CHICAGO -- Getting ready to head over to the United Center to see who's skating this morning, a question mark since both the Sabres and Blackhawks played last night. Although in the case of the Sabres' 2-1 loss to Montreal, I can only use the term played loosely. This team's offense has basically not shown up for the first five games, except for Derek Roy. He's got five of their nine goals! Be sure to catch up with John Vogl's game report after Mike Grier's in-game outburst and Lindy Ruff's post-game proclamations.
The Hawks, meanwhile, ruined the Blue Jackets' home opener with a 5-2 win Friday night. They played without Patrick Kane (flu) and the South Buffalo native is iffy for tonight. Let's see if the Hawks go back to Corey Crawford, who was solid in the final 57 minutes here Monday, or keep Marty Turco in goal after Turco got his first win last night. The Sabres will likely go with Patrick Lalime for the first time this season.
So who's leading the NHL in goals thus far? Tied for the top is none other than Roy, current offensive leader of the sleepwalking Sabres. He's tied with former teammate Clarke MacArthur, who has five goals for the 4-0 Laffs no more. The Leafs won in New York last night in overtime, 4-3. They're 4-0 for the first time since 1993. MacArthur is the first player in the storied and stumbling history of the Toronto franchise to score in his first four games as a Leaf. Heady stuff.
It was a rough night for the Rangers and I'm not just talking about the loss. Chris Drury joined the lineup for the first time this season and promptly went back out in the second period with a new break of his troublesome index inger -- and now he's going to miss another six weeks. Wow. In addition, Marian Gaborik is going to be out 2-3 weeks with a shoulder injury. Looks like Tim Kennedy's stay in Hartford is going to be a short one.
The Sabres aren't the only team having trouble at home. The Penguins got their first win in Consol Energy Center after three losses with a 4-3 overtime triumph over the Islanders.
---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington)
