Sabres Edge

Ryan Miller's absence Saturday night had nothing to do with the hip problem that cost him five games earlier this month, coach Lindy Ruff said after the 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay.

Miller developed "groin tenderness" according to Ruff during Friday's 4-2 win over Los Angeles and wasn't able to skate this morning so the decision was made to go to Patrick Lalime.

What does it mean for Miller next week with three games in four days? 

"This is supposed to be very mild, very mild," Ruff insisted.

We'll see. Goalies and groins are not a good mix as we know all too well in this town from Dominik Hasek, circa 1997. If Miller can't go, there's no way Ruff can put Patrick Lalime back in the net.

That was a Bantam-level goal Lalime gave up to cost his team a game Saturday night, a crippling giveaway to Tampa Bay's Adam Hall right in front of the net. That can't happen in the NHL. Lalime is 0-4 this year and 9-25-5 in his Buffalo career. It has to be time to make Enroth the backup and encourage Lalime to go to Portland or send him packing entirely.

Lalime is a great guy. At some point, even great guys have to make plays.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Greetings from high atop HSBC Arena as the Sabres get set to meet the Tampa Bay Lightning. If you missed the news that broke in the 6 p.m. hour -- and why weren't you here on this blog or with me on Twitter? -- Ryan Miller is out again with a lower body injury and is listed day to day. Patrick Lalime will start in goal and Jhonas Enroth will back up. Mike Smith is starting for the Lightning.

Great. Tampa Bay center Steven Stamkos leads the NHL in goals (19) and points (34) and is coming off a hat trick Thursday in Philly. He's got to like Lalime instead of Miller. Cheap Plug Department: Be sure to read more about Stamkos in my notebook in Sunday's paper.

This one is waaaay far away from behind a sellout or close to it. The Sabres were less than 300 shy last night. This might be the smallest crowd of the season. It's just tough on the wallet for lots of people to come two days in a row. Keep it here for all your updates.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Sabres starters: Leopold-Montador-Gerbe-Gaustad-Kaleta. Goal: Lalime.

Third Period

8:55 p.m.: We're under way. 

18:00 left: Sabres don't score on the power play and Smith has to make a good glove save on Kaleta after he Lalimed him the puck in the slot (albeit on the forehand). Nearly as brutal. Maybe it's something in the water at that end of the ice.

14:05 left: Myers just limped off the ice after a collision in the Buffalo zone.

13:07 left: Good save by Smith on Pominville. Shots are 5-1 for Buffalo. Lightning doesn't appear all that interested in generating much offense.

12:15 left: Myers is back on the ice.

11:05 left: Smith robs Gerbe from the slot and Kaleta just fails to get a hold of the rebound.

9:40 left: Smith again, stopping a Connolly backhand from in tight. Shots are 8-1. Smith is 1-3-1, 3.58, .886 in his career against Buffalo. The Sabres usually have pretty good success against him as those numbers show. Easily his best showing against the Sabres.

1:30 left: Sabres trying to get even, Lightning holding on.

23.1 left: Faceoff in Tampa zone. Officials have put the whistles away. Crowd howling as several trips go uncalled. Shots are 11-3 for Buffalo in the period.

It's over: A 2-1 loss. Shots are 30-22. Goaltending the difference.

Second Period

8:03 pm.: We're under way.

19:00 left: Smith with a good stop on Gaustad on a partial break out of the box. Sabres did a good job on the kill. No problems.

17:26 left: Good answer by Connolly gives the Sabres a 2-1 lead. He takes a rebound out of mid-air and bounces it home after Smith robbed Pominville from in front on a one-timer off a neat Hecht feed. NOPE. No goal. Replay shows Pominville whacked it with his glove off Smith's pad and that's where Connolly knocked it in from. Seems like a good call. Score remains 1-1.

15:52 left: Nice stop by Lalime on another Purcell tip-in on the backhand. A few seconds after Malone put one off the post to Lalime's right.

12:49 left: Stamkos goes for interference on Kaleta at center ice.

8:34 left: Just a terrible, terrible goal allowed by Lalime. Goes to routinely sweep the puck to his left with one hand and sends it right to Adam Hall. Makes one save but Hall easily pushes the rebound past him. Bolts lead, 2-1. Unassisted. Or should I say assist to Lalime.

5:37 left: Shots are 8-7 for the Sabres and Lalime's brutal mistake has taken the life out of the building. He got a few Bronx cheers the last time he touched the puck. Nothing like the crushing he took when he made a similar misplay last year against Minnesota but still. That was awful.

4:39 left: Gaustad goes for tripping. Bad giveaway by Myers left Gaustad no choice.

35.2 left: Moore goes for holding the stick, putting Buffalo back on the power play. I'd give you more updates, trust me, if something was happening. 

End-2nd: Tampa leads it 2-1. Shots were 11-9 for Buffalo and it's 19-18 for the Lightning through two.

First Period

17:23 left: Sabres are matching Hecht-Connolly-Pominville-Sekera-Myers vs. the Downie-Stamkos-St. Louis line. Hecht has taken both faceoffs.

16:50 left: Lightning have the only two shots. Lalime makes routine glove stop on Stamkos.

15:08 left: A Thomas Vanek scorned is never good for the opposition. Vanek gets leveled by Mattias Ohlund at center ice, gets up and carries a loose puck down the right wing -- firing a bolt past Smith to get the Sabres a 1-0 lead. Took a teeth-chattering hit and simply got up made the opponent pay. Wow. Sabres lead, 1-0, on their first shot on Mike Smith. Vanek with a cut lip too. His 17th goal in 21 career games vs. Tampa.

10:30 left: Smith stops Connolly from in front.

9:49 left: Stupid scoreboard blooper time. Shots are 3-2 for the Sabres.

9:32 left: Vanek goes for hooking in the Tampa zone. Didn't seem like a whole lot.

7:25 left: Vanek stopped on breakaway out of the box by Smith right after Lalime made two solid stops, including one on Stamkos. Looked like the Vanek shot actually hit the post and not Smith's pad.

5:06 left: No changes in the lines again. It's Ennis-Roy-Vanek, Hecht-Connolly-Pominville, McCormick-Niedermayer-Grier and Gerbe-Gaustad-Kaleta. Defense pairs remain Sekera-Myers, Leopold-Montador and Morrisonn-Rivet.

4:27 left: Lalime squares up nicely to swallow up an unscreened slap shot from the right point by Victor Hedman. What a sensational cross-ice pass from Stamkos to get the puck there.

3:40 left: Gaustad and Dominic Moore hook up at the Tampa line and get roughing penalties. Maybe Gaustad was telling Moore he was a joke here after he got acquired at the trade deadline two years ago.

1:50 left: Tampa ties it at 1-1 courtesy of a nice turnover from Connolly inside the Tampa line. Ryan Malone strips him and gets the puck into the Buffalo zone. Eventually, Teddy Purcell scores on a nice tip-in after a good feed in front from Randy Jones. No chance for Lalime.

1:07 left: Gaustad goes for unsportsmanlike conduct. He drops his gloves and gets set to go with Steve Downie, who just ducks his head and does nothing. Nice move if you can pull it off. Gaustad backs off and goes to the box. Downie is normally more than willing to go; he leads the Lightning with 66 penalty minutes.

1.9 left: The Sabres fail to clear and Lalime has to make a nifty glove grab on Downie to keep it tied.

End-1st: It's 1-1. Shots are 10-7 for Tampa Bay.

Big news breaking at HSBC Arena: Ryan Miller is out again and Jhonas Enroth is back with the Buffalo Sabres.

A Sabres spokesman has just informed The News Miller is listed as day to day with a lower body injury and will not dress tonight. Enroth has just arrived from Portland, so I would imagine Patrick Lalime would start tonight.

