Sabres Edge

UNIONDALE, L.I. -- Greetings from Nassau Coliseum, where coach Lindy Ruff feels better because some of his players do. The Sabres will still be without a couple of players, though.

As guessed earlier today, Patrick Kaleta was indeed too ill to make the trip to Long Island. He and Paul Gaustad stayed home and won't face the Islanders. On the bright side for Ruff and the Sabres, linemates Tim Kennedy and Jochen Hecht -- who weren't well enough to start the second period against Toronto -- are feeling better today. They will play.

In a bit of surprise, it appears Ryan Miller may, too. The goaltender is on a roll, and Ruff hinted that the netminder will get his 10th start in the season's 11th game.

PREGAME

5:50 p.m.: So, Happy Halloween, long one of my favorite holidays. Never thought I'd be spending one in Uniondale, but oh well.

The Isles have decked the halls with webs and pumpkins, and costumed staffers are handing out treats to kids who are wandering the concourses with bags and baskets. It was a similar sight on Manhattan, where I spent the afternoon. It was pretty cool to see all the dressed-up kids walking into the local laundromats and art galleries and such to get chocolate. Of course, it also was really weird to see the tykes wander into the porn shop on 10th Avenue to get some candy. At least that's what I hope the store was giving away.

Anyway, while Manahattan is cool on October 31, so far it's definitely not Tampa Bay. Got to spend "Guavaween" there once (last year, maybe?), and it's an amazing party.

Speaking of parties, the five boroughs are getting ready for the New York City Marathon on Sunday morning. I ran the route as part of my day. I only ran about 10 feet, but I ran it nonetheless. Better than nothing; I usually only run if someone is chasing me.

The Big Apple is one of my favorite towns because neither of us use the night to sleep. I also like it because there's always something new to see. Today, I stumbled upon The Dakota, where John Lennon was shot.

Meanwhile, if it's Saturday, it must be bar-b-que. I previously hit Jack's in Nashville and the Harbor Club in HSBC Arena, and today featured lunch at Virgil's. As usual, the brisket and pulled pork were great, as were the cheese grits and Georgia pecan rice.

While Jack's was a first-time stop a few weeks back, I've been to Virgil's several times. Former Sabres writing mate Tim Graham and I used to go there, so I texted him hello while eating. Turns out, he was on his way to town to cover the Dolphins-Jets game Sunday. So, without further ado, I'm off to write the notebook for Sunday's paper so he and I can meet up for a soda or 10 as soon as possible.

6:29 p.m.: It's official. The goaltending matchup is Miller versus Martin Biron.

FIRST PERIOD

7:09 p.m.: The Sabres start the game with a fourth line of Nathan Paetsch-Matt Ellis-Adam Mair.

7:10 p.m.: The next line is Jochen Hecht-Tim Kennedy-Mike Grier. Cheap Plug Alert: The notebook leads with Kennedy and his faceoff schooling.

7:11 p.m.: They are followed by Clarke MacArthur-Tim Connolly-Jason Pominville, and Thomas Vanek-Derek Roy-Drew Stafford.

7:13 p.m.: Andrej Sekera is back after a seven-game absence and is paired on the blue line with Steve Montador.

7:19 p.m.: First TV timeout with 12:07 left. The Sabres have an 8-0 shot advantage, including four on a too-many-men penalty. Vanek missed a tap-in at the side of the net on a nice pass by MacArthur.

The Islanders' Ice Girls have orange wigs and one-piece orange short skirts, as this break and my earlier wanderings show.

7:24 p.m.: Isles come to life, but Miller stops partial breakaway by Sabres Edge legend Sean Bergenheim with 9:17 to go.

Standing ovation for Commander Michael Hoblin of the military.

7:29 p.m.: Craig Rivet and Tim Jackman, who interferred with Miller in the first meeting, drop the gloves. But Grier and the linesman grab Jackman before punches are thrown. Rivet and Jackman still go for roughing with 6:57 to go.

7:32 p.m.: Vanek misses another chance. Montador feeds him for an open net, but defenseman Radek Martinek blocks the goal with his foot. Just seconds prior, a nice drive by Hecht results in penalty by Martinek with 5:09 to go.

