Sabres Rally Falls Short Against Penguins

This game looked like many of the games the Sabres played in the month of February. The losses continue to pile up as the Sabres rally fell just inches short in a 3-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The game was billed as a rematch between Sidney Crosby and Ryan Miller but Miller was give a well deserved night off and Sidney Crosby was a non-factor. Crosby was credited with an assist and he had two shots on goal but the Sabres defense and Patrick Lalime kept him quiet all evening.

Lalime played well in place of Miller and made 25 saves in the losing effort. Lalime and company found out how difficult it is to beat the defending champs at home after falling behind 2-0. The Pens started the scoring in the first period on a bullet from the point by Sergei Gonchar. It was a power play goal after Tim Kenedy was put in the box fr a very questionable boarding call.

The Pens built on their lead in the second period after a defensive breakdown allowed Pascal Dupuis to be left all alone in front of Lalime. Lalime never had a chance as three Sabres, including defenseman Andrej Sekera were in the vicinity but left Dupuis in front for the easy tip-in. The Sabres tied the game on a shot by Toni Lydman that appeared to be harmless. It was a break that could have propelled the Sabres ahead of the Pens but Pittsburgh played a smart game and limited the Sabres chances.

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Put "The Lime" in the Goal

Patrick Lalime was given the start to allow Ryan Miller an extra day of rest after his performance at the Olympic games in Vancouver. It seems most Sabres fans mark down a loss before the game even starts with Lalime in goal but that wasn't the case today. Sure he lost the game but he was impressive along the way. As I mentioned earlier, Lalime made 25 saves in the loss.

The first goal was a power play goal on a slap shot through traffic from Sergei Gonchar. Lalime didn't have a chance to make that save with the traffic in front. The second was a tap in for Dupuis, Lalime couldn't be faulted for allowing that goal. I would love to comment on the third goal but I ever seen the play because MSG was showing a replay. #MSG Epic Fail

Olympic Hangover

Either both teams were having trouble getting their playing legs back or I was expecting too much. It is quite possible that I found the game boring because I compared it to the USA-Canada game or it was indeed a boring game. It could also be nerves with the trade deadline coming tomorrow.

It didn't look like either team was clicking on all cylinders. There was bad passes by both teams and it looked like the teams were skating through mud. It was a slow game that never really had a good pace.

Final Thoughts

• Miller should be back in net tomorrow night against the Eastern Conference leading Washington Capitals. I expect a great reaction for Ryan Miller and the crowd should help the Sabres get some momentuhttp://www.sbnation.com/admin/entries/new?community_id=124&entry_type=Storym.
• I want to give Tyler Myers the benefit of the doubt but he was downright awful tonight.
• Tomorrow is trade deadline day and a big game tomorrow night. It should be a fun day so get some rest.

Roll Call

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