We did not actually see Miller this morning, but that is not all that unusual for a morning skate on a back-to-back situation. Lindy Ruff made it pretty clear to me on Thursday that Miller was playing both games this weekend and Paul Hamilton of WGR approached Lalime this morning about an interview in the event Lalime was playing. Lalime never actually tells you what's going on but he lets you know too. In this case, Lalime playfully laughed off the request, his normal sign that he was NOT going to be in goal.

There was no indication of any problem with Miller during last night's game against Los Angeles, when he made 34 saves and was the second star in a 4-2 victory. It was his fourth straight game after he sat out six with what turned out to be hip soreness during training camp. Obviously, a flareup of what you would assume is the same thing begs the question of whether this is going to be a season-long situation for the Sabres' ace.

UPDATE at 6:30 p.m.: Lalime leads the Sabres on the ice for warmup so he will start and Enroth will backup. Craig Rivet is on the ice as well. Chris Butler and Mike Weber remain the scratches on defense.

---Mike Harrington

(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Pretty quiet morning skate, as you would expect since the Sabres just played last night. Only a few players on the ice. One who wasn't, Matt Ellis, has been sent back to Portland.

Lindy Ruff wouldn't comment when I asked him about his defense pairings tonight. Tyler Myers, Andrej Sekera, Steve Montador and Jordan Leopold all played huge minutes last night (Myers was at 27:36!), while Craig Rivet (10:52) and Shaone Morrisonn (10:49) hardly saw the ice.

"I think our league for the most part has gone to a pair of defense that plays a lot and I think with the timeouts that's not an issue," Ruff said. "The way Andrej is playing and how Tyler's game has picked up, for us to be even more effective, those guys need to play even more."

It took a long time for Ruff to emerge from his office to meet the media this morning. Just as he walked out, Rivet and Tyler Ennis were seen leaving the building in front of him. It's possible they were in a meeting with the coach about last night's play, which was wasn't good for either. Rivet was particularly stern-looking and burst through the hall at a good clip.

Tonight would be his 900th NHL game. No. 899 last night was poor in most respects. You wonder if Ruff is going down the road of scratching his captain again. That would make for probably the end of Rivet's time with the C on his chest.

Defense, of course, has to be a big issue tonight with the Tampa Bay Lightning in town and the pair of Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis sitting as the NHL's top scoring duo by 10 points! Stamkos has 19 goals and 34 points (he had an assist taken away after Thursday's game in Philadelphia).

"Our awareness of key players has been better and that's made a differnce," Ruff said. "He may get his opportunities but we have to limit the type he gets. We'd like him to come 200 feet to get them. We don't want him to play a half-ice game."

The Sabres won all four games against the Lightning last year. Vincent Lecavalier (hand) and Simon Gagne (neck) are both out for Tampa Bay. The Sabres also announced that the first goal of last night's game has been changed back to giving credit to Patrick Kaleta on a deflection of a Sekera shot. So it's Kaleta from Sekera and Gerbe. 

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Greetings from HSBC Arena as the Sabres get set to meet the Los Angeles Kings. It's become a sad day for hockey fans as word broke tonight at 6:30 that former NHL coach Pat Burns has died after his long bout with cancer. Memo to the Hockey Hall of Fame selection committee: Shame on you. You really blew this one. What purpose did it serve to not induct Burns this year? The top name this year was Dino Ciccarelli for God's sake. Yeeesh. Here's a terrific obit on Burns from Rich Chere of the Newark Star-Ledger, the longtime Devils beat writer who was in Burns' office in 2003 after the coach got his long-awaited Stanley Cup victory.

As for news from the warmup, Patrick Kaleta and Nathan Gerbe are both on the ice, meaning the Sabres still haven't decided if Kaleta is playing tonight. Jonathan Bernier led the Kings out, as expected, and will get the start in goal. Update: Looks like Kaleta and Gerbe will both be in the lineup. Don't see Matt Ellis on the ice.

And it's official: The Sabres' scratches are Ellis, Chris Butler and Mike Weber. 

Keep it here all night for your updates from the arena.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Third Period

9:24 p.m.: Lo and behold, the second goal has now been changed to Vanek. His seventh.

9:25 p.m: New addition to the inventory at the Sabres Store just brought for a look by information guru Kevin Snow: The Sabres' slick 40th anniversary yearbook. Super collection of full-page color photos of every player. It's $10. I still gotta get my 40th anniversary coffee table book. That's I think $39.95.

9:28 p.m.: We're under way.

18:48 left: Ryan Smyth for holding in the offensive zone. Sabres back to the power play.

17:50 left: Another PP goal. Pominville's shot leaks through Bernier and Connolly breaks his 0-for-November by tapping it home. Sabres lead, 3-2. That's 2 for 4 on the PP against the NHL's No. 1 PK. Just the second game this year with two power-play goals (the other was the Oct. 26 loss at Philadelphia).

12:47 left: Bernier stops Sekera and Myers just misses the rebound. Sabres doing a great job of puck possession in this period. Shots are 4-0 for Buffalo. And Johnson is going for cross checking Gaustad. Can they really come up with three power play goals in one game?

11:42 left: Great save by Bernier on a Roy tip.

10:44 left: Great save on Vanek in front just as the penalty ends. Shots are 7-0 for Buffalo.

10:30 left: Leopold and McCormick (rebound) are stopped. That's 9-0.

9:50 left: Miller makes a solid save on Williams on the Kings' first shot.

8:54 left: Gaustad goes hard to the net, doesn't get the puck but draws a hooking penalty on Dwight King. Sabres 2 for 5 on the PP and here's another chance.

4:43 left: Hecht nearly pickpockets Bernier behind the net. The goalie holds for a faceoff. Shots are 10-3 for Buffalo. A terrific period so far with a game up for grabs. Outplaying a solid team for the final 40 minutes just like Wednesday in Washington. Gotta start better. Attendance is 18,418, less than 300 from a sellout.

4:39 left: Hecht with a one-time rifle from the slot. His second of the year. Great feed off the boards from Pominville. Like i said, super period. Sabres lead, 4-2.

1:30 left: This would be the Sabres' first regulation win since Oct. 23 at New Jersey. That's 12 games ago.

It's over: A 4-2 win after a solid final 20 minutes. Final shots were 36-26 for LA, but 12-9 for Buffalo in the third.

Second Period

8:32 p.m.: We're under way. 

19:23 left: That's how you start a period. The Gaustad-Kaleta-Gerbe line gets some pressure as Sekera brings it in from the left point and Kaleta tips his shot from the circle past Bernier. Game tied at 1-1 on Kaleta's second,

18:38 left: Connolly goes for hooking. Actually, it's Hecht but Connolly's No. 19 is on the board. In Marv Levy-speak, this game has been pretty overofficious.

16:07 left: Another penalty killed. Good shot block by Sekera, among others. Shots are 5-2 for the Kings and 17-8 overall.

15:14 left: More great work by Gerbe and Kaleta and Bernier has to make a sensational right pad stretch save on Gaustad alone in front to keep the game tied.

15:00 left: McCormick and Matt Greene go for roughing. McCormick was set to go and had shed the stick and gloves but the linesmen stepped in. Crowd boos.

14:08 left: Doughty hobbles off after taking a bomb from Connolly on the ankle. That would be a huge loss for the Kings.

13:40 left: Great save by Miller on a one-timer from Justin Williams.

12:53 left: McCormick gets his man right out of the box this time, pounding down Greene. They're both going to get five and the crowd loved it.

