BUFFALO---Paul Mara already looks like a lumberjack. Matt Cullen's is dark and thick. The youngsters' are ---as you might imagine---scraggly.
The Rangers' playoff beards have bloomed and they'll have some use here, where the forecast is certainly not post-season, nearly-May weather: more like October, 40-something degrees and rainy.
Nonetheless, it's not snowing and this city is preparing for the opening game in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Semifinals in good humor, with "Go Sabres" flashing on message boards at the airport and Sabres t-shirts proudly worn at the car-rental counters.
Remember the Jim Carrey film, "Bruce Almighty," when the Sabres win the Stanley Cup and riots break out in Buffalo? One car-rental firm employee laughed and noted only one scene in the movie was actually shot here.
"Most of it was in Cleveland," he said.
Before any wild celebrating can occur, however, the Sabres must finish off the Rangers, who believe they can win the series.
"We're not pretending anythere here, the pundits will say they're the better team, according to the records, and rightfully so," coach Tom Renney said after a fast-paced practice in Westchester. "But we're probably at at the apex of our game and if we can sustain that over the course of this series and beyond, we've got a good chance of winning."
For those just jumping on the bandwagon, Renney has done an admirable job in getting the players to buy into the don't-panic, team-first, opportunistic approach that concluded with a 17-3-4 run. "We're gonna face adversity and the worst thing we can do is immediately alter the way that we're playing," said Brendan Shanahan. "We've got a format that's brought us success. Over the long haul, we've won more than we've lost."
At practice, some of the drills were specifically designed for the Sabres' attack: defending odd man rushes and 2-on-2s, and down low around the net, where Buffalo will go back-door, look for the stuff, pass back to the open side.
In one, led by goaltender coach Benoit Allaire, a player would skate from the right boards directly toward goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, fire a backhander, a rebound, and another player would cut around the other side of the cage to try to tuck the puck in, forcing Lundqvist to go post-to-post. The next player would approach from the left side, and so on.
The Rangers' defense pairings will be pressured in many ways, and Renney stressed that they cannot do it alone. "We can't just have those guys defend, retrieve and move the puck in two or three seconds," he said. "That's a five-man unit's job."
At any rate, the city is ready for action---even those with unlikely alliances.
After a fire alarm prompted guests at the Adam's Mark hotel to vacate rooms and gather in the lobby, several firefighters, after assessing the situation, pronounced a false alarm. But before they left, two of them asked a group in the lobby if they were Sabres' fans. Then they tapped the tops of their metal axes in a familiar melody: ding, ding, ding-ding-ding, and said in tandem: "Let's go Rangers."
****
D Karel Rachunek, who has missed 16 games with a sprained MCL, appears to be starting tomorrow. He skated opposite Mara. Thomas Pock, who played all four games in the Atlanta sweep, skated with Jason Strudwick, who is ineligible for the post-season, indicating a healthy scratch...Ryan Hollweg and Colton Orr alternated shifts and Renney said a decision would be made tomorrow Orr played all four games; Hollweg was a healthy scratch... Renney on Sean Avery's remarks about his intent to physically pound the Sabres: "We had meeting prior to the playoffs starting about what we wanted to do in terms of the media. We want guys to be honest. I don't think he's gone over the top at all. At the same time, that's the way he plays".. Expect C Chris Drury, Drew Stafford and Dainius Zubrus to sometimes match up against the Jaromir Jagr-Michael Nylander-Marcel Hossa line, according to the Buffalo News.
***
The Sabres skate at 10:30 tomorrow; the Rangers at 11:30. More from there coming....
Comments (58)
All I can say is we are very pround of the NY Rangers! We are behind them 100%, and if they keep playing as well as they have... I say....Rangers in 5!
GO Rangers!!!!
Go Avery, GO Shanny, Go Jagr, Go TEAM!!!!!!!
Agreed! Let's Go Rangers! This team can no doubt win this series. Barry Melrose's mullet is way off on his prediction. It should be an incredible series and the Rangers will be victorious. Game 1 tonight!!!
Lets go Rangers !!!
Have Buffalo and the Rangers met in the playoffs before ?
Yes, the Rangers and Sabres met in the preliminary round, best of 3 in 1978.
The Sabres won 2 games to 1, but the game they won is one of the better Rangers MSG moments.
Don Murdoch scored in overtime and went crazy throwing his gloves up in the air, skating all over the ice, fans were going wild.
