Post-Game Analysis:
Friday night marked the second time in the last three home games that the Sabres have allowed a Southeast division opponent, with a backup goalie, to come into HSBC Arena and to skate out with two points.
Olaf Kolzig and the Bolts wiped collective clock of the Sabres last week. Friday night it was NHL journeyman, Johan Hedberg's turn. Hedberg admitted to me that he felt like he was playing for a job Friday night, as he had been less than his best in recent starts for the Thrashers. More on that later.
Credit John Anderson's team for not quitting when they were down in the third period. the Thrashers played in Atlanta Thursday night and they did not arrive at their hotel in Buffalo until 1:30 am Friday morning. This team was ripe for the picking. No such luck for the Sabres.
The Thrashers earned their two points by never surrendering to a team that had crushed the Caps and Devils in successive strats.
Bryan Little was a man possessed for the Thrashers. He scored twice (#s 7 and 8), he assisted on another, and he played well 5 on 5 as well as on special teams. His shorthanded goal at 15:02 of the second period, tied the game at 3, and, it served as an adrenaline rush for his bench. Buffalo had the momentum at that point. Atlanta snatched it back.
"It felt like ever time we tied it up, they scored. We did a good job of not rolling over and giving them the game. Everytime they went ahead, we tied it up again".
Little and his Thrashers were not about to use their early morning arrival into Buffalo as an excuse to play poorly against a good team.
"I think the other team (Buffalo) was thinking, "oh, we're playing the Thrashers...we might be able to take it easy and save all the points", but, I think we have a good team, and we're going to surprise some people. I think we're getting our confidence back now and we've played really well in our last three games".
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Al Kotalik was loading his travel bag for the quick charter to Boston when I caught up to him in the Buffalo room.
Kotalik had scored the PPG that put Buffalo ahead 2-1 in the first period. Al played well again with Vanek and Roy. They were Buffalo's best unit for the third game in a row.
Throw it all out the window, Kotalik told me.
I asked him about the would-be goal that he whiffed on at the start of the third period. With the Sabres leading 4-3 after 40, Kotalik, Vanek, and Roy answered the third period bell with a quick first shift of the period. Twenty seconds in, Roy carried the puck up the guy with Kotalik flanking him on the right wing. Roy took a shot that was blocked by the ATL Dman. Roy grabbed his rebound and threw a tricky wrister that rocketed wide of the net to Hedberg's right. The puck slammed the end boards behind the net and landed fortuitously on the blade of the hard-charging Kotalik's Vapor. With Hedberg dead to rights and leaning hard right, Kotalik had the whole left side of the net to shoot at. All he had to do is tap the puck in the yawning net for a two goal bulge early in the third period. Hello momentum. No such luck!
"There's no excuse for that one", the dejected Kotalik told me. "I felt the bounce and I just didn't hit it right.. it just slipped away from me...I hit it on the heel and and got away from me. That should not be happening. That should have been in, and would have been up by two with plenty of time".
Al claims he had the best view in the building on the Thomas Vanek wraparound goal that was wiped off after the review was ruled "inconclusive".
"I saw it from the other side, Hedberg's blocker side. I saw the puck go underneath him and it was clearly in and I was standing far side and I saw it on his blocker side. I saw the puck in, and he just pulled it out with his arm and brought it underneath him. I think if we get a view from the other side, they would see it was in".
I spoke with Hedberg and he told me that he thought he made the save on the controversial goal.
" I felt it underneath me. I looked up and saw it on the Jumbotron. I knew that they were going to have a hard time calling it a goal and they waved it off at first. Its impossible to tell whether the puck was in".
Tell that to Kotalik.
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Sabres had several opportunities to knock ATL out. Credit Les Thrash for battling back every time the Sabres scored. They never quit. The Sabres' sloppiness costs them in the end.
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OT:
Derek Roy's penalty 36 seconds into the fourth period ends badly for Buffalo. Williams scores the game winner 12 seconds into the Powerplay.
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3rd Period:
b>SAVE OF THE GAME:
@ 12:30, Derek Roy takes
a head-man pass up the gut, and he splits the two ATL Dmen. He carries in, one on one with Hedberg.... NASTY POKE CHECK!