11:35 left: Wayne Simmonds beats Miller from the slot to make it 2-1 as the Sabres overskate the puck leaving the zone, notably Ennis, and Rivet might have screened his goalie on the shot from the slot. That's a big, fat minus-2 for Rivet.

11:17 left: More trouble. A tripping call on Connolly behind the Kings' net.

9:49 left: Sabres holding on with the PK. Close call as Jack Johnson's shot dribbled out of Miller's glove and went just wide. As JVogl wrote the other night in Washington, Miller's glove hand has been noticeably off this year compared to last.

9:25 left: Nothing wrong with Miller's reflexes however. Great save on a neat tip from the slot by Simmonds. Shots are 10-4 in this period and 22-10 for the Kings.

5:55 left: Myers and Sekera play with the puck in front of Miller and the goalie eventually has to make a good save from the point. Connolly, meanwhile, keeps firing pucks into the first man to come at him, in the best spirit of Ales Kotalik. Wonder how long Ruff can keep defending the $4.5 million man who doesn't have a goal this month (and is in the middle of his 10th straight scoreless game). But to paraphrasea what the coach said recently, "he's got more points than a lot of guys." Uh-huh.

5:06 left: Johnson goes for elbowing. Kaleta lucky he didn't get a slashing call in retaliation.

4:38 left: The PP connects against the NHL's No. 1 PK. Vanek tips home Roy's shot from the point after Pominville, who is completely snakebit and stuck on one goal, misses two tips from in front. Vanek's seventh makes it 2-2.

4:22 left: Lineup shift update -- Kaleta with a goal and a penalty drawn that leads to a power-play goal. Rivet? Minus-2. 

4:10 left: What might be the NHL's goofiest stat crew has awarded the goal to Roy. How about watching the players' reactions? Everyone saw Vanek tip it home. (By the way, we all doubt Kaleta touched the first one too but I digress).

1:10 left: Miller with the great save on Kopitar after Brown bowls over Sekera to get the puck in front.

End-2nd: It's 2-2 through 40 minutes. Shots were 15-8 for LA and it's 27-14 through two.

First Period

Sabres starters: McCormick-Niedermayer-Grier-Sekera-Myers. Goal: Miller
Kings starters: Brown-Kopitar-King-Scuderi-Doughty. Goal: Bernier.

Nice touch by the Sabres to hold a moment of silence in memory of Burns and Army Specialist Blake Whipple, the Amherst native who was killed recently in Afghanistan and was buried on Monday.

18:05 left: Maybe the food poisoning is still bothering Rivet. On his first shift, he hooks Brad Richardson at center ice as Richardson was blowing by him and is gone for hooking. Rivet simply has not speed or mobility left. A play like that sends a distinct message he's done.

16:00 left: Sabres kill the penalty with two shots on goal, including a good save by Miller on Jack Johnson.

15:35 left: Shots are 7-1 for LA.

15:03 left: The Kings take a 1-0 lead as Dustin Brown goes wide around Morrisonn and beats Miller with a blistering snap shot to the stick side. That makes shots 8-1. Solid start just like Wednesday in Washington, eh?

14:15 left: Big scrum develops between the benches and Gaustad goes with Kevin Westgarth. Pretty even until the end, when Westgarth got the upper hand. They both get five.

11:41 left: Doughty goes for hooking Vanek in the LA zone. Let's see if the Sabres wake up. We've seen this act before: After the Washington-Vancouver wins, the Sabres clearly felt like they were back. Now it's two straight games they haven't shown up at the start. 

9:23 left: Blistering one-timers wide of the PP by Pominville and Sekera. Gotta hit the net. A few seconds after it ends, Ennis breaks through and is hooked down. Scuderi goes for hooking. Sabres back on the PP. Kings came into the game leading the league in PK at 90.1 percent -- including a perfect 35-for-35 at home.

7:21 left: Penalty over. Sabres 3 for 37 at home this year on the PP. Terrible passing. Not enough battles. And the final 30 seconds of the PP featured Ennis-Gerbe-McCormick with Rivet and Leopold at the point. On a power play? Seriously, Lindy? 

3:53 left: Leopold goes for holding as this is one dead-as-a-doornail period. Shots are 10-6 for LA.

2:38 left: Myers goes on a ticky-tack interference call along the boards on Doughty. It was but that was a 2006 call. They gonna call that every time tonight.

1:08 left: Sabres survive the two-man (they had given up a league-high four goals on two-man disadvantages). Nice block by Morrisonn helped.

:40 left: The penalties are over. Solid job on the PK.

:00 left: The period is over. Not such a solid job. Shots are 12-6 for LA and the Kings hold their 1-0 lead as Vanek just missed a goalmouth pass from Ennis in the final two seconds. It came after Ennis made a great play to backcheck on Anze Kopitar as he was trying to break into the Buffalo zone. Let's see if the Sabres get some momentum in the second period from killing off the two-man penalty.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are here Saturday night and they're coming off a victory that is the talk of the NHL today -- an 8-7 win over the Flyers Thursday night in Philadelphia that saw the teams combine for nine first-period goals. If you missed it, it's worth a look as the NHL Network will rebroadcast the shootout Saturday at 4.

Lightning gunner Steven Stamkos had a hat trick in the game and he leads the NHL in goals (19) and points (35). Alexander Semin is next in goals with just 14 and Sidney Crosby is second in points (29).

Sabres coach Lindy Ruff, of course, is paying most of attention to the Los Angeles Kings because they're tonight's opponent. But he got a look at the Lightning last night too. Tampa Bay (10-7-2) is fifth in the East in its first year under coach Guy Boucher and GM Steve Yzerman.

"I saw it was 5-4 after the first, I saw Philly was up 7-5 and the final," Ruff said. "That's good old-fashioned hockey there."

Ruff, of course, is a defensive-minded coach but fans love offense. Asked if he wanted to coach in such a free-wheeling game, Ruff smiled and said, "If you win, I'd love to coach that game."

Check out the highlights below.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

My son, Ty, was getting ready for school this morning with NHL Network's "On the Fly" on TV, and it popped up an interesting graphic. Basically, it outlined the fact the Sabres have a lot of work to do if they want to make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference.

The channel noted it took 88 points to make the top eight in the East last season. In order to achieve that, the Sabres need to have a .572 win percentage for the rest of the season. Here are the teams out of the top eight now and what they need to do:

Devils (14th place): .603

Islanders (15th): .601

Sabres (12th): .572

Thrashers (11th): .563

Maple Leafs (10th): .554

Panthers (13th): .553

Hurricanes (ninth): .546

---John Vogl

Craig Rivet will be back in the lineup tonight as the Sabres face the Los Angeles Kings in HSBC Arena. Patrick Kaleta might be too but we'll just have to wait and see on him. Lindy Ruff would not commit to Kaleta replacing Nathan Gerbe although Kaleta has seemed fine in practice and skated again this morning.

"He's better," Ruff said of Kaleta. "We just don't know if we want to risk playing him right now and we lose him for more time."

Rivet will replace Chris Butler in the lineup. What does Ruff want to see from his embattled captain?

"He's got to bring a consistent physical game," the coach said. "That's the part that's been missing. Some of the play in his own end defensively, the tougher reads that have cost us goals, he has to clean up."

Butler, meanwhile, continues to be a disappointment. He's never showed the promise he did during the 2008-09 season and drew the short straw tonight for a lazy penalty in the first period Wednesday that led to a Washington power play goal.

"He hasn't quite gotten to where he was when he first got here, " Ruff said. "I think there is some disappointment. We've played him out of position the last couple games trying to get him familiar with playing the right side but you can throw as many excuses as you want and you're accountable for your own play. Right now we're going to play the six guys that we think are going to get the job done. In his case, he had a little bit of a rough night and we've got to go from there."