That series was a spring board to the next season's playoffs, where they went all the way to the finals and lost vs Montreal, beating the Islanders along the way.
Would like to see a big win tonight and set the tone.
Let's prove all the people out there falling asleep at the Rangers wheel that we can make even more noise then anyone expects!
LETS GO RANGERS!!!
WIN!
I hope Peters grabs Avery and starts pounding away. Would love a 5 minute powerplay and Avery plays better all bloodied up anyway.
Chris Krueger...go sleep with your sister man. "Not that Avery has the class to throw down." Yeah, it's classy to fight a talent-less goon and take yourself out of the game for 5 mins or more. Take your white trash, redneck crap somewhere else. The Rangers have a better record than the Sabres over the last 25 games. Sounds like you are a little scared of facing the Rangers.
"Real good tactic by your no-name coach to get the Sabres all fired up"
If the Sabres needed the Rangers to get them all fired up considering they have never won a Stanley Cup in the history of their organization they have a problem.
The Sabres are the best team in the league, this is the best chance they have EVER had to win the Cup.
They better not blow it. Especially in the 2nd round to the 6th seed, OMG that would be a disaster.
Here we go!
They had nothing better to do last series but, invade the Isles blog and talk their smack. They even put up a pretty sad website too. Comical Buffalo fans are for never accomplishing Sh*t!
You come here calling us cocky? Where did you come to talk trash? Who is the cocky one? Comparing the Rangers to the Islanders is pretty good to. The Rangers were the best team in the East the second half of the year. Those pathetic Islanders are exactly what we can use to say you are definitely beatable. If Buffalo was as good as you crack heads think you would have SWEPT them and the games would have been blow outs.
Renney is a No-Name coach? Stop writing things you read your other half a brain fans right. Do some research and come back and tell us how no name Renney is.
The fact that you think your team has the chance of sweeping is priceless! Shows that you are nothing but a mental midget here to talk trash. The best part about it is the Rangers and their fans take a lot of abuse for the past. You come here representing one of the teams that has done ten times worse acting like they should start engraving the cup.
Avery will look for Peters if he is out there. He will smile in his face. Take the beating and laugh it to the bench, while passing the Sabres bench to tell Ruff his wife was good last night. Then Peters will take 5 and hit the showers. Avery will smell blood for the rest of the game and someone else leaves next.
I can only hope that the Sabres are as affected by comments to the media as you are. If thats the case things are already looking up!
Please stop by tomorrow after the Rangers win tonight and tell us again how pathetic we are and how much Avery sucks.
Avery has the class to throw down when needed. To bad fighting isn't his job!
You are a joke just like the rest of Buffalo, it's fans and it's teams.
Brace yourself, you are headed to some real disappointing painful times once again!
LETS GO RANGERS!
Chris Krueger:
You sound like one frustrated fan... Didn't you root for Isanders before? And FIY Rangers have 3 scoring line and 4th is a checking line (provided that Hollweg is in).
Also no one says Rangers are the best in the league. They are a very good team that has a good chance of beating the Sabres. This series can either way...
And no Bufflo 4th line is NOT better then our 2nd line of Straka, Avery and Shanaghan.
The Rangers are a strong, powerful, well coached and well trained team. They have what it takes to go all the way!
Once a fan always a fan! This is a classy organization and I am proud to be one of their greatest fans!
Go Rangers!
Go Avery, Go Shanny, Go Lundqvist, Go Team!!!!!
oh baby here we go!
buffalo will be rocking tonight. sabres will be tenative in the 1st per., but fans will be loud behind them and provide them with some added spark.
however, the rangers got a nice week off to rest up and focus on task at hand. the week off works out perfect - study film, rest guys, practice at leisure and remain focused on opposing team. guys like shanny, straka, jagsy, karel and fedor welcomed the rest and chance to re-energize.
prediction - rangers win game 1 and win series in 6.
LETS GO RANGERS!
Sabres have a lot more to lose tonight than the Rangers. We're starting in Buffalo as underdogs, so no pressure boys. If we can get this Game 1, I think the series will be ours. LET'S GO RANGERS!!!
WIN!
Steve, where are you? We need our fix!
Seriously. Practice is over!
Give us some more Sean Avery, It is great to hear him talk. He should be the spokesperson for the team!
