Ennis of the Line for Tyler?

The waning days of July are when NHL fans feel trapped in a Rod Serling script. We scour rumor sites and twitter anxiously awaiting the signings and trades that will either send us into a fit of rage calling for our GM to be fired, or a euphoric fist pump extolling the efforts of our organization.  But it's not the swing of emotions that leave us feeling like we're in the Twilight Zone, it's the endless waiting.  They say insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results...you get the drift.


So in the interest of spicing up the most tiresome time of the year for hockey fans I present to you the end of Tyler Ennis as a member of the Buffalo Sabres.

Myers Suspension, Playoff Push

Yesterday was about as bad a day for the Sabres organization as can be had on an off day. Late in the afternoon it was announced that NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan had ruled on a three game suspension to Tyler Myers for his hit on Scott Gomez in Monday night's OT win over Montreal. To make matters worse, the NY Islanders blew a 4-1 lead at home to the visiting Capitals to extend Washington's lead back to 4 points over the Sabres for eighth place in the conference. Tampa Bay and Florida also won.

Sabres Deadline Deals, First Impressions

General Manager Darcy Regier sure made Sabrenation sweat things out on Monday, trade deadline day. With less than a half an hour before the deadline of 3pm EST there were no confirmed deals out of western New York. But it was the calm before the storm.

In two separate moves announced minutes before the deadline the Sabres dealt center Paul Gaustad to Nashville and acquired center Cody Hodgson, and defenseman Alexander Sulzer from Vancouver. Here are my initial reactions to the deals.

For Sabres, No More Excuses

The Buffalo Sabres sugar daddy, owner Terry Pegula, called the team's injuries a "plague" in an interview with WGR's Mike Schopp on 1/13/12. Though there is much truth to the notion that the Sabres have been hit hard with injuries, and that those injuries are affecting the on ice performance, most fans and media members alike felt as though Terry Pegula was making an excuse for his under performing franchise.

The Sabres have had 8 of their nightly starters sidelined for more than 10 games, including Tyler Myers, Christian Ehrhoff, Tyler Ennis, Nathan Gerbe, Brad Boyes, Ville Leino, Jochen Hecht, and goaltender Ryan Miller.

Sabres lack Winning Pedigree

Winners Win and Losers lose. It's a simple concept, and one that may not have any tangible measure but seems to play out on an annual basis. Teams that have experience winning, both collectively and individually find ways to win together.

Terry Pegula is on record as saying the sole existence of this team is to win Stanley Cups. I did a little research on the last two cup winning franchises to see how the Buffalo Sabres stacked up in terms of "winners". The IIHF recognizes the Stanley Cup, World Championship Gold, and the Olympic Gold as the three most accomplished titles in the sport of ice hockey. I also included the World Junior Championship in my rankings.

Buffalo Classifieds: Leadership Wanted

Another home loss for the Buffalo Sabres, and one thing is becoming increasingly clear, this team has no leadership.

The last Sabres team to boast this much depth and skill went to back to back Eastern Conference Finals in the two seasons out of the lockout. Those teams may not even have been as skilled as this current Buffalo team, but they had well defined leaders.

Chris Drury, Daniel Briere, and Jay McKee were guys that Buffalo could lean on when the going was tough. When games began to slip away, there was always a guy like JP Dumont, or Brian Campbell to step up and reverse the momentum.

The young players fed off of that confidence. You could see it in their eyes, and the fans could feel it in the arena. In game 5 against the New York Rangers during the 06/07 playoffs, you

Sabres Depth Being Tested

Heading into this season the Buffalo Sabres organizational depth was much ballyhooed and the players and fans alike had high expectations for this club. Through roughly one quarter of the season they sit at 13-9-1 and have played about as inconsistently as you could ever imagine. Despite their hot and cold streaks they are above .500 and off to a far better start than last season, which saw them needing to play .650 hockey over the final weeks of the season just to squeak into the playoffs.