The Kings enter the game 12-5-0 and have given up 11 goals in losing their last two. But they had given up just six in winning the six previous games as goaltender Jonathan Quick (10-2, 1.73, .936) is off to a fabulous start. LA plays tomorrow at Boston so we'll see if the Sabres get another backup in Jonathan Bernier (2-3, 3.01, .899).

(UPDATE: Bernier WILL be in goal tonight according to LAKings Insider, the must-read blog run by former Kings beat writer Rich Hammond. That's 11 backups against the Sabres this season.)

The Kings are just 1-9-1 in Buffalo since 1993. The only win was a 4-1 victory on Feb. 21, 2003. The Sabres have won the last three games here by a total score of 23-4.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

We took a few minutes off from serious hockey talk this afternoon in HSBC Arena to talk about cereal. Yes, cereal.

Ryan Miller was on hand along with representatives from PLB Sports and area merchants to introduce his new line of "Kick-Save Krunch" (It's a toasted oats cereal but don't use the word "Cheerios"!). Part of the proceeds go to Miller's charity, the Steadfast Foundation. Fans can also order a terrific New Era cap showcasing the Uncle Sam logo from Miller's widely-hailed Olympic mask or get an electronic trading card of Miller by e-mailing/texting the "jag tag" from the back of the box. Pretty neat stuff.

The cereal, made by the same company that brought you "Flutie Flakes," is available at Wegmans, Tops and Wilson Farms. His Olympic experience in February in Vancouver has certainly given Miller far more exposure and he's interested in using it to help Steadfast, which will stage its annual Catwalk for Charity event Sunday night in the Town Ballroom.

"I'm definitely trying to tailor (the attention) to something I feel is important," Miller said. "Steadfast Foundation is in its fifth year. As it's evolved and progressed, we're trying to find unique ways to raise money and awareness. This kind of goes along with it. I'm happy to have an opportunity to get people to pay attention and this is something that's fun."

We went outside the cereal box, so to speak, and also asked Miller about his "Caddyshack" impression, which is being showcased on ESPN.com and in ESPN the Magazine (check out their gallery here). Specifically, Miller was Carl Spackler, the Bill Murray groundskeeper character who basically everyone can do impressions of. The bit was photographed and shot on video a couple weeks ago at Park Country Club.

Miller was pretty good too. "It's in the hole" and "great big gobs of greasy, grimy, gopher guts" rolled right off his tongue. Great outfit too. Check it out below.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington)

The Sabres have a back-to-back set of home games this weekend (Friday against Los Angeles, Saturday against Tampa Bay), and coach Lindy Ruff said today that captain Craig Rivet will likely return to the lineup at some point during this set. Rivet, on the road back from food poisoning, spent most of Thursday's practice in the arena working with Mike Weber but also spent some time alongside Shaone Morrisonn in place of Chris Butler, who would take a seat in the press box if Rivet comes back into the lineup.

"I would anticipate him playing this weekend," Ruff said of Rivet. "He's worked extremely hard through his virus and hopefully he's ready to be a factor in the games."

Patrick Kaleta had a full practice and might play this weekend. He'll have to go through Friday morning's skate before any decision is reached. Ruff said he would "give that some thought" when asked if Patrick Lalime might get a game but seemed to indicate the Sabres' place in the standings probably dictates Ryan Miller would get both starts. Especially since the team will be off until next Wednesday against Pittsburgh.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

WASHINGTON -- I get asked a lot what is my favorite road city. Depending on the day, it changes.

New York makes you feel so alive, with its bustle and never-sleep attitude. It's tough to beat the beach in Fort Lauderdale for Panthers road trips. Phoenix brings out that adventurous spirit, with mountain climbing and outdoor desert activities. The food and sightseeing in San Francisco during San Jose trips are astounding. The familiarity of Ottawa is nice. For pure hockey, you can't beat its birthplace -- Montreal. Nashville is the only place where the bars are packed when the morning skate starts at 10:30 a.m.

But for reflection, architecture and and stunning sights, there's nothing like D.C. The nation's capital has it all. Walked around for three hours this afternoon, and despite having seen all the monuments, memorials and buildings before, it felt like the first time. This place is just right.

(Side note: Best invention ever is the camera phone. It allows you to bring people to the sites with you, even though they're back in RC Land.)

And I needed the three-hour walk after stuffing my entire body with steak, steak and more steak at Fogo de Chao. If you've never been to one, you must go. I first heard of it a long while back when co-worker Mark Gaughan praised it in his NFL Power Rankings, which for my money is still the best regular feature in our paper.

Well, back to hockey soon. The Sabres are starting with the line of Cody McCormick-Rob Niedermayer-Mike Grier and the sizzling defensive pair of Jordan Leopold-Steve Montador. Ryan Miller is in net.

FIRST PERIOD

7:09 p.m.: Game on.

7:12 p.m.: As usual, lots of Blue and Gold in the stands here, including my cousins Jim, Kathy and Suzy Juraska. Thanks for the food, sodas and fun last night!

Sabres get first power play with Tyler Sloan leaving for slashing with 16:19 left.

7:16 p.m.: Two shots for the Sabres on the power play, which featured bouncing pucks and off-the-mark passes. Looks like the ice might be a bit chippy, but it's the same for both teams so that's not an issue.

7:18 p.m.: It's 0-0 with Caps holding a 5-4 shot edge at first commercial with 13:24 to go.

7:24 p.m.: Chant of "Let's go, Buffalo'' is quickly drowned out by "Let's go, Caps," led by the dude with the annoying horn right below the press box. It's 0-0 with 10:34 to go.

7:27 p.m.: The Capitals get their first power play with 9:05 left. Matt Bradley hustles into the Buffalo zone on a dump in and bangs Chris Butler behind the net. Butler quickly hooks him for the penalty.

7:30 p.m.: Double whammy for the Sabres as Tyler Myers goes for holding with 8:52 left. It's five-on-three for 1:47, and Myers is usually one of the five-on-three guys.

7:32 p.m.: It was only a matter of time. Miller made big saves on Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green, but Alexander Semin spotted Nicklas Backstrom at the opposite side of the crease and fed him for the one-timer with 7:29 left. It's 1-0 Washington.

7:38 p.m.: The Capitals maintain their 1-0 lead with 5:08 left. They also have a 9-6 shot edge. Sabres are on their heels following the penalties.

7:42 p.m.: Capitals make it 2-0 with 2:56 left. Jason Chimera sends a no-look pass between his legs to the front, and Matt Bradley fans on the shot but slips it through Miller's pads.

7:46 p.m.: The Sabres head to the dressing room in a 2-0 hole and with an 11-8 shot deficit.

SECOND PERIOD

8:05 p.m.: And they're back...

8:07 p.m.: Miller's glove hand seems just a bit off since his return from injury.

8:08 p.m.: The Sabres' trouble covering plays from behind the net to the front continues. Chimera, below the goal line, feeds David Steckel in the slot for a one-timer. It's 3-0 with 17:15 to go.

8:15 p.m.: A nice pad save by Miller on Brooks Laich keeps the score 3-0. There is 11:40 left.

8:16 p.m.: Whoa, that's quite a promotion. If the Caps score in the final two minutes of the second period, a contestant wins free Lasik eye surgery. That's much better than a free T-shirt, eh?

8:21 p.m.: Sabres get a much-needed power play with 8:28 left. Mike Green held Thomas Vanek. The game has belonged to the Capitals, so the Sabres could use this to get some life.

8:24 p.m.: And there it is. Derek Roy scores high to the glove side with 7:53 left, pulling the Sabres within 3-1 with a power-play goal.

