South Buffalo will now be cheering for South Florida. Per TSN, Former Sabre and MSU Spratan, Tim Kennedy has been traded from Panthers to the Rangers for D Bryan McCabe. The Rags also throw in a third rounder.
People I know who are close to Kennedy tell me that he has been miserable since leaving the Sabres. His agent and Darcy Regier came to lagerheads last Summer over Kennedy's contract. The team walked away from Kennedy's arbitration award. Thusly, setting him adrift in the Rangers system. The Rangers have docked him in Hartford, and seem to have forgotten about him. TK has 12 goals and 30 assists in 53 games this season.
Kennedy scored 10 goals and added 16 helpers in Buffalo last season. His Buffalo career came to an abrupt hault after the NHL arbitrator awarded the 24 year old a $1 million US one year salary. The Sabres said no thanks, and then signed with the Rags for $550,000.
Kennedy is engaged to be married this Summer and he is now looking forward to resuming his bright NHL career.
Follow me on Twitter @HockeybuzzGarth
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From the Wings' optional skate:
Good news for them, bad news for Buffalo. Mike Babcock will welcome back two difference-makers to his lineup inside Peguladome tonight.
Mike Modano returns to HSBC Arena tonight. He has missed 41 straight games after taking the surgical steel skate blade of RJ Umburger to the right wrist. If you are in the house among the other 18.689 proud Pegula supporters, why not lean on the horn and give the "South Buffalo Cheer" to Modano when he touches the puck. Paybacks from 1999 are alive and kickin', eh?
Val Filppula has been out of the lineup with a wonky knee since February 7.
***
Here are the prospective starting lines, D, and netminder for the Wings:
* Love taps on the wrist will likely be a regular occurence by the Sabres tonight. Didn't he play the Cup Finals in '99 with a broken wrist????!!!
The fourth line will include Drew Miller, younger bro of Ryan. Darren Helm has been hobbled by a sore foot. We'lll see after the skate who plays on the fourth unit.
On D:
Lidstrom-Staurt
Ericsson-Kronwall
Salei-Kindl
* Brian Rafalski did not make the trip due to back issues. Perhaps this weakens the Red Wings PP.
Net:
Joey MacDonald
(not Jimmy Howard, who will backup).
****
Lindy will likely roll out the same lineup from last night, meaning Reggie will sit again and Buts will play.
Former Sabres captain, Craig Rivet has been claimed on re-entry waivers by the CBUS Blue Jax.
Buffalo are on the hook for 50% of his remaining $850,000.
Welcome to life in the new paradigm where if a player is not performing, management has the autonymy to move the player to the minors or buy them out. That option was never available to Darcy in the old administration.
Rivet will be a #7 in CBUS. No guarantees. Mike Commodore was waived last month and Rivet will now assume to "Bubble D" job in CBUS.
****
The Sabres were 0-3 on this current six game homestand. Then Terry Pegula took over the team. Wins against Atlanta and Ottawa have helped to lift the spirits on the bench and in the room. Suddenly, a 3-3 home stand doesn't seem like such a bad thing. Hold on. Here come the Daytwa Red Wings to add a wrinkle to an otherwise smooth week of hockey and history in Buffalo.
The biggest game of the Pegula Era beins at 7:05pm Saturday night when Mike Babcock opens the gate and releases his Detroit throroughbreds onto the 200 by 85 in Buffalo.
Friday night's Ottawa game was the appetizer. The Wings game is the entree.
Cody McCormick was voted the game's first star. He scored a goal and added an assist for the winners. McCormick now has 17 points this season. He hits, fights, scores, makes plays, and is a vital cog in the Buffalo machine.
Mc could have completed the gordie Howe hat trick, however, the Sens didn't have a fighter in their lineup to dance with him. Too bad Chris Neil was scratched, eh?
The Wings rely on Holmstrom and Franzen to get pucks deep and to gring the bone marrow of opponents into sawdust. Lindy has implored his special ops soldiers--- Cody, Goose, Grier, Kaleta, Niedermayer-- to to Daytwa that which they will do to Buffalo.
Ryan Miller's forwards and D played well in the 4-2 win vs. the depleted Senators. They had better eat their Wheaties because teh Red Wings will grind for every tick on the clock of a sixty minute game.
Miller stood has stood tall in his crease since the loss to the Caps. He made 40 saves on 41 shots vs. Atlanta. He was a brick wall again vs. Ottawa. this sets up nicely for the showdown with his kid brother, Drew, and the Detroit Red Wings.
Ladies and gentlemen, Killer Miller has re-entered the zone! 29 saves vs. Ottawa.
Miller is feeling it right now. His angles are exact, his reads are precise, his vision is pinpoint. He's making the big saves when he is being counted on to do so to keep his team in the game. It helps that his team have given him leads in the past two games. Coming from behind all the time like his team had to do earlier this season is tough on an goalie.
I have a lot of time for current Ottawa Senator winger/centre Nick Foligno. Nick is a Buffalo boy. Bon and raised in the "716", he espouses the characteristics that Sabre fans love to see in their players: he's tireless worker, and a team-first guy. I think he'd look damn good in Blue and Gold. I caught up with him in the Sens room after the 4-2 loss to Buffalo.
Heys, Guys. Here's the first of many videos from Jessie and Kelly Pegula. They have their cameras, and they are not afraid to use them. Many of you have been at the past two games have met Jessie, Kelly, Laura, Matthew, and Mr. and Mrs. Pegula. Lets enjoy the first of many behind-the-scenes videos from the first ladies of Pegulaville!
Stu Boyar from WGRZ TV in Buffalo has some solid takes on all things happening in Buffalo Sports. Stu thinks the Sabbres should be buters and sellers as the NHL Trade Deadline is upon us. Here's Stu's latest blog from wgrz.com. Check it out:
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