Shutdown Pair

Category: Sports

  • Imagine It’s Us

    Imagine It’s Us

    The New York Knicks won last night, and predicably, NYC went nuts. Greg Pak has some great pics and videos from what was going on, and it’s been so much fun to see. Social media is flooded with images of a city partying and celebrating together – people from all walks of life, every age, making memories. This is a great addition to all of the fun that visitors to the US are having right now in the World Cup cities. It goes to show that sports at its best still brings people together.

    Imagine, for just a second, that it’s us. Obviously, the scale of the celebration will be smaller in Buffalo, but you can’t deny that this city is waiting for that party. You can see it, right? The city that dives through flaming tables on a regular-ass Sunday winning it all? Right now, the Bills have their best chance since the 90s of pulling it off – whatever you say about the coaching decisions, Josh Allen is still the quarterback. The Sabres just ended their season with a playoff run no one expected, breaking a drought and winning a series.

    The Knicks took 53 years to win again after their last championship. They had championship-caliber teams and players at various points during that time and couldn’t finish (doesn’t help that a lot of those teams had to go through Larry Bird, and Magic, and Michael Jordan, and Kobe, etc.). But eventually it DID happen, and what a time they are having with it now.

    These current teams might never get over the hump. Josh Allen may never get the right help and coaching at the right time. The Sabres may slip back down next season. What matters is enjoying the success while it’s happening. I keep coming back to it: “We can’t control the team on the ice or field, or what the media writes, but we are in charge of ourselves. Be happy. Have fun.” Show up, cheer until you lose your voice, high five a stranger. Chug beer from a plastic sabre, take a shot from a bowling ball. Most importantly, enjoy the ride. Maybe it ends before a trophy, but being in that mix is the best feeling a fan can have. Don’t lose sight of it.

    New Yorkers singing Empire State of Mind

    — Rav (@rvbdrm.com) 2026-06-14T04:43:11.612Z
  • Your First Offseason

    Your First Offseason

    The Stanley Cup Finals are going on right now. It’s Vegas and Carolina, so I have a less-than-zero interest level. I thought instead, I would take you through your first offseason, what to look for, what the fun events will be.

    First off, Lindy lost the Jack Adams trophy to Jon Cooper? Whatever. Everyone in the league knows who should’ve won, so it doesn’t bother me much.

    Anyway, the Sabres site has an article with key dates. The first thing is actually happening right now, right here in Buffalo: The 2026 NHL Draft Combine. It’s not quite the spectacle of the NFL one, but once in a while you’ll hear something unhinged from one of the prospects during the media availability (tomorrow and Saturday mostly).

    The Draft is also being held here, on June 26-27. It’ll be a quiet couple of days for Buffalo barring a blockbuster deal, as the Sabres have a 1st, 4th, 5th, and 6th rounder. The 2 and the 3 were traded for Norris and Carrick.

    To me, the most interesting date is June 29: the deadline to send a “qualifying offer” to any restricted free agents. RFAs are players who don’t yet qualify to be unrestricted free agents (you are unrestricted if you are over the age of 27 or have played at least 7 years). Some notable RFAs for Buffalo are Zach Benson, Peyton Krebs, and Michael Kesselring.

    Here’s how it goes – any player that the Sabres want to still have the rights to gets a qualifying offer. Puckpedia has the full details but basically it’s a 1 year deal at either the same salary, or a slightly higher one. As long as the team does that, the player stays a restricted free agent and property of the Buffalo Sabres. They can choose to sign the QO and go another year, negotiate a different contract for a longer term (most common option), or they can field offers from other teams. BUT, the Sabres have the option to match any of those offers and keep the player, or receive draft pick compensation if they choose to let the player go.

    That’s where Jarmo Kekäläinen earns his pay this offseason. An RFA contract is tricky – you are weighing the term of the contract versus the money. If there’s a player you absolutely love, you try to sign them as long as possible, sometimes overpaying them, to get extra years on the contract locked in. The player may want to sign a shorter deal on the chance that they’ll REALLY get paid as a UFA. Zach Benson is an intriguing case – he started playing regularly right at 18, so he could be an RFA as young as 25.

    With Tuch as one of the most prominent UFA names out there, I don’t see how they keep him without some moves. Buffalo has a ton of players that want roster spots (Finnish hero Helenius, Noah Östlund, Jiri Kulich) and Tuch might just be in the way. There’s only so much cap space to go around and Buffalo already has $20mil going to 3 centers.

    That brings us to July 1, the first day of free agency! Normally a day to be excited if you’ve got that up and coming team like Buffalo…but with less than 12 mil in cap space and a bunch of needed signings, Jarmo would really need to get on the hotline with some spicy trades to make a splash. He didn’t shy away from making moves in Cbus so it’s worth keeping an eye on your phone on 7/1.

    I hope that gave you the scoop on what to look for in the 2026 offseason for Buffalo. Let me know what you think happens with Benson in the comments (or on Bluesky!)