8:25 p.m.: Jordan Leopold pulls the Sabres within 3-2 with 7:05 to go. He swoops in to put home a loose puck in front.

8:28 p.m.: The Sabres are headed back to the power play with 5:41 after Ovechkin flips the puck over the glass for delay of game.

8:29 p.m.: Standing ovation for Army Specialist Mathew Yarger. HSBC Arena is still the only rink that doesn't give standing O's for military personnel, but I have noticed a few people standing lately to applaud. It should be all of them.

8:37 p.m.: The Sabres head to the dressing room in a 3-2 hole. They have a 23-20 shot advantage after a 15-9 second period.

THIRD PERIOD

8:55 p.m.: The Capitals are 7-0 when leading after two periods, while the Sabres are 2-8 when trailing after two.

9:02 p.m.: It's still 3-2 Washington with 14:20 to play.

9:02 p.m.: Ovechkin is due.

9:03 p.m.: Jason Pominville, alone in front, couldn't connect on a bouncing pass from Jochen Hecht with 13:28 to go.

9:10 p.m.: The second of three TV timeouts comes with the Caps holding their 3-2 lead with 9:17 to go.

9:14 p.m.: Chimera gives the Sabres a power play with 8:43 left when he hooks Roy.

9:17 p.m.: Michal Neuvirth stones Pominville and Leopold on the power play to keep Washington in front. There's 4:50 left.

9:24 p.m.: The Sabres have just 1:49 left to score and extend their unbeaten streak.

9:27 p.m.: Sabres call timeout with 7.4 seconds left and a faceoff coming in the Washington end.

9:28 p.m.: Washington wins, 4-2, as Semin shoots the puck the length of the ice with 3.2 seconds left.

---John Vogl

WASHINGTON -- No surprises in the nation's capital as the Sabres wrap up their morning skate. Ryan Miller will be in goal against the Capitals tonight, while Craig Rivet and Mike Weber remain the healthy scratches on the blue line. Rivet, it seems, will be out until the Sabres start to stumble.

---John Vogl

The Sabres are definitely making one roster change for Wednesday's game in Washington. Captain Craig Rivet is waiting for them to make another.

Left wing Nathan Gerbe, who has been out since suffering a fractured jaw Oct. 29, has been cleared to play and will be in the lineup against the Capitals. He will replace right wing Patrick Kaleta, who left Monday's 4-3 overtime victory against Vancouver with an upper-body injury. Kaleta is day-to-day.

The injury swap forces the hand of coach Lindy Ruff, who historically doesn't like tinkering with his roster when the team is hot. The Sabres finally are with a 4-0-1 record in the past five games.

Ruff's stance is tough on Rivet. The captain had food poisoning last week, but he said today he has been healthy enough to play.

"I've been good to go for a while," Rivet said. "I think any time you're not in the lineup you're disappointed, but it gives me an opportunity to work on some things.

"You know what? I don't disagree with what he's doing. When a team's hot and they're playing well and things are clicking, you need to stick with them. I think our team has played very well. We've played some very tough teams in the last couple games and played some good hockey, so we need to continue with the lineup that's winning games."

---John Vogl

Lindy Ruff

Here's a look around the NHL, starting right here in the B-lo with the team that's on a 4-0-1 run:

*The Sabres needed extra time for the fifth straight game Monday, and for the fourth time they celebrated at the conclusion. Tyler Myers' goal with 22.2 seconds left in OT gave the Sabres a 4-3 victory over Vancouver and moved them to 4-0-1 during the run of close affairs.

By accumulating nine of a possible 10 points over the last five games, the Sabres have moved from last place in the Eastern Conference to 10th, just one point out of the eighth-place playoff spot.

*Jerry Sullivan catches up with red-hot Derek Roy, who has points in five straight games and is trying to prove he is one of the NHL's top centers.

"I want to be an elite player in this league," Roy said. "I don't want to cruise through my career and just get 60, 70 points or whatever. I think that's a part of being a human being and growing up. Whatever you do in life, you want to be skilled at it. You want to be the best. I'm trying to approach it that way every day."

*Buffalo Sabres winger Thomas Vanek had a good excuse to skip the morning skate as his wife gave birth to twin boys at the noon hour Monday. A few hours later, he was skating all over the HSBC Arena rink in yet another solid performance.

*NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell is getting attention for a series of e-mails, including one that urges Stephen Walkom, then the director of officiating, to find out if a penalty against his son late in an untelevised game was called properly. In a subsequent e-mail, Campbell says he would have had to fine himself had he attended the game where his son was called for tripping - which he refers to as a "weak penalty" that "makes me sick."

Contacted by TSN for his reaction, Campbell said: "For me, it's much ado about nothing. Stephen and I would have banter back and forth, and Stephen knows I'm a [hockey] dad venting and both of us knowing it wouldn't go any further than that."

*Because the Islanders have dropped 10 games in a row in the final year of coach Scott Gordon's contract, it was hardly a surprise that Gordon was fired Monday.

---John Vogl

Greetings from HSBC Arena as the suddenly surging Sabres (3-0-1 in their last four) meet the even-hotter Vancouver Canucks (8-1-0 in their last nine). Before we get to some game background and the warmups, a piece of news: Thomas Vanek's wife, Ashley, had twin boys via Caesarean today at noon. That's a full line of three boys now to join 3-year-old Blake.

According to Vanek's personal web site, Luka Robert weighs in at 6 pounds, 12 ounces and 20 inches. Kade Ashton is 5 pounds, 12 1/2 ounces and 18 1/2 inches. Vanek was not on the ice for today's optional morning skate but will be in the lineup tonight. The Sabres need him too against one of the NHL's most explosive teams.

The Canucks are on quite the tour of the Eastern US and Canada. They opened the trip with a 2-0 loss at Montreal but posted wins at Ottawa (6-2) and Toronto (5-3). They took Sunday off, with most of the players attending the Bills-Lions game, and finish the trip Wednesday in Pittsburgh. The Sabres are 0-3 thus far against the West this year and here's my favorite West stat of the season thus far: The teams that enter tonight 1-5 in the West (LA, Detroit, Vancouver, Anaheim and St. Louis) are a combined 34-2-4 at home. Yes, 34-2-4. That's how you get the job done.  Sabres, take note.

Just noticed a new sign is posted above Section 304 by season-ticket holder Jessica LaPoint, the author of "Fans Show Up...Why Don't You?" that's been displayed the last two games and got plenty of pub, both print and broadcast, across North America. Tonight's sign says simply, "Thank You! Keep Showing Up." She should keep coming up with thoughts of the night. She'll be the 40th anniversary version of "Taro Sez", the memorable quips on the facing of the balcony in the Aud that were a spoof of what might have been said by fictional Sabres draftee Taro Tsujimoto. 

Keep it here all night for your live updates. 

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Overtime

4:20 Left: Sabres kill it off.

22.2: MYERS WINS IT. BEST OVERTIME EVER. 7-2 SHOTS FOR BUFFALO OODLES OF CHANCES. All alone in front. Craziness. Final shots were 39-39.

Did you really want me to be typing during all that? Sorry, no chance. Not tonight. Up and down action. Almost no whistles. Great play by Vanek to bother Hamhuis from behind. Great shot by Myers. Sabres 4-0-1 in their last five -- all in overtime. Five straight in OT is a franchise record.  

Third Period

Of note: Leopold and Montador are plus-3. Vanek, Roy and Ennis are plus-2. The Sedins are minus-2. Vanek has six shots on goal. The Sedins have five each. Raffi Torres came into this game with seven goals but he's been invisible. Minus-1 and only played 8:16. Playing about as well as he did here last spring, which means he's been terrible. Still want to know how Dan Hamhuis suddenly became Nicklas Lidstrom during the free agency period. He's played 13:30 and you don't even notice him. And they gave him six years and $27 million? Crazy. The Canucks have won 30 of 47 faceoffs and Roy is just 1-10.

