Advertising Opportunities

head coach: Lindy Ruff

roster: C - Mike Peca, Derek Plante, Brian Holzinger, Wayne Primeau. LW - Geoff Sanderson, Miroslav Satan, Michal Grosek, Paul Kruse. RW - Donald Audette, Matthew Barnaby, Dixon Ward, Rob Ray, Vaclav Varada. D - Alexei Zhitnik, Darryl Shannon, Jay McKee, Mike Wilson, Bob Boughner, Richard Smehlik, Jason Woolley. G - Dominik Hasek, Steve Shields.

injuries: None.

transactions: Traded Jason Dawe, rw, to Islanders in exchange for Paul Kruse, lw, and Jason Holland, d; assigned Rumun Ndur, d, and Jason Holland, d, to Rochester (AHL); signed Richard Smehlik, d, to a multi-year contract.

standings:

Eastern Conference - Northeast Division
Team         GP   W   L   T   PTS   GF   GA    
x-Pittsburgh 76  37  22  17    91  209  175  
Boston       74  34  27  13    81  198  175  
Buffalo      75  33  27  15    81  192  170  
Montreal     75  35  30  10    80  219  190 
Ottawa       75  30  31  14    74  175  184  
Carolina     74  31  35   8    70  183  196  
x - Clinched playoff spot

game results:

03/24 at Calgary    W 3-0
03/26 at Vancouver  W 5-2
03/27 at Edmonton   W 1-0
03/29 Detroit       L 4-2
04/01 Los Angeles   W 1-0
04/03 Boston        W 5-4
04/05 Ottawa        L 1-0

team news:

by Joe Brunner, Buffalo Correspondent

The trade deadline has come and gone with unexpected results. After the much ballyhooed trade request by Matt Barnaby, the Sabres surprisingly kept the troubled winger and shipped Jason Dawe to the Isles. Although Dawe is a sure 20-25 goal scorer, he only notched six goals in his last 51 games after getting off to a fast start. This lack of consistency and the need for some toughness made him expendable. It's also been reported that Dawe was unhappy with his recent lack of playing time and requested a trade or an improvement in that situation. The acquisition of Paul Kruse certainly fills the bill for toughness, and Jason Holland is regarded as a promising prospect.

Dominik Hasek by Meredith Martini

Most fans were quite disappointed by the Sabres' lack of activity on trade day, but realistically they weren't going to be able to dramatically improve the team with a series of short term moves. Coincidentally, or maybe not, a series of news articles came out right after the trade deadline detailing how new owner John Rigas had purchased a team that is $80 million in debt, and currently losing $1 million per month. One would have to think that finances played a role in the trade decisions. By unloading Dawe, the Sabres ridded themselves of a player slated to become a group two free agent, and acquired two low salaried guys in return.

Since the deadline, Matt Barnaby has retracted his trade request, and says he wants to remain a Sabre. Barnaby remains a fan favorite and has been welcomed back by most, but it's hard to predict what he'll do from minute to minute; on or off the ice.

The other significant transaction was the re-signing of defenseman Richard Smehlik. Smelly, as he's fondly known, will receive $3.9 million over three years, with the club holding an option for a fourth year. Seems like a pile of dough, but unfortunately it only reflects what the average NHL salary will be when the contract goes into effect.

The Sabres opened this segment with an impressive road trip through Western Canada, where they swept the Flames, Canucks, and Oilers. For the fourth time this season, the remarkable Dominik Hasek recorded shutouts in consecutive starts. Hasek now has 13 shutouts, leaving him just two shy of Tony Esposito's modern day record.

Steve Shields made a rare start against Vancouver and performed admirably in a fight filled game. The highlights, or lowlights, of the game featured a crushing open ice hit by Mike Peca on Matthias Ohlund, and a sucker punch to the nose of Derek Plante by ex-sabre Brad May. Unfortunately, Peca left his feet to deliver the hit and was rewarded with a three-game suspension for his efforts. It's reasonable to suspend a player three games for a dangerous hit, but it defies logic that Dainius Zubrus only received a two-game suspension for what was an obvious attempt to carve Chris Chelios' eye out. That's Brian Burke for you.

The Sabres returned home from their western trip to score impressive victories over LA and Boston. The Boston victory was particularly satisfying as the teams are fighting for playoff positioning. It was also the first time that the Sabres have given up more than three goals in a game this season and won. Unfortunately, they failed to show up for the loss to Ottawa. The Sens are in danger of not making the playoffs and it was obvious they wanted the game more. It's easy to jump on the Sabres for being outworked in an important game, but looking at the overall picture, they've done very well these last two weeks.

Wayne Primeau is finally starting to show why the Sabres made him a number one pick. At times he has looked like big brother Keith. He had been scoring with regularity until Lindy Ruff put him between Ray and Kruse on the fourth line. By the frequency with which Ruff juggles his lines, don't expect that to last long.

Donald Audette has turned up the offense and now has four goals in his last six games. That gives him 22 goals for the season, tying him for the club lead with Miroslav Satan.

Alexei Zhitnik has quietly moved into the Norris Trophy hunt with his strong play over the last four months. Zhitnik now has 14 goals, 28 assists and is a plus-17. It's probably good enough to overcome the lead by Nicklas Lidstrom or Rob Blake; but the Z man should get some consideration.

[ issues | web extra | stats | nhl archive | home | chat | mailing list | about us | search | comments ]

1998 © Copyright LCS Hockey All Rights Reserved