Friday February 28th, 2014 will go down as one of the biggest days in Sabres history. The end of an era. The end of Miller Time in Buffalo. Even though many people knew and could sense that a Miller trade was going to happen, it still gave us a shocking, kind of empty feeling that we couldn't ignore.
For the younger fans, Miller may have been the only #1 Sabres goaltender they have watched. Kids idolized Miller for good reason, and he became the face of the franchise.
In 2002, Miller began his NHL career with the Sabres, but it wasn't until after the lockout when we really were able to see just how good this guy was.
It's been a wild ride, and we've seen some incredible saves from arguably the best goalie in the world. I was expecting Friday's game to be Miller's last home start, but obviously the trade came a bit sooner.
I think we're going to miss Miller much more after we realize what we had. He stood on his head for this team on so many occasions, but didn't often get the greatest support.
Still, he was able to bring us countless memories and helped guide this team to a couple of playoff runs. The video the Sabres played at the arena was a nice touch, and Miller got a well-deserved standing ovation.
As expected, Miller was emotional during his conference:
Miller and Ott press conference:
The Blues have a tremendous team, and I liked them before this trade happened. But now, I can't help but to root for them even more. It's also funny that Miller, Ott and Derek Roy are on the same team.
The Sabres next game is against Lindy Ruff and the Stars. Buffalo will be in St. Louis on April 3rd.
Buffalo won tonight against a great Sharks team...but I really couldn't care less about the game. Jhonas Enroth got his 2nd win in a row, and the Sabres are on a three game winning streak. But all of that is overshadowed with this trade.
It's going to take some time to adapt to a Miller-less Sabres team, but there are good things to come out of it. The trade with St. Louis helped Buffalo land some solid pieces, but I expect more trades to come soon. Who knows if Halak/Stewart even play a game for Buffalo?
I have a ton of thoughts going through my head about all of this, but don't want to jam everything into one post.
I like the trade but I don't think the Sabres are any where near done. I'm glad Ott and Miller get to go play for a contender and they will do great there. I just hate to see Miller go after everything he's done for Buffalo.
I'll have more in the next few days, especially if any more moves occur.
As always, thank you for reading!