Spun

For those who grew up throwing snowballs, we know wet gloves shrink.

Can he block?

What is going on with that Euro RB that dazzled during past preseasons? Christian Wade? Evidently, he was not NFL caliber but he certainly made preseason more interesting. Nice draft. Changes are coming. Let’s hope they work. I would like the best lines in the league. Free agents of all types know dominant lines win Super Bowls.

SDSU has a wild nightlife culture on campus, near-campus and throughout town. I hope this story is not true. It sounds bad. The local media coverage has been very low key until today. Mostly, the LA Times and affiliate San Diego Tribune have given this story much attention. The university has been celebrating their brand new home stadium (in place of the former home of the SD Chargers, Qualcomm Stadium). Now this story is blowing up locally. Many seemingly have lawyered up. https://www.10news.com/news/local-news/san-diego-news/lawsuit-alleges-rape-by-sdsu-football-players-and-buffalo-bills-punter

TV: Team USA defeating the USSR in the 1980 Winter Olympics. There is confusion in regards to those who say they watched the game live. I did watch it live - during the dinner hour - it was live on Canadian TV via Buffalo cable TV. I believe CBC was the network. I have tried to research with no luck, who called the game in Canada. The Soviets hammered Team USA in an Olympic prelim 10-3. A similar result was expected. I was flipping channels and I found it live during the third period. The Soviets were up 3-2 which was a victory in itself. Then the USA knotted it and went ahead. Nobody else was watching with me! Between the game, the call and the crowd, it was amazing! Honorable mentions: Reggie Jackson’s three homer effort in the 1977 World Series clincher for the Yankees. I came in the door to catch #3! I am a big A’s fan and Reggie was my fave regardless of who he played for! Bills against Houston! All time classic! Live: Seeing Wayne Gretzky beat Phil Esposito’s season goal scoring record in 1982 at the Aud. Gretzky netted a hat trick. Forgotten in the drama, Gilbert Perreault also had a hat trick! Buffalo fans booed Espo! (Espo was his greatest in the 1972 Summit Series). Honorable mention: 2011 WJC Gold Medal game in Buffalo. Russia came back from 3-0 deficit with five goals in the third period to beat Team Canada. Impressive comeback. Sadly, years later, some of the Russian players died in a plane crash Closed Circuit: Watching Sugar Ray Leonard’s defeat of Tommy Hearns in 1981 welterweight fight screened in the Aud!

Any long snappers still on the board? Cha cha now ya…

Al Cohol, are you out there?

When those angry winds come blasting off of Lake Erie in October and later, it is important to have an effective running game to get first downs and wear down the clock. A balanced offense makes Allen more dangerous and may allow Allen to have a healthier and longer career. Now draft a snowplow or two for the offensive line.

The Bills currently have four selections in Round 6.

I love winning! Nice burst out of the blocks tonight vs the Wild! TT with the winner and UPL standing tall! Solid team win! Keep it going!

I was supposed to be giving a half-assed effort to read up on the California governor situation before voting. Bleeeck!!! Then, I read the sad news about Norm. Then, my day went from bad to worse to bad again. Then, I started rewatching some of Norm’s old performances. Now, I am laughing again! Thanks Norm! Norm’s last Letterman performance:

The running game appeared in the last act! Take what they give you! A nice, nifty, well executed screen is usually helpful!

IMHO, over the last couple of season's I have see the Bills struggle with their running game and their pass rush. The Bills seemed to chase Rothlisberger yesterday fairly well but we know how he is (still). The d-line appeared gassed at the end of the game. The running logic is to develop the run in September because it is harder to pass, pass, pass in November onward especially in O. P. An effective run game can make Allen more dangerous to opponents. Teams are better able to defend against the Bills if the pass overemphasized. There is a lot to work on. Much of it is fixable. Humble pie is nasty. Get it fixed.

Cleveland Burning Rivermen...

Jennifer Love Hewitt...

Jessica Alba...

Sofia Vergara...

Adrienne Barbeau...