8:55 p.m.: We're under way. 

15:31 left: Sabres keeping Canucks to the outside quite well but Myers takes a cross-checking penalty to give the visitors a chance to get back in contention. Retaliation.

15:12 left: Can't give this power play those chances. Henrik Sedin feeds Alexander Edler at the point and his laser beats Miller clean off the post to make it 3-2. Sedins have two points each and Canucks are 2 for 4 on the PP.

14:02 left: Not far from another Niklas Hjalmarsson play as Bieksa drills Pominville in the back. This time, luckily, Pominville doesn't hit the boards. Bieksa gone for two.

11:30 left: Eagle-eyed Bob Matuszak of the AP notes Patrick Kaleta is not on the bench. And a check of the shift chart shows he hasn't been on the ice since the middle of the second period. And now the Sabres come in with the report of an upper-body injury to Kaleta and he will not return. Shots are 6-5 for the Sabres in this period.

10:39 left: Disaster. Montador and Leopold, who were having a great night, blow coverage and Samuelsson has a tap-in to tie the game at 3-3. Great pass from Henrik Sedin, who has assisted on all three goals.

8:20 left: Schneider stops Ennis in front on a great Vanek feed after the Sedins had the Sabres hemmed in for an entire shift. 

5:58 left: There's Torres. Wipes out Myers. Sabres lucky nothing developed there.

4:44 left: Vanek, Roy and Ennis nearly connect but Kesler wipes out the net and crashes into the post. Looks like he got metal to the mush. Up slowly.

2:43 left: Still 3-3. Shots are 12-7 for the Canucks, who have had a big edge most of this period.

1:21 left: Holy moly. McCormick for boarding behind the Canucks net. Seemed like a pretty obvious call on Malhotra.  

On to OT -- for the fifth straight time. Excellent job by the Sabres on that PK so far. No shots for the Canucks. They'll have 39 seconds of 4-on-3 to start overtime. Shots are 37-32 for Vancouver.

Second Period

7:59 left: The puck is dropped.

14:00 left: Much of the skating has stopped in this period. Much tighter. Good job by the Sabres to slow the Canucks down. Shots are 2-1 for Vancouver in the period.

13:43 left: Hecht for slashing the stick out of Andrew Alberts' hands behind the Canucks' net.

12:42 left: The Sedins are definitely magicians. Henrik was just wide on two great chances but Daniel doesn't miss on a slapper from the right circle. Looked like Miller never moved with a screen in front of him (Morrisonn?) Sabres never got the puck out after the Hecht penalty and they had a couple chances. Daniel's 12th. Sabres lead 2-1.

10:17 left: A "Go Canucks Go" chant. Not as strong as "Go Leafs Go" but definitely jarring. After all, this team plays 3,000 miles away. And they're playing better the last few minutes. Shots just 4-2 for Vancouver but the visitors are definitely buzzing.

8:06 left: Shots are 6-2 for Vancouver. Sabres not doing much. Vanek had five shots in the first. Haven't noticed him in this period.

6:35 left: Vanek makes Bieksa look silly with a similar move as the OT winner Saturday but doesn't shoot. Gets the puck back. Doesn't shoot. It goes to Roy, who feeds Montador at the point and he shoots. Bullseye!  Montador's third and second in two games. Sabres lead, 3-1. Leopold and Montador are both plus-3 tonight. Montador now leads the NHL at plus-14. 

4:58 left: Aaron Rome goes for interference for plowing over Vanek in the Canucks' crease. 

3:30 left: Roy-Pominville-Connolly all over the Canucks. Connolly robbed point blank by Schneider.

2:56 left: Another call on the Canucks. Alexander Edler for tripping.

End-2nd: Sabres lead 3-1 through two. Shots were 11-10 for Buffalo and it's 25-24 for the Canucks.

First Period

Sabres starters: McCormick-Niedermayer-Grier-Leopold-Montador. Goal: Miller
Canucks starters: Raymond-Kesler-Samuelsson-Bieksa-Edler. Goal: Schneider (no Luongo). 

16:33 left: Niedermayer for high sticking, a few seconds after Ellis appeared to clip Bieksa but wasn't called. Just can't give this power play chances with penalties like that in the offensive zone.

15:26 left: The Sabres ran all four lines in the first three minutes. It's McCormick-Niedermayer-Grier, Hecht-Connolly-Pominville, Ennis-Roy-Vanek and Ellis-Gaustad-Kaleta. Defense pairs also stay the same: Leopold-Montador, Sekera-Myers, Morrisonn-Butler.

14:20 left: One shot on the Vancouver PP. More solid work by the Buffalo penalty killers, who are 17 of their last 18. Shots are 4-0 for the Canucks.

13:22 left: Miller spears Samuelsson's slapper as the winger broke down the right side with plenty of room to work. Miller's fifth save. Basically no offense for Sabres so far.

Lots of Canucks fans in the house, like there have been for them on this trip in Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. There's even four guys in blue Canucks jerseys bouncing a Canadian flag and Canucks banner in the first row behind Rob Ray between the benches. Hey season tix holder: Bet you made a pretty profit on that deal. This one is a sellout, by the way. A Value game so the 300 level is packed. Empties in the 100s and 200s.

11:38 left: Sabres take the 1-0 lead as Ennis taps it home from in front on a Roy feed after some awesome forechecking by Vanek in the left corner. It was on Buffalo's first shot of the game after the Canucks had nine! A dribbler through Schneider. He's got to make that save when his team has dominated for eight-plus minutes.

10:10 left: The Sedins nearly convert a highlight-reel 2-on-1 but Niedermayer with some great backchecking helps break up the play with the net pretty empty.

9:44 left: During a TV timeout, it's scoreboard blooper time. Borrowing the other half of the title, this is a nightly blunder.

8:49 left: After Miller made his best save from in front on Manny Malhotra, Schneider redeemed himself a few seconds later by robbing Vanek.

7:15 left: Great shift by the Gaustad line ends with a crunching hit from Kaleta on Rick Rypien, he of the attack on the Minnesota fan. Rypien follows Kaleta all the way across the ice to the bench but Kaleta simply skates off.

6:27 left: Buffalo nailed for too many men on the ice. Shots are 10-4 at the start of this power play.

6:13 left: So much for that power play. Daniel Sedin gone for slashing. Stupid penalty. Dude lumberjacked the stick out of Roy's hands in the Buffalo zone. No reason for it.

5:13 left: Good work by the Sabres on the 4-on-4, especially Sekera, creates a hooking penalty on Burrows. So it's a 4-on-3 power play for the Sabres.

4:04 left: Sabres held the puck wisely until Vanek returned from the penalty, giving them a two-man edge for 14 seconds. And Vanek had two great chances that Schneider stopped.  Still 51 seconds left on th Burrows penalty.

3:09 left: Schneider stops Roy, play called by hand pass. Sabres have the last five shots and it's 12-9 in that department. Remember, it was 9-0.

2:58 left:  The Sabres make it 2-0 as Niedermayer, who's having his best game at home by a mile feeds McCormick. The first shot was stopped but McCormick backhanded it back into Schneider and the goalie flubbed it right into the net, failing to pull it out before it went over the line. 

End-1st: A wild final minute with both teams having great chances, topped by two more from Vanek that were turned away by Schneider. Shots were 15-13 for the Canucks, who had the last two after the Sabres pulled even. Solid final 12 minutes taking advantage of the backup goaltender, who has been terrific until tonight for the Canucks.