Anyone catch the pregame for game four when he talked about Girardi and Callahan sharing a bed on the road? Brilliant, great insight of what goes on in the locker room!
Or the interview the other day where he said he was making up stories in his head so by the time they played he would hate Sabres players...
LETS GO RANGERS!
WIN!
BUFFALO AND THEIR FANS SUCK!
buffalo in 4, maybe 5. nyr has no chance against the superior team in the east. atlanta was by far the worst team in the playoffs. so congrats, you won 4 games against the worst team in the playoffs, must make you feel real good.
I love how Sabres fan dubbed Thrashers as the weakest team and playoffs. And Islanders were probably the toughest LMAO! Seeing how Sabres dispatched them in 5 very close games...
WIPE THE FLOOR WITH BUFALO!!!
I don't believe for a second that any Sabres fans really came on here to slam the Rangers. It's gotta be Islanders fans in drag
ITS BOTH.
BUFFALO WINGS IS A BITTER FISHSTICK FAN. THAT IS WHY HE REFERRED TO FOOD
THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO BUT PONDER WHAT THE TEAM WILL LOOK LIKE NEXT YEAR
YASHIN STILL KILLING THE TEAM.
BLAKE AND SMYTH PACKING THEIR BAGS AND APARTMENTS
WE ARE STILL PLAYING HOCKEY AND THAT IS ALL THERE IS TO THE PAIN OF THEIR MISERABLE LIVES
BUFFALO FAN OR ISLANDERS FAN. BRING IT ON AND TUNE IN TO WATCH HOW TEAMS WIN TONIGHT
GO GET GAME 1!
lets go rangers!
funny how all the icelander fans would think buffalo is the best team in the east, when they claim it was a consperacy they lost to them. you would think icelander fans would love the rangers, since they're the reason they got it. where the love?
all this business about peters playin, if buff. have 4 deadly lines..where exactly does peters fit in there? maybe they can dress him at back-up goalie, send him out there like calgary did w/ mclennan, and spear avery in the chops.
avery, is the furthest thing from a goon...he can actully score a goal or two. i recall a player from way back named CLAUDE LEMIEUX, who is considered one of the best playoff players of all time, i see a tad of claude in avery. so if avery is a goon with no skill, lemieux was nothing more than that.
one more thing about avery, hes done more in 4 playoff games, than ALEXEI YASHIN has done in his whole career..LMAO!!
wtg garth, trade ur future for 5 playoff games... smyth and blake see the writing on the wall, there splitsville. at least u still have yashin to take u to the mountain top..lil advice for garth, buy yashin out build from within..OH WAIT U CANT, U DEALT THEM ALL!!
i realize my speeling sux, im working on it
Wow,
a Rangers fan who can't spell, like we need another one of those.
Nice to have you aboard TJ in Rangersville.
Good point about Peters. Lots of Sabres fans are on here boasting about how they roll 4 lines, but then they talk about all the hammering Peters is going to do.
Ryan Miller still looks like Alanis Morrissette.
http://www.viewimages.com/Search.aspx?mid=72027134&partner=Yahoo&epmid=3
and
http://www.rtvslo.si/kultura/upload/Kultura/glasba/alanis_morissette_1_show.jpg
Nice work Jim!
I am stuck at work until 8pm, this will absolutely be killing me tonight until I get home.
At least NHL radio is free.
Why are rangers fans still discussing the islanders? Can we get over it yet?
Yes, I agree
Lets just focus on kicking Sabre butt.
Daniel Briere looks like Eddie Munster:
http://www.nhlmaniac.com/photos/b/daniel_briere.jpg
and
http://the-reelgillman.com/munsters/images/eddie_caddy.jpg
jim, why must you insist on telling us that you're from woodbury? are you proud of that or something?
Not really, just thought it was a way to distinguish myself from the other thousand other Jim's that post on these blogs.
Good try though Sherlock.
Maybe you SHOULD have bought your way into Peter Forsberg's services at the deadline. Jags is good but not the kind of player who has his heart in the game. His only success came on the line with Lemieux. He never made success in Washington. But alas you have Sean Avery and Shanny Tranny. Welcome to your Amtrak ride outta Buffalo. You can even catch the train right on Exchange street and for all intensive purposes go sign Ryan Smyth cuz you might need him next year.
WHO CARES WE ARE PLAYING HOCKEY STILL - for now!
I think Sean Avery just got sent to the box again!
