Bleacher Report - Articles by Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko

SPECIAL! Q & A WITH JHONAS ENROTH

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 20:11:56 -0400

Over the last couple days, I had an amazing opportunity to interview the Buffalo Sabres top prospect, and American Hockey League Affiliate Portland Pirates starting goaltender, Jhonas Enroth. Enroth played for Sodertalje Junior team, and represented team Sweden in the World Junior Hockey Championships before being drafted in the second round, 46th overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in 2006.

Here is the interview.

MARC- After being drafted out of Sweden by Buffalo back in the 2006 draft, have you noticed any change in the game play or speed from playing for Södertälje’s junior team, and now playing in the National and American Hockey Leagues?

JHONAS- Yeah, the biggest difference is the speed of the game. It is much higher in North America because of the smaller ice.

MARC- You're one of the smallest goalies in the league. What skills do you use to cancel out the disadvantage of your 5"10 build?

JHONAS- I'm trying to be a step before the shooter, I always try to be ready for a shot, doesn't matter where he is on the ice. And if he passes I always try to know where he is going to pass.

MARC- Last year, we saw Semyon Varlamov for the Capitals go in for the playoffs and play great, regardless of being inexperienced. Do you feel you're ready at any given time to be a starting goalie in the NHL?

JHONAS- I think I'm ready, I had better stats this year in the AHL than a lot of other goalies that played in the AHL and have been playing well in the NHL.

MARC- Ryan Miller is a great starting goaltender for the Buffalo Sabres and is on the United States Olympic team. Is there anything he has taught you through your time being on the ice with him?

JHONAS- I learn so much just to watch him, he is a great guy and is probably (one of the ) top three goalies in the NHL. And the way he prepare for games is very thoughtful.

MARC- On game day, what foods and drinks do you like to have?

JHONAS- I would like to have some rice and chicken before games.

MARC- Is there anything you would recommend not to consume?

JHONAS- I don't like the way junk food makes me feel, so I stay away from that kind of food before games.

MARC- Do you have anything special you do, like rituals, on game day?

JHONAS- Yeah, I have some rituals. Its just small things like put on right skate first and stuff like that, but its more a reflex I think.

MARC- What types of music or what bands do you listen to to get you pumped up for a big game?

JHONAS- I listen to all kind of music, it's a mix of everything almost.

MARC- You wear number "1", is there anything about that number that's special to you?

JHONAS- I have been wearing number 1 for four years now. And I like it, it's very classic. The trainer just gave me number one when I turned pro four years ago in Sweden and I haven't change my number since then.

Once again I'd like to thank Jhonas Enroth for taking time to answer these questions, and wish him luck for the upcoming hockey season!

Follow Me On Twitter!

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 01:53:43 -0400

Hey guys I want to announce that I am also on Twitter now with NHL Buzz, and rumors!

Here's my link!

Twas The Night Before Free Agency (HUMOR)

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:20:42 -0400

Twas the night before NHL Free Agency, tomorrow a day filled with wows

no player was more eager, than in the Heatley house.

The managers evaluated their free agents with care,

in hopes that their acquisitions would bring a cup this year.

Gary Bettman was nestled, all snug in his bed

for he's only happy no team's in Hamilton.

And in the town, that bares the leaf

Brian Burke brings the 42-year-old cup drought fans relief.

When out on this day we expect contracts to shatter

and our old buddy Eklund for bringing crazy rumor chatter. (the guys nuts)

Away to the teams, these players go oh so fast

all who hope their former salaries are now surpassed.

For each players destination, for no body knows

for only the biggest contract, is where that player will go. (so true)

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear

Brian Burke and Bob Gainey, fighting up there!

With a loud booming voice, so fiery and loud

one only knew that Glen Sather was around.

More rapid than ever, the GM's a'came

all playing the newly acquainted Heatley game.

"Once Thrasher! now Senator! Now leaving for new!

"On fire he twas!" shouted the Bidders adieu!

To the front of the league! To the Top of the scoring of all!

Now come to us, come to us Danny, and end this rugged brawl!

Then Mr. Bettman sprang to his phones, to his managers gave a whistle

and the free agency period began, like a shot of a missile.

But I heard his exclaim before he hung up the phone

"HAPPY SHOPPING, AND FOR WHERE THE PLAYERS GO IS UNKNOWN!"