The Sedins are in town but if you're thinking you're going to see Roberto Luongo in goal tonight, think again. The Vancouver Canucks have completed their pregame skate in HSBC Arena and Cory Schneider -- who is 3-0 with an 0.90 GAA and .969 save percentage -- will continue the bizarre run of backup goaltenders the Sabres will see. 

(Just went over the game-by-games with WGR's Paul Hamilton and we've come up with 10 backup goalies against the Sabres in 19 games if Luongo doesn't go tonight. Ten!! The Sabres are 4-3-2 in the first nine)

Not much news from the Sabres camp other than Lindy Ruff saying captain Craig Rivet is "getting very close to playing" on the road back from food poisoning. Interesting dilemma there for sure once Rivet is ready.

The Canucks have not been here since Oct. 17, 2008 (a 5-2 Buffalo win). This will be the 109th meeting between the 1970 expansion cousins and the Sabres can even the all-time series with a win tonight as they are 44-45-19 against the Canucks.

Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin are tied (what else?) for fifth in the NHL with 20 points. Daniel has 11 goals while Henrik has just two. The Canucks are second in the NHL on the power play at 28.3 percent (Buffalo is 28th at 11.4). On the road, Vancouver is No. 1 at a whopping 32.4 percent (11 for 34).

'I thought we did a great job on [Washington's Alexander] Ovechkin last game," said Sabres center Derek Roy, who is one point back of the Sedins with 19. " Now we got the Sedin twins coming in. They have some firepower. We have to really check those guys close and keep an eye when they're on the ice."

"They know exactly where each other is going," said coach Lindy Ruff. "They're great passers, either forehand or backhand. They read off each other very well. Tremendous players. That continuity playing that period of time is something you can't teach in this league."

Ryan Kesler is second on the Canucks with nine goals and who's third? None other than ex-Sabre Raffi Torres, who flamed out here last year and was a scratch for the final two playoff games but has rebounded with seven goals in Vancouver.

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington)

As 16 of the Sabres take part in an optional skate inside HSBC Arena this morning, here's a look stories from around the NHL, starting right here in the B-lo:

*The fans have been trekking to the foot of Washington Street night after night this season waiting to be entertained. Finally, in the eighth home game of the year, Thomas Vanek and the Sabres delivered with a 3-2 overtime victory over Washington. His winner moved the Sabres to 3-0-1 in their last four games and 1-6-1 on home ice this season.

"We've been playing some exciting hockey -- if you've been a fan of the visiting team," Sabres defenseman Steve Montador said. "We had to get that first one to get us started at home, and we definitely want to build."

*There are garbage goals and there are superstar goals. Thomas Vanek had one of each Saturday night. He was more than satisfied by the first one but left everybody in HSBC Arena heading out into the night talking about the second one.

*Bucky Gleason caught up with Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn, who has no plans for major changes to his hockey department, such as firing Sabres coach Lindy Ruff or General Manager Darcy Regier. Quinn believed the Sabres could turn around their slow start with their current roster, but he also made it clear they wouldn't sit around if changes were in order.

"We're not going to fire Lindy," Quinn said. "Obviously, we're not where we want to be. The best way to get where we want to be, it's with Lindy. I don't think there's anybody else I would rather have doing that. One of the reasons I went down [to the arena] the other day is to take a temperature of the place. I don't think Lindy has lost any players or anything like that. We're not going to fire Lindy."

And Regier?

"I feel the same way about Darcy," Quinn said. "You're going to go through periods like this. The worst thing you can do is point fingers at each other and blame people. Sometimes, things you do don't work out in the short run. If we have to make changes, we'll make them. Darcy knows he can do that. In the meantime, Lindy feels he can turn this situation around."

*While the Sabres were winning their first home game, the Kings set a franchise record by improving to 8-0 in Los Angeles.

*The Montreal Canadiens are holding their breath that a new injury to top defenceman Andrei Markov's right leg is not too serious. Markov was helped off the ice at 14:50 of the third period of Montreal's 7-2 win over Carolina on Saturday night after a collision with Hurricanes' star Eric Staal. He appeared to injure his right knee — the same knee that needed surgery this summer after he hurt it during the playoffs.

---John Vogl

Here's some audio from the locker room after the Sabres' 3-2 overtime victory over Washington:

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

Thomas Vanek

Ryan Miller

Lindy Ruff

Welcome to HSBC Arena and the continuing saga of Which Buffalo Team Will Win a Home Game First (minus Canisius edition). Tonight, the Sabres get yet another chance against the Washington Capitals. If they don't beat the East's top team, I fear they will lose the coveted title. Seriously now, the Bills HAVE to beat the Stafford-less Detroit Lions tomorrow, don't they? 

The Sabres are certainly a little better looking tonight than they have been. They're 2-0-1 in their last three and Ryan Miller will be back in goal. The Caps are going with rookie backup Braden Holtby -- who is 2-0 with a 1.70 GAA and .931 save percentage in his two games.

Crazy run of backups against the Sabres whether it's injury (Brodeur), illness (Lundqvist) or opposing coaches simply not respecting this offense. At some point, the Sabres need to fire up seven goals against one of these guys (like they did in that 6-1 win over Jersey's Johan Hedberg last month).  Of course, that would require Thomas Vanek to actually shoot the puck too. I still hate the thought that it was a good pass to Derek Roy in overtime. I don't want my $6.4 million man passing from the slot in overtime EVER. And I don't care who's open. Sorry. 

But like Lindy Ruff says, we're looking ahead. Enough about the last game. Same lineup for the Sabres, meaning Craig Rivet and Mike Weber are the scratches. Be sure to read today's earlier post for an update on Rivet. Helps Ruff out of a pickle for now: He's sick and the team's winning so he sits. What happens if they keep winning and he's ready? Uh-huh. 

Strange but true: Derek Roy has 18 points -- tied for eighth in the NHL and fourth among centers. Gotta give it up to him. Alexander Ovechkin leads the Caps with 23 points (9-14) while Alexander Semin has 21 (12-9). They're third and fourth in the league, respectively. 

And yes, the "Fans Show Up, Why Don't You?" sign is again up above Section 304. The Sabres, in case you've been under a rock for a month, are 0-6-1. They're now moving the large Sabres banner through the 300 level instead of the 100 level. Anything to change things up I guess. (Conspiracy theory: Maybe management wants it to cover that banner. Oops, just saw the sign on the HD board as the banner went underneath. The Sabre-censors missed that one!).

And an AWESOME new 40th anniversary video for pregame featuring alumni interviews and LOADS of hockey. Got rid of all the cultural references. HUGE improvement.

More pregame: Super job by the Sabres to honor Mike Grier for his 1,000 game. NHL Senior Vice President of Operations Jim Gregory was on hand to present Grier with a silver Tiffany plaque. Sabres GM Darcy Regier presented Grier with a silver stick and the framed jersey he wore game No. 1,000, Nov. 3 in Boston. Grier's wife and two children, in blue Sabres jerseys, joined him on the ice. Super touch. Solid video salutes from Gaustad, Miller, Pominville and Rivet as well as some opponents like Williamsville native Todd Marchant of Anaheim, who played with Grier in Edmonton. 

Keep it here for the latest from the Sabres and Ovechkins. 

---Mike Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington) 

OVERTIME

Sabres open with Pominville, VAnek, Roy and Connolly. Four forwards. 

4:30 left: Faceoff. Holtby has stopped Pominville twice.

3:42 left: Icing on Caps. Penalty over. Puck off post on Connolly shot. Looked like Vanek got a piece of it.

1:44 left: Shot partially blocked by Green on a 3-on-1. Close call.