HEY BOB.
YOUR SISTER JUST CALLED. SHE FOUND YOUR FALSE TEETH IN BETWEEN HER LEGS.
GO BACK TO BED. THATS ONE GAME!
Hey "Let's Go Rangers" just stopping by to tell you how pathetic the Rangers are and that Avery Sucks!
Yesterday you were Chris Kreuger today your Go Sabres. Your still a ass, how about that? Nothing better to do then read a long island paper, blogs and message boards. Tough when you haven't celebrated a championship in your life I guess.
Game one buddy. Therefore your as bad as bringing a home made cup to the game last night. Even if the Rangers don't dispose of you the Sabres still ARE NOT THE CREAM OF THE CROP.
It will be fun watching the Senators take you out in the Conference finals. Watching the suicide rate sore in Buffalo and watching you idiots burn down your arena!
First off--GO SABRES!!!!!! Avery spent so much time on his back someone should leave him a few bucks to lift his spirits and pay for the tee time he's going to need! I do have to give Ranger fans credit for one thing - at least you aren't playing the whole "the refs and the league are keeping us down with bad calls, BOOHOO!" card. The Rangers will come out tough in the rest of the series, but I still don't think they have what it takes this year to pull it off. Sabres = Stanley Cup.
WHO CARES - at least I still have my Caps Lock key, and the better hockey team.
SO HOW DID YOU FIND YOUR PATHETIC SELF HERE?
ISLANDERS FAN JUMPING ON THE BANDWAGON. GO BUY A SABRES JERSEY
THEY ARE NOT WINNING THE CUP!
Let's Go Rangers, apparently you spend just as much time as I do on this blog...and by the way this is my newspaper...Ijust think the rangers suck apparently with your last response,you do too!
Ok, the truth is I am a Islanders fan that hates my life even more then Buffalos pathetic fans...enough said
Nice Try, Let's Go Rangers, I hate the Islanders more than the rangers, The truth is I'm a Carolina Fan, But when your Stanley Cup winning team is out you need to pick the next best thing Go Sabres! I wouldn't cheer for a NY team in any sport, Seriously Classless fans and players...just not interested!
A lot of hostility there, Ranger guy, you should try to take care of that before you snap. If we haven't burned down any of our arena/stadiums yet, I think they're safe. Tough game for you guys last night.The good news for you is you only have to sit through three more of them, the bad news, you'll be trying to get tee times behind the Islander fans. I'm not a big believer in our fans either although they would be the first ones to tell you how great they are.You guys just can't keep up with us. I don't know if we'll beat New Jersey or Ottawa but i'm pretty sure we'll get by you in four or five games,we're just to deep this year.
Go Sabres - Just to let you know you are cheering for a NY team. So you were saying what?
Carolina, WHAT A JOKE. Should have said you were a Buffalo fan. You probably feel worse watching your team win the cup and compete with Philly for suckiest place in the league! So now we really know what we are dealing with. Paint a wall, watch it dry!
Jack - You trying playing yourself on the other blog like "I'm not like anonymous" then spit out the same side of the mouth disrespectful crap. Fact is you are all the same.
I don't blame you or your front running girlfriend in North Carolina.
Write on! Have fun! If you guys truly believe that this series is going to be that simple you are seriously lost souls.
Ranger, I wasn't being disrespectful at all,I just don't think you guys have a team good enough to play with us. Besides, you were the one spewing insults, not me.I made one reference to you guys playing golf & I also mocked out OUR fans because they think they're the best. I'm an equal opportunity insulter.
Listen, I can't tell you where to type. I really don't care. Disrespectful starts when you come here to talk trash.
Congrats, you won!
Congrats, your team is better!
NEWS FLASH:
Better teams don't always win playoff series!
NEWS FLASH 2:
It takes more then 60 minute to win a series!
NEWS FLASH 3:
Beat the Rangers or not, unlike all you haterade drinkers. Buffalo would be my pick of the team I would want to win the cup. (I'm a NYer)
NEWS FLASH 4:
Buffalo won't win the cup. If not the Senators. The Ducks will!
You're right Ranger. I went back and clipped a few of your better, insightful thoughts on the series & I stand corrected, you are a very knowledgable person.I'm sorry I came here and trash talked instead of just commenting on the game.You've put me in my place.Here are some of your classier lines.
"Comical Buffalo fans are for never accomplishing Sh*t!"