The injury bug has bitten this team hard over the past few weeks with key cogs like Ryan Miller, Tyler Myers, Brad Boyes, Tyler Ennis, Drew Stafford, Robyn Regehr, and Patrick Kaleta all missing various amounts of time.

Just Win Baby

All the talk surrounding the Buffalo Sabres and in many ways the NHL the past few days if of Milan Lucic running Ryan Miller, and his non-suspension by NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan. The discussions of goalie safety and whether or not the rules prevent goaltenders from being hit outside of the crease are rampant. But frankly, I'm sick of it all ready.

The Buffalo Sabres reacted horribly to the incident. They skated over towards Lucic with fervor and then sorta just stood there, staring at the Bruins hulking menace, not any of them having the gall to plant their fist into his face.

Sabres 10 Games In Jury Still Out

The Sabres have completed the first 10 games of their 82 game schedule, and I think it's harder to get a pulse on where this team is at now than it was prior to the season starting. We have seen some good from this team in their strong start overseas, and their dominant road victory at Florida. There have been some bad things, in particular the back to back losses to Tampa Bay. Where there is bad sometimes there is ugly, and the Sabres have been there too, surrendering two short handed goals in their home opening loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. So where do they stand one eighth of the way into their 2011-2012 season?

Sabres Euro Domination

The Buffalo Sabres have arrived home safely from their mini European tour that saw them defeat Adler Mannheim 8-3 in the teams final exhibition game, and follow that up with back to back wins over Western Conference foes the Anaheim Ducks and L.A. Kings to start their season with a pair of wins. The Sabres didn't just escape Europe with 4 points, they looked dominant. For various reasons several key players stood out to me during these first two games, below is my observations on these Sabres.

Sabres open up Season Today

Brandon Hess- We are roughly 4 and half hours (at 1:30pm EST) away from the puck dropping in Helsinki, Finland where the Buffalo Sabres will open up their 2011-2012 season as the home team against the Anaheim Ducks. Last night at the team dinner Lindy Ruff announced the team captains, with Jason Pominville receiving the honor of wearing the "C" and Paul Gaustad, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, and Drew Stafford being named alternates. Tonight's scratches are Matt Ellis and Mike Weber, meaning M.A. Gragnani will get the nod on defense. Check back Monday as I'll have a recap of the Sabres opening European games, as well as a look forward to the rest of the October schedule. For in-game updates during today's season opener follow me on twitter @SabreHess

Sabres Conclude Preseason

Admittedly I haven't watched much of the preseason. I was glued to the opening game against Carolina as it was the first glimpse of NHL action since last season, but in the games since I had only caught bits and pieces. That is, until today, I had the opportunity to stream the exhibition match against Adler Mannheim and here are my observations of where the Sabres are at entering the regular season.

Sabres and Hurricanes kick off 2011-12 Season Tonight

The Buffalo Sabres and Carolina Hurricanes kick off their respective seasons tonight with a pre-season game scheduled for 7pm (et) at the newly dubbed First Niagara Center. High profile free agents Ville Leino and Tomas Kaberle will be making their first appearance for their new teams tonight. The Sabres are expected to also have new faces Christian Ehrhoff, and Robyn Regehr in the line-up. Among the young players projected to see the ice tonight will be Marcus Foligno, Luke Adam, Zack Kassian, Corey Tropp, Alex Biega, TJ Brennan, and goaltender Drew McIntyre. Ryan Miller will get the night off and Jhonas Enroth will relieve McIntyre later in the game.

Sabres Lock Up Myers

As predicted the Sabres announced the signing of defenceman Tyler Myers to a 7 year, 38.5$ million dollar contract extension today. Myers, who was set to become a restricted free-agent at the end of the 2011-2012 season, will receive a 10$mil signing bonus on July 1st 2012, the day his entry level contract expires, and the new extension kicks in. Myers will be 29 years old when the contract ends, ensuring that Buffalo is able to keep him in blue and gold at least 2 years of his un-restricted free agent eligible years. The signing comes on the heels of Zack Bogosian, John Tavares, and Brad Marchand all signing multi-year contracts with their respective clubs.