1:00 left: VANEK COAST TO COAST. HIGHLIGHT REEL. ALL-STAR STUFF. Stuffs home the backhand. Praise be. A win at home. Place goes nuts.

Third Period

9:01 p.m: We're under way again. Twenty minutes to go for the Hallelujah chorus of a home win in Buffalo for SOMEBODY. 

16:44 left: Caps have the first three shots of the period and lots of zone time. Mr. Boudreau clearly had a few things to say. 

14:00 left: Shots are 5-1. Sabres really don't think they can just rely on Miller to hold on for 20 minutes, do they? Against this team? 

12:51 left: Hate to say I told you so. But I told you so. Backstrom with a perfect shot just under the crossbar using Morrisonn as a screen. Game tied at 2-2 and shots are 7-1 in this period.

10;02 left: Ten minutes away from a fourth straight overtime. Sabres have to generate more offense here. This would be one devastating loss if they don't pull it out. 

6:36 left: Pominville doesn't convert Hecht's goalmouth pass on a 2-on-1 which was Buffalo's best chance of the period. Fair is fair: Great steal by Connolly set the whole thing up. 

4:18 left: Shots are 7-3 for the Caps. Attendance announced at 18,690, the third sellout of the season. And the place is definitely packed. 

2:54 left: Backstrom goes four minutes for high sticking Morrisonn. A few seconds after Vanek just fails to go backhand-forehand at the doorstep. Gotta score the go-ahead goal here. Just have to.

1:14 left: Timeout, Sabres. Holtby has stopped Pominville on one shot and Leopold just missed on a rebound. Sabres have three shots so far. They would have 1:06 of 4-on-3 to open overtime if they need it.

13.9 left: Crowd boos as Myers ices the puck with a long pass. Ridiculous play.

On to OT -- again. Shots were 7-6 for the Caps in that period and 24-23 for Washington for the game. Caps have gone nearly 13 minutes without a shot.

Second Period

8:06 p.m.: We're back at it.

16:14 left: Jason Chimera goes for cross checking, a retaliation on Kaleta. AND he gets two more for unsportsmannlike conduct. Will the power play do anything any time soon? It's 1 for 24 in the last seven games before tonight and 0 for 1 tonight. That's 1 for 25 if you're scoring at home (I'm still in baseball mode a little coming off post-World Series vacation).

12:10 left: Three shots and not much possession as the PP falls to 1 for 27. Here's how it went: Giveaway by Pominville, save on Connolly, giveaway by Ennis, save on Hecht, bad pass by Hecht, bad pass by Ennis, Montador shot blocked, Connolly giveaway (boos), offside (boos), Leopold shot stopped. Terrible.

11:09 left: It's not like the Caps are doing anything in this game. They have one shot in the period so far. Sabres have four. Another brutally boring game in Buffalo. Do the Sabres ever player interesting hockey in this building? The games in New York and New Jersey, win or lose, were good to watch. This is plain terrible. 

9:50 left: Sabres finally get it in gear as Montador rifles one all the way through from the right point. Nice backhand feed off the boards to him from Grier. We're heard the ping off the post all the way up here. Montador's second of the year puts him at plus-11 -- or 22 goals better than minus-11 Myers. Game tied, 1-1.

6:18 left: Shots are 7-2 for the Sabres in the period. The Caps seem sucked into the Sabres' lifeless approach. They're doing nothing. Is Ovechkin even on the ice this period?

3:55 left: Tomas Fleischmann goes for high-sticking Ennis in the mush. Fleischmann gets four minutes and Roy gets two for hooking. Repeating: Will this power play do anything? People in front of the press box: Stop trying to do the wave. This isn't 1986.

3:31 left: STOP THE PRESSES, STOP THE PRESSES. A power play goal. By Vanek no less. Leopold's shot is blocked by Green but it rolls to Holtby's left and Vanek, mercifully, has a tap-in. Poor guy looked so relieved he just skated away and didn't even put his arms up. Sabres lead, 2-1. 

1:53 left: Sabres really dominating as Caps continue to sleep. Shots are 11-2. Wonder if Washington will come out breathing fire in the third after Bruce Boudreau peels some paint off the walls in this intermission.

End-2nd: We hear cheering in HSBC Arena. Praise be. It's 2-1 for the Sabres, shots were 11-4 in that period and 17-17 for the game. The last 10 minutes were about the best we've seen Buffalo at home this year. Winning all kinds of physical battles for the puck. 

First period

7:14 p.m: We're under way a few minutes late. Buffalo starters: McCormick-NIedermayer-Grier-Sekera-Myers.

18:16 left: Memo to Lindy -- You will not win a home game as long as Tim Connolly is still on the ice. First shift, first brutal giveaway. Right to Nicklas Backstrom, whose slapshot handcuffs Miller badly. Goalie dropped it right between his legs out of the glove but it rolls just wide of the open net.

17:22 left: David Steckel goes for delay of game (puck over glass). Let's see if the power play can do anything. 

17:01 left: Not so far. Brutal giveaway by Vanek creates a 2-on-1 but at least he backchecked hard to break it up.

15:20 left: One shot on goal. Biggest highlight: Strong hit by Connolly, of all people, on Mike Green.

13:07 left: Shots are 4-3 for Caps. At first TV timeout, a video salute for Lindy Ruff and Darcy Regier's 1,000th games. A few boos for Regier when his name is mentioned. Too bad Lindy's moment gets ruined by including the GM, whose name is not on high on most fans' lists right now.

11:57 left: WHO KIDNAPPED TYLER MYERS THIS YEAR? He wipes out going around his net with no one around him, gives the puck away and it goes to the left point where Karl Alzner blasts it past Miller to make it 1-0, Caps. 

10:08 left: Video birthday wish to Gilbert Perreault, who turns 60 -- 60! -- today. He waves to the crowd. Still haven't heard the tape of his Elvis impression after a game this year. Why? They only play it here when the Sabres win. Oy. 

8:56 left: Another great contribution from Connolly. Slashing penalty. 

7:06 left: Niedermayer feeds Kaleta on a short-handed 2-on-0. Holtby with the great glove save.

6:15 left: Kaleta strips Holtby behind the net and feeds an open Roy in front of the yawning cage but the Caps get back just in time to stop Roy's chance.

5;13 left: SHOOT VANEK, SHOOT. 

4:42 left: Miller stones Ovechkin on a breakaway and the crowd is on its feet. Finally, some life here. Huge play. Maybe that can change some things. Great stop with the left pad.

End-1st: It's 1-0 for the Caps and shots are 13-6. Miller keeping the Sabres afloat so far. Not much going on offensively. Again.

With Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green in town, the special teams are going to be a huge point of emphasis for the Sabres in tonight's game against the high-flying Washington Capitals. Buffalo is 0-6-1 at home and can't let the Caps run wild with the man advantage if it wants to snap that skid.

Even with all their talent, the Caps' power play went 1 for 33 in their playoff loss to Montreal last year (shades of 0 for 19, eh?). Things started badly this year as Washington was just 4 for 39 in its first 10 games and had an 0-for-16 run in one five-game stretch. The Caps hit town, tonight, however on a six-game winning streak and are 9 for 22 in those games.

The Sabres, meanwhile, have dramatically picked up their penalty killing since Jason Pominville's return. They're 15 of 16 the last five games with him on the ice -- and 23 of 24 on the season with him. Without Pominville, that 95.8 percent clip drops to just 69.8 (30 of 43).

"It's been better. Special teams have been one of the issues at home," said coach Lindy Ruff. "We need improved special teams. ... If you kill them off, and we know Washington has got some lethal weapons on their power play, you can give yourself a chance."

---MIke Harrington
(www.twitter.com/bnharrington)