This isn’t a hockey blog to be sure, but occasionally I’ve felt my inner columnist give voice to thought. I had it bad as a kid, the Sabres were in the infancy and it was pretty easy to have your imagination captured by the atmosphere, the game, even the tv broadcasts. They hadn’t won anything, but the novelty of being a major league town filled the Aud for the entirety of the 1970s. Heck even my brother liked listening to the sunday night games when we were dispatched to bed.
The occasional climbing of the golden staircase of playoff success is always a hoot. I remember my grandmother visiting us during the first ever playoff run and what she took away was that if your name was Mahovolich you were a bad man, but if you were named Dryden you were okay.
The Sabres play their home opener tomorrow night as I write this and start up tonight in Ottawa again the Senators. Opening Day! Baseball celebrates that with the most exuberance, but the same sensation is true here. Most of us sort of shut the door on the Sabres after they stunk it up in the playoffs against Boston back in April. Refreshingly even Thomas Vanek allowed how they “sucked against Boston.” What that lacks in poetry is refreshing considering the source. It’s a clean slate. Because of my new moonlighting gig at the arena, I got to see both home preseason games. Even though it was preseason, it was really nice to see both Toronto and Philadelphia head home losers.
While they might not be as “scary good” as they were in 2006 and the massive roster changes weren’t made, Ryan Miller is laserlike focused, Vanek has a pulse, and the team got rid of that awful slug logo.
These are all good things. Can you imagine, especially in light of the Bills’ woes & blackout, just how nice beating Ottawa will feel?
Let’s drop that puck and have at it.
Mike's Pub 