goes one on one with Grahame. Connolly assists. #9's 9th of the season.


****

All Buffalo in the third so far. Carolina are tired and dejected.

********

6:48 VANEK----- How did that puck NOT go in???

Stafford assist.


Under Review---- Toronto will call this a goal. It clealy crossed the goal line, and hugged the circumference of the Canes Net--- all the way around and out.

GOAL!

Buffalo fanes are screaming at the tops of their lungs.


********

Nolan Pratt just popped LaRose in the squash with an upper cut. Double minor for Pratt. Carolina PP.

Danzig's "Mother" is blaring from the overhed sound system duringte scrum!!!


Love Glen Danzig! " Do you wanna bang heads with me???!!!!

********


10:21- DRoy takes off on another shorie sortie, he droped Grahame's jockstarp with three nifty moves and failed to convert with Grahame on his back.


*******


Goose fires one off the post/crossbar....

Grahame is under seige!

*********

Spach just receievd the Carrubba Collision for his textbook hip check that sent an unappreciative Eric Staal ass over tea kettle.

***********


10:36- Kotalik scores his 6th PPG of the season. from Goose and Spach. Al's second of the night.


Hedican and Stafford draw offsetting slash minors...

12:03- SPACH from Soup ans Max.



8-0 !

********



















*********************************************************************


Soupy is leading his boys in the warm ups.

Gotta say, the "C" over his heart makes him look like a different player. Like a player who has arrived in the NHL.

Good on 'em!

******

Adam Mair has a Cheshire Cat grin on his grille. He's ready to contribute tonight.

********


This is Carolina's first trip into the Queen City this season. Second meeting of four. I wonder if Lavi had his equipment guys sneak a bottle of bubbly into HSBC tonight?


*********

The Canes spanked the Sabres 6-2 on 10/24 @ The RBC in Raleigh. There will be some revenge on Buffalo's mind tonight.


*******

Carolina won in Washington Friday night, 4-3.

*********

The Sabres have a 6-4 record in their last 10. The Canes are 4-6 over the same stretch.

******

Sabres are in home blue. Canes road whites.

*******

The Sabres are 5-1 in their last 6. They have outscored opponents 21-10 in that sequence.

******

The Sabres have scored the first goal in the past 6 games (5-1).

***

The Sabres have 21 players who have at least one point this season, ranking them third in the NHL. Anaheim and Vancouver have 23. Minnesota and Washington have 22.

********

The Sabres have two players with three game point streaks heading into tonight's game.

Jochen Hecht has 3G and 2A ; Jaro Spacek has 1G and 3A.

*********