Cheers for Wins!

I'm so terrible at keeping this thing up! I'm sorry! School is nearly over (exam week coming up now) and I swear I'll try harder.

The Sabres have been working it out. They're first in the division, and third in the conference, with 38 points. This makes me super happy!

Ryan has been such a superstar lately. He's always been great, but this season, he's really been shining. He's top in GAA, save %, and shutouts. Some of the saves he's made... have been amazing.

Not to say that Patty hasn't been good! He did a FANTASTIC job of shutting down the Blackhawks last night.

I worked the press box at Wednesday's game (twas awesome. I love the press box and everything about being a sports journalist. It really is perfect for me.) It was my second time in the press box/locker room (the first was November 9th) and it was even better this time around. I can't believe I saw Semyon Varlamov! Unexpected. I also saw the Capitals kicking around a soccer ball before the game... I'd never been that close to Ovechkin before. Insane.

Oh, and I also talked to Paul Gaustad. No big deal ^_^

Also, Caroline's comment made me realize.. I should probably clarify things. I write for the Buff State newspaper (I'll be associate sports editor next semester), and we get press passes for some of the games. Therefore, when that happens, I usually eat dinner in the media lounge (which is next to where I saw Ovechkin & the Caps), sit in the press box for the game, and go to the locker room post-game to interview the boys. (This time, it was Hank, Monty, and Gerbe.) Lastly, I attend Lindy's post-game press conference... then write an article about it all for the school paper :)

Last night's game, I attended as a fan. I met up with Shelby (Puck Over The Glass) and Tamara (Robbing Him Blind) for warmups, which was nice because I LOVE CHICAGO. The Hawks & Penguins are my favorite teams besides Buffalo, so seeing them was awesome.

Shelby, Tamara, and I ended up sitting together for the 2nd and 3rd periods, so that was nice. I don't mind going to games alone - I do it a lot - but being with other people is obviously a lot better.

I hated that people booed Kaner. I LOVE YOU, KANER. I SUPPORT YOU. I was rocking my Kane shersey underneath my Gaustad jersey last night :O

Overall, we played really well. Lalime was spectacular, which is a huge part of why we won last night. Two-game winning streak say whatttt? :D

I just hope we can continue such play tonight against the Rangers.

Lastly... my condolences go out to Mike Grier and his family.

Mellon Arena

First off: TYLER MYERS IS HERE TO STAY. Yay! :D

Second: my game at Mellon Arena was AMAZING.

I wrote about in my Project 30: NHL Arenas journal, so I'll just copy the entry from there.

Home of the: Pittsburgh Penguins

Visited On: October 24, 2009
Teams Seen: Penguins vs. Devils
Game Result: New Jersey 4, Pittsburgh 1
Section A20, Row E, Seat 10

I'd wanted to visit Mellon Arena for some time, and I got the chance over the summer. I visited my aunt in Pittsburgh the first week in August and was able to find my way down to the Arena via public transportation. It was so awesome from the outside, and PenStation was open so I was able to go in there... but not in the actual arena, save for a minute to purchase a pressed penny. It was then that I realized how much I wanted to see a game there, especially before the Arena closed.

Well, that wish came true. I bought my dad & I tickets at the start of the season (because I don't drive) and on October 24th, I was able to see a game at Mellon Arena. It was, in a word, amazing.

You can definitely tell it's an old arena, but that doesn't make it any less beautiful - and it is definitely beautiful. The outside is gorgeous, even at night (though I was disappointed that it wasn't better lit outside, made my pictures (see above) sort of dark. oh well.) It definitely looks (and feels) like an igloo.

The gates are right on the outside of the arena, so you have to line up outside the arena in order to get in. I thought that was odd, but maybe that's just because I'm used to the way it is at HSBC Arena. We went in, they scanned our tickets, and gave us FREE programs! A+ Pittsburgh! Granted, they are smaller programs, but there's very few advertisements, lots of good content, high-quality pictures, and for FREE. Awesome!

Our first stop before our seats was PenStation. I bought a Kris Letang white jersey, Letang jersey shirt (black), Penguins earrings, a Penguins third logo decal, and the book "Summer with Stanley" (which is a very neat book!) By the time I got out of there, it was pretty much time to go to our seats to avoid missing anything. I have to say, the store is VERY crowded. It's small, but it's got a lot of great things.

Our seats.... AMAZING. Five rows from the ice, in the corner, and my seat was on the aisle. Meaning.. um... my seat was an aisle's length (like... 2 feet) away from the Penguins' locker room entrance! I nearly died when I realized that, crazy. I didn't expect that at all, so it was a major bonus.

In addition, Brent Johnson (back-up goalie) was sitting about five feet away from me the entire game. Distracting much? Awesome.

The game itself wasn't great, but at least I got to see the Penguins score once! The crowd truly is special, the fans are really great and go completely insane when they score, and even when they don't... WOW. They play the "Hey" song, then shut it off and everyone sings the "HEY" part in unison. They get the wave going, and it got about 7-8 good, strong cycles.

The in-game videos are really special. I loved them all, and I wish I could find them on Youtube or elsewhere - I'll have to check, because they were fantastic. The intro video is also spectacular, I'll be downloading that as soon as possible too.

I'd never sat that low for a Penguins game before (at the Winter Classic, I was higher up), so I'd never seen any of this team up close. Crosby, Malkin, Orpik, Staal, Letang, Goligoski, Cooke... seeing them all up close was perfect. Amazing.

During the intermissions, I made sure to walk around the arena - the different levels and everything. It's sort of an odd setup, and you definitely feel like you're in an igloo in terms of shape. I went to all the different levels and took pictures there (like the one below), checked out the wall of jerseys, the championship memorabilia, etc.

After the game was over, I made my dad stick around and take pictures of me by the ice. As we were picking up our stuff, *someone* walks out of the Penguins locker room IN A SUIT. And I quickly realize... it's Sergei Gonchar! Wow! Just before we walked away, I said "I hope you get better soon!" He heard me, turned around, smiled, and waved. 'Twas adorable :)

Overall, the best part about this game... THE ATMOSPHERE. Mellon Arena truly does have a unique atmosphere, even though I can't exactly put my finger on what makes it so unique. A combination of everything, I think. The songs, the videos, the fans, the loyalty, the excitement of the players... everything.

Honestly, I was sitting in my seat during the second period and wanted to cry. It was all so amazing, so beautiful, so unique, and so perfect, and I was just so happy. At the same time, I was also very sad knowing that I'll probably never get to see another game in Mellon Arena, and that soon enough, it will all be gone.

More pictures can be seen here (from just the game) and here from the rest of my trip.

We Need.... Goals.

So the Sabres have been winning lately, and are 5th in the Eastern Conference (however, that could change after this weekend's games.)

We've played FOUR games, and have accumulated 7 points. I think that's pretty damn good. We're 3-0-1, the only team besides Dallas who hasn't lost in regulation yet. The four teams above us in the conference have all played SEVEN games, except for Ottawa, who's played six. Even with that deficit in games played, we're up there. And I like it.

However, one thing we need to work on is our scoring. Last game helped, but before that, our goals for was just too low. One goal here, two here, one here, etc. Yes, we won most of those games, but in the future, such low scoring could hurt us. After all, you can't win if you don't score. It wasn't for lack of trying, though. The Sabres were shooting... the pucks just didn't want to go in!

But we seem to have figured out the problem, with the 6-2 victory over Detroit on Tuesday.

When Thomas Vanek was reported injured... I was scared. Lindy said he'd be out "weeks" and implied that it was a very serious injury, scaring Sabres fans all over. But the next day came, and we found that the injury felt significantly better overnight, and Vanek has been skating with the team!

Though he's not expected to play in tonight's game against the Islanders, he could return tomorrow against the Thrashers! Such good news!

We'll have to wait and see, I guess.

By the way... the Islanders? 0-1-3. Yikes.. that's all I'll say :)

So, lots of exciting things have happened!

The Sabres signed Drew Stafford. Very exciting, he has a lot of potential and I think he'll do great this season.

I got tickets for the Penguins/Devils game (in Pittsburgh) on October 24th. SO exciting, my first (& only) game in Mellon Arena :D

Preseason is almost over. The Sabres are 3-1-1, which isn't bad. Lots of trouble last night at the Habs game - Paul got 17 penalty minutes, Kaleta got 20 minutes and a game misconduct! Can't wait to see what spills over to the home opener.

Mairsy is back and skating with the team. Good to see he's getting better.

The Sabres had a red carpet event before the Leafs/Sabres game on Wednesday, September 23rd. It was fabulous.

Regular season hockey is just a few days away!

28 days!

The NHL regular season begins in 28 days!
Preseason... much earlier than that.

The Sabres' Puck Drop Event? 10 days away. The days are winding down and the excitement is building up! Hockey is coming!