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UNDER REVIEW: @ 9:24, It appears as though HDTV scores on the wraparound. He brought the puck to Wayne Gretzky's Office, Deked right, turned left and banked the puck off Hedberg's posterior... Hello, Tronna......
NO GOAL>
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4-4: Todd White scores the PPG @ 8:00.
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Lindy is employing the two man forecheck. Its working. Good to see 61 selling out as the low man, pressuring the ATL D.
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20 seconds in, Roy's wrister misses the net, careens off the end boards to the wide open Kotalik who fumbles the puck and misses a yawning net.
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Buffalo have to lock it down and play better defensively. Do they protect the one goal lead or do they keep coming?
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After 40:
Track meet in the second period.
Shots on goal: 24-19 Buffalo.
2nd Period Action:
4-3 Buffalo: @ 15:52, Connolly lazers a point shot towards Hedberg, Thomas Vanek tips it home on the PP to make it 4-3.
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3-3: Little shorty @ 15:02.
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Atlanta have summoned the strength and now they are skating with Buffalo. The Sabres have been soft on the puck and they've turned it over several times here in the second period. Blind back passes never work! Get pucks deep and go get them!
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3-2 Buffalo: Max Afinogenov scores his first of the season @ 7:30. Nifty pass from Teppo. Max inside-outs Exelby and beats Hedberg stick low.
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2-2: Bryan Little beats Lydman, then Miller.
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End of the 1st Period:
Shots on goal: 12-7, Buffalo
ATL brought it to Buffalo early. They appeared to slow down as the period progressed. MacArthur's goal was brought about by 110 mph effort by Tallinder. Kotalik's goal is testament to careful execution on special teams.
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2-1 Buffalo: @ 18:17, Buffalo goes on the 5 on 3....KOTALIK! One timer! The Buffalo PP over-powered the tight ATL box, and Connolly found Kotalik with a sweet zone-splitting pass. 9 and 19 just performed surgery on the ATL PK box.
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1-1: Tallinder, showing flashes of his days as a forward in Sweden, blew down the right wing wall and fed a darting MacArthur a pretty tape to taper. 1-1.
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1-0 ATL: Miller's shutout streak is over. @ 4:12, Jason Williams beats Miller from the slot. Kovalchuk and Christensen with assists.
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b>7:25PM: Stafford scratched. I don't like it at all. Here's why.
Stafford has been making plays away from the puck this season. He's getting involved physically and he's be active at both ends of the ice. At times, his feet stop and it gets him in trouble. The kid has a ton of talent and he is a hard worker. I see this as the same kind of wake up call that Lindy gave to Vanek in the 2006 ECF vs. Carolina. Lindy did not like some of TVs habits and he made his young gun sit in the press box in order to get a different perspective of the team-first style. Paille has gotten the same treatment in recent past and look what its done for his game.
61 on the other hand has been invisible at times this season. His 7 assists are not impressive to me. He's negligent with and without the puck. His shot selection is questionable. He's not involved physically. Max could have easily been the scratch tonight.
61 better put the puck in the net tonight or else he sits in Beantown.
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b>7:10pm- The Sabres and Les Thrash are on the ice right now. Lindy will have to sit someone tonight. Its down to Stafford or Max.
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The Buffalo M*A*S*H unit is now empty. Jochen Hecht will be in the lineup tonight. I'll shut up now before I put the moosh on 'em.
Matt Ellis has been waived in order to get Buffalo down to the 23 man limit.
Ellis was a gamer for Buffalo and he filled in admirably in the season's opening week when the Sabres lost their top three centres in Hecht, Connolly and Gaustad.
Ellis was a late waiver acquisitionand he provided needed depth and stability for Lindy Ruff just when all Hell broke loose up the centre of his lineup.
If I was a betting man, I'd say that Ellis will be claimed by another team. The kid has spunk and ignites the energy with his simple wall to wall brand of contact hockey.
The Sabres have a boat load of guys like Ellis already in Portland in case they need an energy guy to recall.
Marc Mancari can hack, bang, and win wall battles. He's proven thus far that he can make plays and put the biscuit in the basket. Matt Darche is also a viable recall option if a need arises due to injury.
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The Sabres will see Johan Hedberg in net tonight for Atlanta. Kari Lehtonen gets the night off.
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