  • Crushed but Hopeful

    Crushed but Hopeful

    Didn’t go the way I wanted.

    Loved the effort, I'm sad the Sabres didn't put it over the line. But I think it won't take much to re-tool and be ready to play this way a full season next year and get back to it.

    — TheTickMS (@thetickms.bsky.social) 2026-05-19T02:59:50.893Z

    Dahlin went hero mode, scoring the tying goal which eventually led to overtime, but Montreal ended up the victors.

    I’ll have more later, I might be so far back into the Sabres that I start looking at prospects and draft picks and free agents. But for now, time to be sad (and sweaty, it’s fucking hot in here).

    Thanks, guys. (not you Tuch)

  • So It’s Your First Game Seven

    So It’s Your First Game Seven

    The Buffalo Sabres have made it to the end of the second round, prompting a game seven. The last time they had a game seven was also their last playoff appearance back in 2011 (stupid Flyers). Maybe this is your first game seven as a sports fan…if so, how are you feeling?

    I know it’s already been an absolute roller coaster of emotions this postseason. Late comebacks, goalies getting pulled, late hits, dives, terrible officiating, we’ve seen everything in these first two rounds.

    It’s going to be so much MORE tonight. The ideal scenario would be Buffalo scoring a couple of early goals and cruising by with some excellent defensive play to finish off the Habs. Look at the first six games…how likely do you think that is? Yeah, it’s gonna be a grind. I truly and firmly believe that the Buffalo Sabres can win this game and get back to the conference finals. But it won’t be that easy. It never is here.

    Your team is in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the best postseason in North American professional sports. If Buffalo can win tonight, they’ll face the Carolina Hurricanes. The Canes have cruised through the playoffs so far, 4-0, 4-0 and haven’t played a game since May 9th. But if Buffalo gets there, I’m taking the team that struggled and fought and took every shot the Bruins and the Canadiens could give them and still answered the bell.

    “I can do this all day”

    I’ll give one final reminder – sports is *FUN*. Cheer, cry, wake the neighbors but remember how amazing the journey was.

    JFG

    Go Sabres.

  • Game Seven

    Game Seven

    I’m still sweating, and I watched it sitting in my chair at home.

    They did this in the second finally

    — TheTickMS (@thetickms.bsky.social) 2026-05-17T02:02:19.842Z

    And it continued on in the third, for a EIGHT TO THREE WIN. It started like pretty much every other game this series, with a quick goal by Buffalo (Rasmus Dahlin with a nifty drive the net after being fed by new first-liner Benson)…followed by three Canadiens goals including a shorty.

    However, old man Zucker got one back late in the first after Alex Lyon got chased (the three Montreal goals were scored on gettable shots), and the entire second period was played in the Habs end. Zach Benson tied the game, picking up a loose puck that slipped through the five hole of Dobeš. Konsta Helenius scored to make it 5-3 Buffalo after some hard work by Zucker (and a sharp pass).

    The scoring continued in the third, with Tage Thompson feeding Jack Quinn for a one-timer snipe that chased the Montreal goalie. Tage followed that with an empty-netter, and Zach Metsa (who was great in his first-ever playoff game) got the eighth goal on a late power play when the team was just trying to run out the clock.

    The rough stuff started after that, with Montreal having no answers for the Sabres in regular play. Arber Xhekaj, Alexandre Carrier, Jake Evans, and Kirby Dach all got misconducts (Xhekaj has been pissed at Greenway since game 2 warmups) while Benson, Krebs, and Norris got to hit the showers early on the Buffalo side.

    Game seven is Monday night. One game to keep a remarkable run going.

    Zach Benson hyping up the boys for the third

    — TheTickMS (@thetickms.bsky.social) 2026-05-17T02:09:38.695Z
  • A Tale of Two Teams

    A Tale of Two Teams

    Watching the game last night (and to an extent every game in this series) it felt like I was seeing two different Buffalo team. The one that started periods was dominant. They skated circles around the Canadiens, scoring goals and hemming them into their own end for multiple shifts. Then the Bad Sabres emerged, making dumb passes, skipping decent shot chances for a fancy pass, and otherwise making stupid decisions.

    I’m not sure what’s wrong with the first line. Alex Tuch has caught whatever Tage and Quinn have and all three were useless most of the night. Quinn in particular seems to be squeezing the stick, getting the puck multiple times in the slot and just, not shooting. Thompson took a stupid penalty away from the play which led to a Montreal power play goal 10 seconds later.

    Bright spots continue to be the Benson/Doan/Norris line, with Doan scoring on a deflection in front. Zucker had the first goal, and young Konsta Helenius continued is excellent play from last game with the Sabres third and final goal.

    Buffalo travels to Montreal tomorrow. I believe that with a few tweaks, they can push it to game seven. I’m planning to go to the watch part at KBC, I hope to see you all there!

