It was the Ryan Miller show in Montreal this evening. While the rest of the Sabres waited until the game was 30 minutes old to start playing. 
Miller was outstanding through the first two periods and even better in the third period, stopping at least 10 shots in each stanza. Most of the Sabres deserve a bag skate after this one, but Thomas Vanek wired a slap shot, top corner, just before the second period ended and Jordan Leopold scored his first of the year earlier in the second. In fact, the Leopold-Ehrhoff paring was easily Buffalo’s best.
Buffalo’s special teams had a solid outing, the penalty kill went five-for-five and are now 18 for 20 on the season (90%). The power play was 0-for-1 but is showing that it can create chances. Saturday in Pittsburgh is a better testament to this point but obviously the man-up unit is a work in progress and will continue to come together.
Miller was Buffalo’s best penalty killer on the evening making numerous big saves while the Sabres were short a man. His sliding glove save against Raphael Diaz is the best save a Sabres goaltender has made this season. Obviously the day of rest helped his mental and physical game, have Jhonas Enroth is going to pay dividends for the Sabres all season long.
- Cody McCormick wasn’t voted a star this evening but he certainly deserves one. Before Lindy Ruff shuffled his lines (more on that later), the McCormick-Gaustad-Kaleta line were the only Buffalo forwards giving any effort. McCormick’s fight was a turning point for Buffalo.
- It has only been five games and Lindy Ruff has moved some pieces around. The top line of Vanek-Adam-Pominville was kept together, for good reason, while the other nine forwards were shuffled. The lines looked like this: Gerbe-Gaustad-Kaleta, Ennis-Roy-Stafford, McCormick-Leino-Boyes. The final line concerns me for a few reasons. Cody McCormick is wasted with those two players and it also seems like Ruff is throwing his hands up in regards to Boyes and Leino. Boyes in particular. It would be a shame for Leino’s psyche to be shaken early in the season and for the Sabres to lose a potential 60-point player. I’m hoping Ruff finds a way to work him back with some scorers.
- Marc-Andre Gragnani had a better game than his previous two outings. His partner, Andrej Sekera, continues to be quietly effective in his role. I would go so far as to say Sekera has been the most consistent defenseman on the ice this season. Gragnani’s play may not warrant a benching, but the overall in-zone play by the Sabres may necessitate a change of some sort.
- The wing play in zone this evening was horrendous. Not until the third period was there any sort of structure to Buffalo’s breakout. It trickled down to defensive coverage as well. As stated above, inserting a greater defensive presence in the lineup (Mike Weber) may help in shoring up some of the shortcomings the Sabres have been having in the defensive zone.
- Thomas Vanek had a very good game. Ignore the penalties. The first was just a horrible call while the second was somewhat necessary in clearing the front of the net. He was probably the most active member of his line past the 10-minute mark of the second period. He also continued to play pretty good defensive hockey. There may be a two-way player in there somewhere.
- Tyler Myers had a very rough game. He looked very sluggish and made some questionable plays with the puck. However, he remained strong in the corners and in front of his net. It seems like he is pressing a bit – much like he did early in the season last year. I trust that he will settle in and find that dominant game he had much of the second half in 2010-11.
- Yet again the NHL officiating in Montreal was horrible. The first penalty on Thomas Vanek should had been ignored and the phantom slash called on Tyler Ennis was easily the worst of the evening. Ville Leino also received a healthy slash that created the turnover that helped lead to the Montreal goal. I’m guessing most officials are afraid of being burned alive by rioting Habs fans after the games. It is the only explanation for some of the things I saw.
Three Stars
1. Ryan Miller
2. Max Pacioretty
3. Raphael Diaz
NHL Links
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
