I wish you and your family a happy, healthy 2017. Happy New Year.
Happy New Year everyone!!!!! Hope you all have a wonderful 2017. @cmcdavid97 @EdmontonOilers pic.twitter.com/mZKAUyrBuG
— VisuallyBetter (@Isuckatpicking) January 1, 2017
**
The Buffalo Sabres have lost six of their past seven games and the tension is mounting in Pegulaville.
Just 36 games into the season the Sabres have only 34 points in the bank. This team continues to leave money on the table as it struggles to find it's winning way.
The team practiced at Noon on New Years Day. They needed to sweat out the residue of the disappointing loss of the home and home series with the Boston Bruins.
Jack Eichel was a man of zero words in the losing locker room following Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Bruins. Eichel dumped his gear in his bag, dropped a few expletives and bypassed media. Eichel has been visibly frustrated at his own play and that of his teammates. Eichel has played only 15 games after missing the first 21 games due to a high ankle sprain. Eichel has 7 goals and 5 assists in the 15 games he has played in. He said Sunday that he has more to contribute to his team.
Eichel spoke candidly about what has been bothering him lately. Eichel sounds like a captain to me. He's not satisfied with his own play. He demands more of himself. He's demanding more of his teammates. He expects better execution in all areas: 5v5, PP, and PK. I also love that Eichel is not whining about the cruel hard fact that his team has lost 180 man games to injuries. That number will increase now that Johan Larsson has dislocation injuries in his wrist and elbow.
Was Eichel trying to get the attention of GM Tim Murray with his comments? Sort of a "Hey, Tim. Where is the playmaking left winger we've been talking about since last summer to play beside me?" Eichel thrives offensively when he plays with Samson Reinhart and Evander Kane. He's been skating with Marcus Foligno and Matt Moulson. I think what we are hearing is a generational player using his leverage and juice for the greater good. I've been saying for weeks that Murray is working on trades to infuse more speed and skill while subtracting from the roster slower, less skilled players.
Murray is now on the clock.
What areas need to be improved?:
“Everything. Power play, we had a five-on three, we don’t score. It’s not good enough. Penalty kill, we continue to put pucks on the other team’s stick on the kill. It’s not good enough. Five-on-five, we don’t score enough goals either.
“As a whole team, everyone needs to look in the mirror and we all need to get a lot better.…
What’s wrong five-on-five scoring? Are injury-related line changes to blame?:
“We’re just not executing well enough. I don’t think as a group that we should be blaming what’s going on on line changes and injuries because every team deals with it. Obviously with us we’ve had some key players injured at key times in the year and have not played 100% as a team in the two years that I’ve been here, which is frustrating.
“This is also hockey, and injuries are going to happen. We need to find a way to get over that. At the end of the day it’s about one thing and one thing only, and that’s winning hockey games. However that needs to happen, it needs to happen.…
How would Eichel describe his own level of frustration with the mounting losses?
“It’s probably pretty high. We have one win in our last six, so I think as a team we shouldn’t be too happy about where we’re at.…
How tough is it for Eichel to handle the losing after succeeding at Boston University and Team Canada?:
“I don’t think it’s about me. I think all these guys have probably been winners their whole life. We’re a group. We’re one. We go through adversity as a team together, and the highs when we win games it’s also together."
“I think I speak for the team in saying that we’re all frustrated with where we’re at, and I don’t think I’m the only person in the locker room that’s not satisfied. I think everybody here is pretty pissed with themselves and the way things have went.…
Is the 2016-17 Buffalo Sabres season slipping away?:
“I don’t think we’ve hit the halfway point yet. I’m sure not giving up on this, and I don’t think anyone else is. Have we pissed away some good opportunities for ourselves to put ourselves in a good position? Yes, but there’s still a lot of hockey to be played.…
Quotes courtesy Buffalo News.
***
Evander. Evander. Evander.
I got a chuckle out of you taking a social media poke at Kevan Miller of the Bruins.
On wonders what your teammates and coaches think of it?
