This was the best game the Sabres have played since the middle of January when they beat the Phoenix Coyotes. We can actually talk about a team win instead of hyping up Ryan Miller.
It was great to see the Sabres play a full 60 minute hockey game tonight against a team that is fighting for their playoff lives. This is the type of effort we seen from the Sabres in the first three months of the season. They battled hard, Tyler Myers was magnificent, Mark Mancari was solid and Patrick Kaleta was flying all over the place.
The Sabres offense finally started to get going tonight but sloppy play in the first period allowed the Stars to keep pace and send the teams to the locker room tied at three. The Sabres rebounded nicely and dominated the Stars over the final 40 minutes on their way to an impressive victory.
When Tyler Myers plays like he did tonight he adds a whole new dimension to the Sabres offensive attack. Myers was the most visible player on the ice. He was creating traffic in front of Marty Turco, he was taking shots from the point and he was solid in his own zone. Should we get back to calling him the future Calder Trophy winner?
Mancari was another player that had an impressive performance tonight. He played like a guy that doesn't want to go back to the minor leagues. With Stafford struggling before his injury you have to wonder if Mancari could become a regular in the Sabres lineup if he continues to play well. His skating deficiencies were evident but he made for it with good positioning and good vision. He scored his goal by finding a soft spot in the Stars defense and his pass to Vanek on the game winner was fantastic.
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Final Thoughts
- The win puts the Sabres two points ahead of the Ottawa Senators for the top spot in the Northeast Division. The Sens will play on Thursday in Calgary with a chance to tie the Sabres had 81 points.
- When was the last time that Ryan Miller was average and the Sabres won a hockey game? It's a great feeling knowing that the best goalie in the world was average and the team won. This is the type of game that will help the team build confidence over the final month of the season.
- One of the unheralded heroes of the game tonight is Toni Lydman. He was solid in his own zone and he made a great play to break up a potential 2-on-1 for the Stars when the score was 4-3 Buffalo.
- Andrej Sekera had a horrible giveaway on the Stars second goal. It was the type of play that made Lindy Ruff keep him in the press box for most of the season. I wonder if Chris Butler will be back in next game?