@boosbuzzsabres
It's not fun for Buffalo to have the longest playoff drought in the NHL especially when the Carolina Hurricanes, the previous holder of that dubious distinction, is in the Eastern Conference Final. Nor is it a joy seeing a long-time rival like the Boston Bruins face off against the 'Canes in the East. If you think that's tough, add in two teams out west battling in the Conference Finals who each traded for a player that was once thought to be part of the future top-six in Buffalo and Western New York hockey fans might be a little salty. The San Jose Sharks traded for winger Evander Kane and the St. Louis Blues traded for center Ryan O'Reilly and both team will battle it out for a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Such is the world of the Buffalo Sabres and a playoff drought of eight seasons.
What may be lost in all the Buffaloathing over those four teams left standing is that this has been a helluva playoffs for the league. Both conference champions were ousted and all four division winners left in the first round, something that's never happened in the NHL before and the President's Trophy-winning Tampa Bay Lightning were swept out of the playoffs, which is also a first. In addition the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins got the broom as the NY Islanders, led by former Sabre (and a supposed key for Buffalo going forward,) swept them in four games.
In a nod to parity, getting hot at the right time and coaching, half the of the second round was made up of all four wild card team with Carolina taking the next step. Into the third round we see the Blues (No. 1,) Hurricanes (No. 3,) and Bruins (No. 4) as three of the hottest teams in the league since January 1st while the Sharks came in at No. 8. And while the League is still predicated on speed these days, the Islanders made it to Round-2 with a staunch defensive system under head coach Barry Trotz and the Blues with coach Craig Berube played lockdown hockey to take the next step. Despite plenty of speed and one of the best top-lines in the league, Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy had his club playing a modern, tempered version of Bruins, bad-boy hockey and when they got the lead, which was often in the second round, they tightened up their defense and relied upon goalie Tukka Rask to come up big.
It's been an awesome playoffs so far complete with a total of 15 games decided in overtime. Four of those were in double overtime including the Blues defeating the Dallas Stars in Game-7 two nights ago. The pace has been fast, the stars have been shining, the goaltending great and it's proved way more entertaining and has had more drama through two rounds then their NBA rivals.
As great as these playoffs have been, through it all, you probably couldn't find a foursome that would test the collective psyche of Sabreland more than a final four of Carolina, Boston, St. Louis and San Jose.
The Carolina hate stretches well beyond them passing the playoff-drought crown of thorns to Buffalo. Many harbor deep resentments for the Hurricane's winning the Stanley Cup in 2006. Somehow it was thought that Buffalo was a team of destiny and that the 'Canes conspired with fate to decimate the Sabres blueline and defeat Buffalo in the Eastern Conference Finals 4-3. The Carolina fanbase is chided for being fair-weather and while Western New York weather is know to be cold and snowy, Carolina basks warmth of being a Sun-belt state. And when it comes to hockey, the 'Canes have a defense Sabres fans want and a talented forward group lead by a three-time Stanley Cup Champion in captain Justin Williams, who was on that '06 'Canes.
Carolina also has a two-time Selke-winner in head coach Rod Brind'Amour who was a teammate of Williams, and captain of that Cup-winning team,
Speaking of the Selke, O'Reilly was supposed to be that candidate in Buffalo when the Sabres traded for him in 2015. It didn't work out in Buffalo but when he went to St. Louis he became just that. To add insult to injury the Sabres' return for O'Reilly was far less than what they paid for him and it's something that may take years, even decades, for some to even begin to let it go of.
O'Reilly was traded away by Buffalo as was Kane, who seems to have found a home in San Jose'. There shouldn't be that much animosity directed at San Jose other than Kane seemingly becoming the player Buffalo traded for. It would have been worse if the Colorado Avalanche had won as that was the team the Sabres traded with to obtain O'Reilly. In exchange the Sabres may have given up Selke-like player in J.T. Compher.
And, as for the Bruins, well...they're the Bruins and they will always be a rival even though Buffalo's insignificance doesn't make for a rival in their eyes. The hockey animosity dates back to the Big Bad Bruins and French Connection days of the 70's when Boston's Terry O'Reilly, among other B's, and Buffalo's Jim Schoenfeld were in throw-down mode every time they met. It was exacerbated by the Milan Lucic/Ryan Miller incident in 2011, and is continually fueled by the disdain for Brad Marchand and the fact that the New England Patriots NFL dynasty left a huge, decades-long shoe-print on the collective forehead of Bills fans and the Buffalo sports scene in general.
From a ratings perspective, the NHL is probably rooting for a Boston/San Jose Cup Final but that matchup would present an intriguing story that ties the two teams together. The Bruins pulled off a stunning trade in 2005 sending "Jumbo" Joe Thornton, the first-overall pick in 1997, to the Sharks in exchange for trio of young players--forwards Marco Sturm and Wayne Primeau and defenseman Brad Stuart. Thornton went on to win the Art Ross Trophy (125 points) and the Hart Trophy that season. The trio sent to Boston never panned out they way they'd hoped.
The desperation of two last place teams pulling off a blockbuster deal paid dividends for the Sharks as they made the playoffs that season and did so all but one season with Thornton in San Jose. However they never won the Cup and only made it to the Finals once (2016.) The Bruins would fall to 13th in the conference in '05-'06, general manager Mike O'Connell, the architect of that trade, would be fired in March and the team would have another playoff-less season in '06-'07. Afterwards, Boston proceeded to make the playoffs seven consecutive years including one Cup win in 2011 and a Cup Finals appearance in 2013.
The conference finals begin tonight with Carolina at Boston while the west will being Saturday night and after that there will be hockey every night until each series is decided. Who will come out on top?
Much to the dismay of Sabres fans (and the league,) it could very well be Carolina and St. Louis.
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