Why are you chirping Bruins D-man Kevan Miller for ducking you and not dropping the gloves on Saturday?
When a guy pretends to want to fight and only chirps when the 6'6 linesman is standing in the way. #KevanMiller #pretender #stoplying
— Evander Kane (@evanderkane_9) January 1, 2017
The game ended at 4pm Saturday afternoon. Why is it still a thing?
The Bruins got scoreboard on the Sabres.
They put a huge dent in your team's playoff chances.
Had the Sabres won the home and home series with the not so big nor bad Bruins, you and your team would only be two points behind them for third place in the Atlantic Division standings on New Years Day 2017.
The reality is you and your Sabres imploded and handed the Bruins eight points by losing both games in regulation. I'll do the math for you:
Your team has 34 points.
The Bruins have 44 points.
Those eight points would have pivoted the Sabres towards a wild card berth. With two regulation wins, the Sabres would be on the back bumper of the Bruins with three games in hand.
Hash tag blown opportunity. Hash tag do your talking on the ice not on Twitter.
So, about Miller and the "fight".
The Bruin D-man chirped you hard, you reacted the way that he thought you would, which is to say that you blew a gasket, got distracted and sought a physical confrontation. Advantage Miller.
The Bruins were setting you up. They baited you into losing your cool in a 3-0 game. You gave them what they wanted. You entered the game as one of the hottest goal scorers on the Sabres having scored goals in four consecutive road games. The Bruins read the scouting notes. Miller clowned and chirped you and you took it 10 steps further when you got rung up for a misconduct. In all, you took yourself off the ice for a total of twelve minutes. You sat for twelve minutes when your teammates needed you the most trailing 3-0 in a must win road game with Johan Larsson and Josh Gorges out of the game with injuries.
Evander, you took a bad situation and made it worse. You put yourself ahead of the team for the umpteenth time in your Buffalo experience. You failed to fire up your team.
Miller didn't have to drop the gloves with you with the Bruins leading 3-0 in the second period. Why would he allow you to speed bag him and then use the victory as rallying cry for his team?
Miller and his teammates knew your team had lost it's confidence as a result of their poor start to the game. It's no secret that the Sabres have been struggling to score goals. Miller singled you out. It worked for the Bruins.
After the game, Miller chirped you some more. He called you out for hiding behind the officials during an altercation. Anybody who saw your confrontation with Mliler knows full well if you would have gotten your hands on him, you would have throttled him with a flurry of right bombs.
“I think [Kane] was excited to fight when the referees came in and not before,… Miller told Boston reporters.
Miller chirped you hard for a myriad of reasons.
Firstly, He knows that the Bruins won't play the Sabres again until next season. He also knows that his team has won the last seven meetings with the Sabres and have swept your team 4-0 this season. The Bruins just stole eight points in the past two games and likely knocked the Sabres out of wild card contention. Miller also did it because he knew that he was in your head with his chirps and that you would over react to his chirps.
On Sunday afternoon, Miller was asked about Kane's tweet. The Bruins D-man said he wanted to fight Kane and his teammates knew it. He also said that he has a long memory. Let's fight next next season, Evander.
Kevan Miller's full thoughts on the Evander Kane tweet from this morning: pic.twitter.com/8FFH3Ud3PZ
— Ty Anderson (@_TyAnderson) January 1, 2017
**
The Nashville Predators have placed Subban on the injured reserve today and will re-evaluate his condition in two to three weeks. It is believed that Subban is suffering from a herniated disc in hi sback.
Subban has missed the Predators’ last seven games, and now it appears that he could be out for much longer.
Elliotte Friedman said Saturday that the options with a herniated disk are either rest;recovery, in hopes that the body will heal itself, or, back surgery.
It appears that David Poile and the Preds want to rest Subban's back for a period of time then re-evaluate to see if symptoms subside. Back surgery would place Subban on teh shelf for weeks, if not month.
Subban has 17 points in 29 games following the trade for Shea Weber.