Sad news, I hope he has a full recovery. Robert was one of the most prolific acquisitions in franchise history. As an aside, Robert was not the first NHL player to total 100 points in a season. The first to achieve that total was Phil Esposito in 1968-69. https://icehockey.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_NHL_players_with_100-point_seasons Robert may have been the first Sabre to reach 100 points in a season.

What a comeback by the Habs. Two OT wins and a solid Game Seven. Price was awesome and the Habs pressed all over the ice. All that money for big name players for the Leafs and boom, out the door... I wish the Sabres kept Joel Armia. In more recent times, an upset series clincher would entice a semi-riot in Montreal’s centre-ville but not this time. At least not yet! The Jets are a tough team. This could be another seven game series. The Gordie's are not happy. So sore-y.

Good luck coach.

Reaching for a positive, Dylan Cozens is 6th in WHL scoring while everyone ahead of him has played more games than him. He will head to the pros next year which I hope includes a start with the Amerks. https://whl.ca/stats/players/270/1/points I miss the olden days when the Sabres made the playoffs.

Did anybody actually go to the Leafs game? I am curious how the Leaf fans reacted. No beer cans on the ice? I watched the Canadian feed without sound. I was in a “tavern”. They showed the run to the exits. Nice! Nice team effort by the Sabres! Bonjour / Bye... Gordie...

I saw the Russian Five doc and read the book. I liked both. Read the book. It typically has so much more information. I read the book first so I had a better background with the stories before the doc. For those who have done neither do both! Incredible highs and tragic lows in the Russian Five story. I was able to get the book from a local San Diego library and watched the doc on the plane. The Red Wings went off by drafting numerous Russians and Swedes. Back in the day, taking such chances with the Russians was rare. The Mogilny story was gutsy. Some of those guys had military obligations which made defection even more dangerous. The thought of Bure, Mogilny and Fedorov on one line is amazing! What was Mogilny’s comment to Gerry Meehan during the whole defection process? Something like “Am I free now?”... As for the current Sabres, each new coach deserves some reset time with the drafts, trades and on ice production. Botterill has made some ”duncey” moves. Commit to the scouting and whittle down the salaries going to former Sabres. Moves like pushing Mittelstadt too fast must be avoided. There are numerous examples of former Sabres who did their AHL time before helping the Sabres (Thomas Vanek and Ryan Miller). I have followed the Sabres since 1970. My family couldn’t afford to go to many Sabres games. I used to listen to the Sabres, Bills and Braves games on the radio. We didn’t have cable TV. Some nights it was the Sabres on one radio and the Braves via the transistor radio tucked under the pillow. It makes me sick to hear of what happens when Toronto comes to town. Sabres fans selling their tickets to Leaf and other games is sad. Very sad. We have been waiting for a very long time. I won’t give up. I also want much better from our hockey team. Things eventually improved with the Bills with the Pegula’s. They do care. We must learn from the mistakes and keep fighting. Keep demanding better.

TB is loaded. That said the Sabres came out strong and carried the action until the penalties started adding up. TB has a very good PP. Some of the penalties were bad as were the calls and non-calls. The shots were 43-40 in favor of the Sabres. They played better in game two but the penalty kill and the third period collapse was decisive. Giving up a goal with 1.3 seconds to go in the second was painful.. Hutton didn’t have a great game. Dahlin gets nervous handling the puck inside the Sabres zone hence the giveaways. He needs to develop some confidence. The Sabres have to commit to this experience as being one to build on. They came out sharper in game two. They adapted but ultimately their flaws hurt them. Don’t be surprised if the Lightning go far in the playoffs if not win it all. The TB fans said that usually the Lightning play flat when their backup is in net. Not last night. The Lightning fans traveled well. I first noticed it at the airport. There was one SABRES fan leading the cheers with his drum! The security entering the building wasn’t as extensive in the US. Carry a bag that isn’t visible plastic in the US and you don’t get in. A drum in Sweden? Come on in! The crowds were very quiet unlike in North America. The Swedish fans that I talked to know a lot bout the NHL. There were a sizable contingent of fans in attendance from other European countries. If the Sabres didn’t play in Stockholm, I may have missed this city. It is a cool city, I am glad that I visited.