Pre-Season Quick Hits

The tragedy stricken summer of hockey continues. When KHL team Lokomotiv's plane struck a tower and crashed into the Volga river their families, friends, and fans were dealt a horrific blow in what has been as sad of an off-season as I can ever remember. Tragic deaths are not new to the sport, Tim Horton, Pelle Lindbergh, Dan Snyder, the list unfortunately goes on and on. However this is the first time that an entire hockey club, and coaching staff have perished simultaneously, clearly the most infamous event in the sport's history. I won't take credit for this idea because I have seen several comments across the internet suggesting the same thing, but to reiterate, I do believe the NHL should don the Lokomotiv crest on ALL jerseys this year in memory of the fallen KHL squad. My condolences to their families, friends, and fans, and this on the heels of Rick Rypien, Wade Belak, and Derek Boogaard...truly a black summer.

Sabres to trade Stafford to Flames, and other unlikely trades

Patience appears to be a virtue the Sabres front office possesses in spades these days. With new owner Terry Pegula's bankroll the Buffalo Sabres have the league's highest payroll and currently sit 3.6$ million over the salary cap. They have been over the cap for weeks yet they remain patient and are sitting pat awaiting the right offers to present themselves. In a recent Buffalo News article GM Darcy Regier indicated that he was looking to make trades in order to get the salary down before camp starts. Regier has also gone on record as saying he would prefer to make trades than bury players down in Rochester.

Amerks, Gragnani Deal, and Scapegoats

The Buffalo Sabres announced the signings of Michael Ryan and Paul Szczechura to one year contracts today. Michael Ryan had spent five seasons in the Sabres organization from 2003-2007. Szcechura played all of last year for Norfolk (AHL) and parts of the prior two seasons as a call-up for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Both players are expected to spend the season in Rochester, and I applaud Darcy Regier for bringing in some guys with NHL experience to help bring along all the promising prospects on the Amerks. As much as Buffalo is expecting players like McNabb, Schiestel, Adam, Kassian, Foligno, Persson, Brennan, and Pysyk

Fantasy Analysis: 10 Rookies/Prospects Ready to Breakout for 2011-2012

Looking for sleeper picks in your upcoming fantasy draft or interested in who to look for as possible up-and-comers next season?  You've come to the right place.  After hours of statistical analysis, I have compiled a top-10 list (featuring video evidence) of rookies/prospects who are likely to breakout next season as bonafide NHLers or even superstars.

For the purposes of this article:
Eligible players must have played two NHL seasons or less (of more than 5 Games Played)

Kevyn Adams added to Ruff's Staff, Myers Contract

The Buffalo Sabres "to do" list got one item shorter today as they announced Buffalo native Kevyn Adams will be promoted from his player development role to an assistant on Lindy Ruff's staff. Adams is taking the spot recently vacated by longtime assistant coach Brian McCutcheon.

Sabres Quest for the Cup, Starts with the Cap

With a busy off season starting to slow down for the Buffalo Sabres, it's time for GM Darcy Regier to do some creative accounting. While additions Robyn Regehr, Christian Ehrhoff, Ville Leino, and Ales Kotalik will no doubt improve the team in the 2011-2012 season, there is no denying the impact their collective 15.520$ million against the cap is making. With new owner Terry Pegula and his deep pockets the Sabres have had the luxury of spending to, and now above the salary cap but have some decisions to make before camp starts and the team has to be back under the 64.3$ million cap ceiling. I'm going to explore what I feel are the Sabres best options moving forward.

According to CapGeek.com , the Sabres currently sit 3.595$ million over the salary cap. This is certainly not an insurmountable number, and Buffalo has plenty of options here. Once M.A. Gragnani is signed Buffalo will have 8 defensemen with NHL contracts, and Shaone Morrisonn will likely be the odd man out. In fact if T.J. Brennan has an impressive camp Morrisonn could effectively wind up #9 on the depth chart.