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Notes while enjoying Buffalo's 1000th home win...finally |
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Well, this edition of the Buffalo Sabres finally did it. After losing the first four games (0-3-1) of their five-game homestand, the Sabres 4-3 win over the NY Islanders finally got them to 1000 home wins for the franchise. And they did so while wearing their 2018 Winter Classic sweaters, which brings us to our first note on last night's game.
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While growing up as a kid, the home team always wore white and for me it was like the good cowboy wearing the white hat while the bad cowboy wore black. Simple enough. But the NHL got a stick up their butt and changed it. Personally I never liked the idea, but the NHL stuck with it and beginning in 2003-04 the home team wore the dark sweaters.
Last night the Sabres thread here on hockeybuzz was full of comments in favor of the Sabres making the white Winter Classic their home sweater, and I couldn't agree more. In order to do that, the NHL would need to change their tune concerning the home colors. It's the opinion here that they never should have switched in the first place and I'd hazard to guess that a large majority of fans feel they should switch back to home whites.
Perhaps it's time.
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From the game:
--Sam Reinhart's roll continued last night as he had a one-goal, two-assist stat-line for his second multi-point night in a row. For some reason the light went on this calendar year for Reinhart and after an extremely poor 2017 portion of the season (5+6 in 39 games,) he's scored 15 points (6+9) in 15 games beginning January 1. You could say it's mainly because he's on Jack Eichel's line, which is true, although Reinhart had been there before and didn't get the job done. We might also point to a powerplay that looks like it's back to their No.1 form from last season, and no doubt Reinhart has contributed there (3+4) which also helps his stats. But somewhere along the line Reinhart got a kick in the ass and he's playing his best hockey of the season. Perhaps he realizes that it's a contract year and that as a restricted free agent, he has no real say in what his next contract will be, save for what he does on the ice.
--How many times have we heard recent Sabres coaches say that they need to pare back defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen's ice-time? Often, and present coach Phil Housley said it again before last night's game while indicating that Ristolainen, ideally, should be in the 23-24 minute range. Ristolainen, in part because of a weak performance the previous game, was dropped down to the second pairing last night, yet when it came down to it he skated a game-high 27:37 and a game-high 21:30 at even strength. In the third period Ristolainen was on the ice for nine shifts for a total of 10:39 most of it (8:33) at even strength. Just sayin'.
--Defenseman Casey Nelson played a solid game on the top pairing with 21:47 of ice-time, had a secondary assist on Eichel's game-opening goal and he finished with an even rating. The 25 yr. old has made great strides in his development since being signed as a free agent in 2015. Nelson and Marco Scandella had the difficult task of manning up against the Islanders' John Tavares line for much of the game and did a standup job. Said Housley to the gathered media post game about Nelson, "I thought he was one of our better defensemen. He kept the game simple. There's nothing flashy about his game but he get's the job done."
--Housley changed up his lines for yesterday putting forward Evan Rodrigues with Eichel and Reinhart, and boy did that line look good. The trio combined for three goals, four assists and were a plus-5. With his goal and assist, Rodrigues increased his career totals to eight goals and nine assists in 57 NHL games. The free agent signee out of Boston University had tore up the NCAA along with fellow Terrier Eichel in 2014-15 and many had wondered how long it would take for a coach to put them on the same line. Although it has happened in the past, sporadically, it will be interesting to see if they can build upon what they were able to accomplish last night.
--Housley is a rookie coach and he's made many questionable decisions with the lineup and the powerplay as well as in-game decisions this season, something that hasn't helped this 15-29-10 team. His early preference of forcing Reinhart to play center when he clearly was ineffective there probably set the player and the team back. Rodrigues is another forward he (along with, possibly, GM Jason Botterill) tried to force into a center's role. Rodrigues had played, and succeeded at, center in Rochester but was having a difficult time in Buffalo. Reinhart and Rodrigues had separately played on Eichel's wing before and both have shown the ability to play off of him. Together they brought a different skill-set to the line while allowing Eichel to be the alpha male. Which is a good thing as the results last night would indicate.
--Speaking of the franchise center, No. 15 had a two-point night last night. Eichel scored the opener and sent a bank-shot off the back wall on a designed play to get the secondary assist on the game-winner. After a four-game scoring lull, he's managed four points in his last two games (2+2) bringing his season total to 22 goals and 31 assists in 54 games. His 53 points tie him for 18th in the league and it's too bad the Sabres powerplay was so atrocious for the first half of the season or his numbers would be even better. That said, Eichel's 19 even-strength goals tie him for ninth.
--There's a movement in Sabreland that wants to see Eichel as "Captain Jack," and he definitely looks as if he's ready to take over as team captain. From the moment he was drafted as the face of the franchise, everyone knew it was going to be his team. What we've seen from him lately on the ice and what we've heard from him in interviews, makes it seem as if he's matured to the point where that 'C' looks like it will land on him. It will probably happen next season. I just wish it was the Winter Classic home white sweater beginning next season.
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