"If Buffalo was as good as you crack heads think you would have SWEPT them and the games would have been blow outs."
"Stop writing things you read your other half a brain fans right."
"You are a joke just like the rest of Buffalo, it's fans and it's teams."
"BUFFALO AND THEIR FANS SUCK!"
"Your still a ass, how about that?"
"Watching the suicide rate sore in Buffalo and watching you idiots burn down your arena!"
You are a very,very cool guy Ranger.
Hey Jack,
I give a sh-it I really do. Cool is having all that free time you do to go back and get quotes. Impressive.
NOW SHUT THE PUCK UP!!!
I don't need to explain to you how I spend my time at work. Oh by the way, that was a real good one Ranger,I can see how you used most of your brain power to come up with it.
Like I said before, you're one classy guy.
Struck a nerve I love it!
Rangers fans have no class ask you girlfriend in North Carolina. When you guys are riding the Band Wagon together.
Keep it coming, I got tons of free time here at work to.
See Jack, I found you on the Sabres Edge blog talking your cocky smack. So you do have a place to stroke yourself and the other mislead Sabres fans.
So why come here if it wasn't to be classless. Wouldn't catch me posting there?
Come back Saturday please when the series is 1-1. I really find it hard to believe that you buy into the fact that this series is rapped up after one win.
Can't knock you for being confident. Personally I like that. I called for the sweep of the Thrashers after 1 win too. But, this is a different series.
You definitely have a strange lack of respect for the Rangers as a team and what they can do.
Now i'm confused, just what makes you think you struck a nerve? There is nothing you can say that would bother me.You guys have a good team, but you're not nearly as good as us this year.I don't know if we'll beat Ottawa this year either. I remember last year when they killed us in the regular season & then we ended up beating them in 5. I think they want to beat us this year almost as much as they want to win the cup.All I hope is that it's not the Devils, they are just so freakin boring to watch. I'm out of here, going to have a few Guinness'. Maybe we'll chat more tomorrow,if not,i'll be here Monday when it's 3-0.
There we go Jack. Some sanity seeped into that post.
Why monday?
Saturday, when they are tied 1-1.
Please, stop by and take it like a man.
Hey, as far as I know, men don't take it at all. No weekend because something is seriously wrong with my home computer. I must get it fixed.You found me in the Sabres edge,huh? Looks like you have some free time at work too.I came here because the only posts there, were about the PA announcer,very limited sport mentality in Buffalo,except for me of course. Ok, this time i'm REALLY out of here, see ya.
OK Jack,
Yea I got time.
Good luck tomorrow.
Heard about how crazy Buffalo is from a friend last night. People painting their houses and things like that.
Got heart, I'll give it to you!
2-0 hahaha pretty soon 3-0 then the big SWEEP!!! HAHAHAHA - at your house beautiful!
2-0 Sabres... What happended to your team that was supposed to be everybody? Sad you cannot even win a game in Buffalo. Quite sad. Tune in to hockey in 2048 because that is when the rangers are due to win the cup again. But you never know they may go 154 years between cups this time!!!! LOL!
Does the double overtime win mean Jagr is overweight as some of your fans have labeled us? Miller couldn't see...Jagr's big fat ass was in the way.
Oh and make sure Shanahan brushes next time he smiles...saw all kinds of yellow stuff on his teeth as he opened his big mouth.
Well, to all you boastful pathetic, rangers fans: NEWS FLASH: YOU LOST!!!! Not only did the Sabres make the biggest and most exciting comeback in sports history in game 5 but they wiped their a**es with those sorry excuses for hockey a team sadly called "the rangers" in game six. where is Avery and all of his bravado now? I can tell you where. The golf course with the rest of the loser! You rangers fans go on and on about jagr. Where was he when he was supposed to be helping his team sweep the Sabres(HA-HA-HA) I can tell you where he was, He was getting a** f**cked by straka in the locker room. What I want to Know is what does jagr use to make people think he has a penis?
further more where was shanahan? Or should I say "shanny the tranny". He was probably choking to hard on that gag ball in his mouth. Is that what happen to his teeth? Gag balls are known to damage to dental work, just ask any ranger fan, they'll tell you. You rangers fans can say what you want about the Sabres or the city of Buffalo, one thing you can't say is that the rangers are going to the Conference Finals. WE CAN!!! LETS GO BUFFALO!!!