  • Double Trouble

    Double Trouble

    The game started exactly how you’d want – Tage Thompson getting a goal, tapping in a shot/pass from Dahlin. That was the last time Buffalo looked decent (other than some saves from Lyon) until the third period as the Canadiens scored 4 unanswered en route to a 6-2 win. Dahlin had the other Sabres goal to briefly make things interesting at the end of the second on into the third.

    Beyond Tage and Dahlin showing up for work, there weren’t a ton of bright spots out there. Benson was still a pest and created some great chances, Dahlin’s goal was on the power play, which looked like an actual functioning unit for a stretch of the third.

    I’m curious to see what changes are made, if any. I don’t think Lyon was a problem, he made some monster saves despite the goals but I would understand if a shakeup happens. Logan Stanley was in full oaf mode (derogatory):

    For the love of GOD Stanley do not get behind the Canadiens net!!!

    — TheTickMS (@thetickms.bsky.social) 2026-05-11T01:27:13.065Z

    If there is one guy who shouldn’t be in deep in the offensive zone, it’s the giant lumbering defenseman who skates about as fast as I walk. Carrick was back, Zucker seemed to be limited – I haven’t seen anything from Lindy as I write this, but he took shifts through the whole game, just not many), Quinn was still rough, so there’s room for shuffling.

    It’s okay to be worried, but most playoff series aren’t cakewalks. Montreal beat Tampa Bay to get here, they’ve got their guys too. I’ll let Dubs finish it off:

    This is still fun as balls, don’t let yourself be convinced it’s not. Let the players worry about the loss, crack another beer and get ready to drown yourself in work tomorrow and Tuesday so the clock moves faster.

    — Matty Dubs (@theycallmedubs.bsky.social) 2026-05-11T02:07:06.062Z

    See you Tuesday.

  • Sabres Lay an Egg

    Sabres Lay an Egg

    The Buffalo Sabres lines (other than the 3rd one) looked absolutely lost as they dropped game two 5-1. Tage in particular seems barely functional as a human being, let alone a 40 goal scorer. Zach Benson was the lone bright spot and goal scorer for the good guys, working his ass off behind the net and then moving to the front for a tap in after.

    Benson mean mugging Dobes

    Benson about to say something ridiculous

    Tage Thompson was an absolute nightmare tonight. He fell multiple times, leading directly to goals. He passed when he should’ve shot, and never seemed to be in the right spot. I said during the game on Bluesky that if that had been Vanek back in the old days, Lindy would’ve put his ass on the 4th line. The old timer may be hoping he’ll play his way out of it but I don’t think the Sabres survive to the conference finals if Tage plays like that.

    Sorry they wasted your goal, Benny. Sunday, 7pm, these dipshits better be ready to do what they did in Boston.

  • Uh Oh, Montreal!

    Uh Oh, Montreal!

    The 40 goal scorer hasn’t netted one since game 1 against Boston. The team managed only *16* shots, getting outshot by 12 for the game. The Sabres lost two thirds of their faceoffs, and gave the puck away 15 times to Montreal’s 7.

    And yet, watching the game, I never once thought that Buffalo would lose. They scored an early goal after Lane Hutson tripped and gave the puck away, and honestly, they never looked back. Benson fed Doan for that first goal, and then Benson found McLeod on the power play (after Doan did excellent work in front of the net to gain possession) for the second tally. Montreal got one late in the first to make it interesting on a great pass across the crease on the man advantage to Nick Suzuki, but the second period went much the same as the first. Jordan Greenway scored, followed by Byram. Greenway in particular was all over the ice, hitting dudes and making plays.

    Buffalo didn’t have their best, especially from the top two lines, but it didn’t matter. The Canadiens can clean up their game tomorrow night, and they’ll have to if they don’t want to be down two games to none when they get home.3

    He pissed you off all game, and he’ll fucking do it again.

  • Sabres Head To Round 2

    Sabres Head To Round 2

    The big, bad Bruins needed help but didn’t get it, falling to the Sabres in Game 6 4-1. The Buffalo goals were scored by Samuelsson, and Benson, and an empty-netter by Josh Norris to seal it. Alex Lyon played his ass off in net, saving 25 of 26, many of them excellent chances.

    For all of their vaunted toughness and strength, there were long stretches of games in this series where Boston was simply outplayed. It wasn’t quite as bad as the 4 goal first the other night, but the Bruins were overmatched all through the opening period. They rallied a bit in the second, getting a goal from Pastrnak on a 2-on-1 with Pavel Zacha that Lyon had no chance on. But Doan raced into the Boston zone early in the third and carried two Bruins players with him, sacrificing his body by smashing into the end boards to pass the puck to a streaking Benson for the gut shot. From that point on, the Sabres played smothering defense, with Boston barely able to get past the blue line.

    Buffalo Sabres player Alex Tuch shouting excitedly

    The Sabres await the winner of Tampa/Montreal (heading to Game 7) to find their next opponent. For me, from here on out they’re playing with house money. They proved they weren’t just a fluke, breaking two major droughts (making the playoffs, winning a series). That doesn’t mean the work is done. Let Lindy send you on your way: