23° and Overcast
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Selfie taken by Beth.
We attended the Sabres game Saturday as a family thanks to son Joe who bought four tickets and drove here from the Pittsburgh area to share the experience as a Christmas gift.
The drive downtown was windy but doable. We left at 2:45 p.m. or so for a 4 p.m. game.
I like to skip the traffic around the arena by going one exit past downtown and doubling back on Seneca Street to park somewhere south of the baseball stadium. It costs $10 and who doesn’t enjoy a brisk walk into the window of a frigid winter storm? We are hearty people.
The arena was half-full with lots of youth hockey players and a decidedly Canadian feel. We always expect to see jerseys, some nostalgic, like a Vanek, a USA hockey Ryan Miller or the occasional Hasek. One stood out: A Berglund Sabres jersey.
Berglund played 23 forgettable games for the 2018 /19 Sabres following the Ryan O’Reilly trade. Berglund played 10 seasons as a middling grinder for the Blues but went home after a short dose of blue and gold mediocrity.
As for the game itself, the Sabres skated hard and looked good. One tough goal got passed Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen. Thatcher Demko put up a shutout.
I paid particular attention to Zach Benson because it’s hard to believe the diminutive teen is in the NHL seeing top 6 minutes at 18. He belongs. He seems like a bit of a pest, is responsible defensively and looks good positionally away from the puck even if I did catch him floating near the blueline a couple times looking for an easy breakout.
He also caused a 2nd period escalation of hostilities that resulted in offsetting roughing penalties. When a player plays hard, is fearless and never takes a shift off he should always have a spot. The goals, points and stardom will follow.
Also, JT Miller elbowed (Not sure who but maybe Rasmus Dahlin) in the 2nd period. Owen Power dropped his gloves and went after him taking a roughing penalty. Later in the game, Eric Johnson fought Miller as payback. It was a draw for the defenseman.
I don’t understand why rookie defenseman Ryan Johnson ever comes out of the lineup. He should be in the top 4 nightly.
The only goal was a cheap one. Connor Clifton failed to cover Sam Lafferty in front of the net who knocked Luukonen off balance with an elbow to the head and banged it home. It should not have counted,
Another brief note: Beer at the arena is ridiculous – $18 for a 24-ounce Genny Cream Ale is insane.
Knowing the much ballyhooed storm could be raging outside while sitting inside a windowless arena is disorienting. Stepping into maelstrom postgame, however, things were about the same as when we entered, windy but without a lot of snow. We gave thanks for snowtires and made it home in about 25 minutes.