The major point of this post was this: The Sabres are close to signing Drew Stafford! Darcy Regier spoke to several news sources recently, including the Buffalo News, and said he expects Drew to be signed (with the Sabres) by next weekend.

All I can say is... THANK GOD. I've been getting concerned, with us signing other guys, that maybe Drew wasn't going to be signed at all. But it sounds like Darcy is finally doing his job, signing the guys that matter. Will Staffy be overpaid this season? Possibly. But he should improve from last season and he's got the potential to be, in a few years, a top player on the team. Darcy's also working on contracts with Ennis & Mancari.

Taylor Pyatt signed with the Coyotes. As a Pyatt fanatic, this leaves me with mixed emotions. I love Taylor, and I'm glad to see he'll have a job this coming season. There are a lot of free agents out there who haven't signed with a team... I'm glad he'll still be in the NHL now. But, it also makes me sad. I would really have liked for him to sign with the Sabres (... dreaming!) or at the very least, with an Eastern Conference team. The Sabres play the 'Yotes twice (one home, one away), but I would have liked it to be more.

Oh yeah... classes have started at Buff State! I'm taking 18 credits this semester, plus working a new job at the library, plus working as managing editor for the school paper. Basically.. I'm going to be super busy! But there's ALWAYS time for hockey (:

I leave you with a lovely picture of Andy McDonald, my favorite Blue!

Well, my trip to Pittsburgh was amazing. I was able to do just about everything I wanted (the Incline, Strip District, Station Square, to name a few), including a trip to MELLON ARENA!

Now, I had never seen that arena up close before. Driven past it? Sure, but then it seemed like only a blur, and I didn't begin to really love the Penguins until two seasons ago. So to be able to go there - and visit PenStation, the team store - was amazing.

It seems like such a small arena when I first saw it - but then you get right in front of it, standing on the sidewalk, and you're literally looking up at this giant igloo. You can tell it's an old arena not from the outside, which is gorgeous, but from the inside. Being that it's the offseason, the pavilion/concourse area wasn't open, but I was able to sneak a couple peeks through the windows in PenStation and the windows on the outside of the arena.

I was able to go into the pavilion area for a minute, when the lady at the store graciously allowed me to in order to buy one of those pressed pennies. I simply can't wait until I get to the game in October (that is, willing I can get tickets, which is going to be super hard!)

Also, when we walked around the exterior of Mellon Arena, we were up semi-high on a ramp and got a nice view of construction on the Consol Energy Center. It's really coming along, and I can just imagine how much more work will be done by the time I see it again. The last steel beam was put in place today (I wish I had been in Pittsburgh to see that!), and it's moving along at a really good pace.

I'm at work, so I'll talk more about hockey in an update later, but can I just say:

WHY HAVEN'T THE SABRES SIGNED DREW STAFFORD YET?!?!?!?!?!?

I am SO sorry for not writing for so long! But in my defense, I've been busy writing for Bleacher Report and with my job and such, plus news has been scarce at best.

But now! There's much to discuss.

Like the fact that Martin Biron is now a member of the NY Islanders! Wow. The most amazing thing is that he went so cheap (1 year, $1.4 mil). I really expected him to go faster and for more money, but I suppose it's better than not having a job at all, which is the other possibility. And with Dipietro's constant injuries, the Islanders could really use another goalie.

The most amusing thing to me? Two former Sabres goalies are now playing on the Islanders: Biron & Roloson. They played together here, and now they're together once more.

What else... Hossa's supposedly nursing a shoulder injury that could keep him out for a while. Yikes! With all the money Chicago's paying him... I mean... come on. That's not a good sign.

Also.. I was listening to my hockey songs (153!) on the bus to work today and I realized I REALLY REALLY REALLY miss hockey. Like, I knew I missed it.. but I realized just how much. September 17th is the Sabres' first pre-season game. Training camp begins shortly before that. Regular season, October 3rd for us, but the 2nd for others.

I realized as of late that I really have grown to love the Penguins and Blackhawks more and more. I mean, I liked them all season, but it's only now that I realize to what extent. I'm going to a game in Pittsburgh this season - to see Mellon Arena before it closes - and I am no longer certain if I want a Malkin jersey. I love him, but I also really like Letang... so I'm just not sure which to get!

Oh, and I'm going to Pittsburgh for a week from August 1st-8th, so I may not post until I get back unless something major happens. We'll just have to wait and see.

So.. here's some videos to enjoy :)