7:38 p.m.: Tyler Myers is struggling. He gives the puck away to Richard Park, and Park rips a shot past Miller's glove to give New York a 1-0 lead with 2:47 to go.

7:40 p.m.: By the way, the combined crowds for Wednesday's Devils game and tonight's Isles game would not add up to one Rangers game.

7:42 p.m.: End of one, Isles with a 1-0 lead. Sabres have a 14-9 shot edge and will have 1:04 of power-play time to start the second after a delay of game call on Kyle Okposo.

SECOND PERIOD

8:01 p.m.: Sabres start the second the way they played most of the first: shooting and watching Biron make a save.

8:05 p.m.: Jackman fights this time, with Montador as the opponent. Lots of lefts thrown by the Sabres defenseman, but none connect with 16:56 to go.

8:10 p.m.: Roy does a nice spin move to get open with 14:14 left, then doesn't shoot. He's still looking for his first goal. He was averaging 2.5 shots per game entering tonight.

8:15 p.m.: Paetsch goes off in pain after slash from Josh Bailey with 12:53 to go.

8:18 p.m.: After allowing no shots on the penalty kill, the Isles take a 2-0 lead with 10:44 left. Jeff Tambellini sneaks one past Miller off the goalie's left arm after Bergenheim threw the puck to the net.

8:23 p.m.: Bergenheim hits the post with 8:10 left.

8:24 p.m.: Tambellini hits the net. Doug Weight goes around the net to feed the winger for a one-timer from the left circle with 7:40 to go, and that's all for Miller. Patrick Lalime comes in with the Sabres down 3-0 and holding a 21-16 edge in shots.

8:27 p.m.: Biron, by the way, is 6-2-1 against his former team, with one shutout.

8:29 p.m.: The Isles' second shot on Lalime makes the score 4-0. Bailey rips a high, glove-side shot from the slot with 4:40 to go.

8:41 p.m.: Period comes to a close with Islanders holding a 4-0 lead. Sabres' shot edge is 26-20. Looks like there won't be an overtime to interrupt the gathering between Tim Graham and I.

8:51 p.m.: Attendance has just been announced at 8,889.

THIRD PERIOD

8:58 p.m.: Two minutes gone, and Lalime is feeling ornery. He's taken swipes at two Islanders already.

9:05 p.m.: The score is still 4-0 with 13:56 to go. Barring an unreal comeback, the following things will happen with a loss:

*Sabres will fall to 4-1 on road.

*Miller will lose for first time in regulation, falling to 8-1-1.

*The team's four-game winning streak will end.

9:10 p.m.: "Mar-ty, Mar-ty" as Biron makes his 30th save of the night.

9:23 p.m.: The boards are rattling, with each team out to make a physical statement. With 4:35 to go, Rivet made his, starting a fight with Andy Sutton and earning a decision.

9:25 p.m.: Here come the hats! Here come the hats! Tambellini scores on the instigator-induced power play with 4:18 to go.

9:32 p.m.: Doug Weight gets penalty shot with 13 seconds left after slash from behind by Chris Butler. Weight crashed into end boards after tripping on Lalime's blocker. Save by Lalime on the penalty shot. It's over, 5-0 Isles.

POSTGAME

Ruff: "The only thing you can be disappointed with is we didn’t take advantage of the offense. We did a lot of good things. We just didn’t score, and Marty played well."

Miller: "They get three on me, and normally you like to stay in, but I think 3-0 at that point Lindy wants to get a different kind of look to the game."

Miller on the second goal: "I think he goes elbow, post, elbow, in. It’s one of those kind of nights where it just didn’t shake out."

Biron, who won his 200th game and first with the Islanders: "It’s great. I’ve felt like I’ve been getting better after each game and slowly getting the way I want to play. It’s good to give the guys a bit of a confidence boost."

Vanek: "This one falls on me. I’m the goal scorer here, and I could have put the Islanders away in the first period myself, and I didn’t. From that end, it’s disappointing. I’ve got to be better. I’ve got to put those away. It’s my job, and I didn’t do it. It cost us the game."

---John Vogl