Good luck to every ones favorite teams tomorrow, and happy bidding!

(PS. Hope you enjoyed this article!)

Stanley Cup Finals Going By Too Fast

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:34:24 -0400

With Game Three of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals heading to Pittsburgh, and a two to nothing series lead for the Cup reigning Detroit Red Wings, could this year's championship be going by way too fast?

The first two games of the Stanley Cup were played last weekend, Saturday and Sunday night, back-to-back, and both were in Detroit.

Could it have hurt the Penguins the most that the games were played back-to-back?

Possibly, but the Red Wings showed they were the better team, winning both games by a score of 3-1.

Now, no matter what the scores be, so far, this final series has gone by way too fast. It seems as the NHL is trying to get this out of the way. I

It also seems a little unfair, as I said before, to have two straight games in front of your home crowd in Detroit, and then a break in between the games in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh should have gotten their home games on the June 2 and 3, instead of June 2 and 4.

The way this series is going, I see the championship going to Detroit in either a clean sweep, or in five.

With that being said, we are looking at two to three more games. To me, the series all ready seems boring. It features almost all the same players from last year, with the addition of a few big guys like Hossa for the Wings, and Guerin for the Penguins.

Another reason this series has felt so short is due to the energetic playoff race in the NBA. We just saw the Cavaliers get taken down in a good battle against the Magic for a trip to the Championship against the Lakers and Kobe Bryant.

The NBA has received more views via the television ratings, and it only continues, as game one of the NBA Finals start Thursday.

Now should the NHL and this series pull some fun and excitement out, then possibly the ratings will go up, but right now, for non hockey fans, it isn't helping that the Stanley Cup Finals is featuring the same teams from just a year ago.

It's Official: Wings and Penguins Clash Again

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:38:40 -0400

Only four games were needed for Pittsburgh to send themselves to the Stanley Cup Finals again, and it took Detroit only five to find the 2009 Stanley Cup Final will feature the same teams as the previous year.

The Red Wings just beat the Chicago Blackhawks in five games, finishing them off at home in overtime 2-1, with a goal from Darren Helm. Helm buried the rebound in from the backdoor on Cristobal Huet to end Chicago's Cup dream.

The Penguins were all over the Carolina Hurricanes, sweeping them from the semi-finals and moving on to another chance for the Cup.

This years' Stanley Cup Final will feature the same teams as last year, but that shouldn't mean you shouldn't watch it. There are many reasons this years' series will be better than before, regardless of the same teams.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have something to prove, and that is to bring the Stanley Cup back to Pittsburgh, something they didn't accomplish last year losing to the Wings, 4-2. Pittsburgh has shown they are more driven than they were last year, and they are playing their best hockey right now.

Detroit has something to prove, as well—that they are the best team in the NHL—again. Winning the Cup this year would prove to the NHL, fans, and players that the city of Detroit has the best NHL team for the second year in a row.

Marian Hossa is playing outstanding for Detroit, and if he can keep providing goals for this club, it could help immensely as I see Osgood giving up easy goals and falling apart to the offense of Malkin, Crosby, Staal, and more.

Anyway you look at it, it's the Stanley Cup Final, and although this year features the same teams, it should make for a great series, and hopefully could pull some surprises out, so everyone should make sure they catch a game or two (or hopefully seven!).

What If The Buffalo Sabres Were in The Playoffs?

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Tue, 26 May 2009 21:34:45 -0400

What if the Buffalo Sabres could have won just two more games on the year, and barely stolen the eight seed from Montreal? Lets take a look.

Should the Sabres have taken the eight spot in the Eastern Conference (they missed by two points) they would have had to face Boston in the first round. Boston ran over Montreal in a sweep, outscoring the Canadiens 17-6.

The Sabres saw the Bruins a total of six times in 2009, and the Sabres took the series by winning four and only losing two. The Sabres also outscored the Bruins 21-14.

Could Buffalo have beaten the Bruins?

Well, they might not have beaten them, but if I was going to predict it, the Sabres would have beaten the Bruins in seven games, or at least gave a better series than Montreal did.

Now, should the Sabres have won that series against Boston, they would have had to face Washington in the quarterfinals (remember, they re-seed with the worst seeded winning team playing the best seed who won available).

Don't get me wrong, Washington is a great team, led by Alexander Ovechkin, but their goaltending is weak. Simeon Varlamov did play well for the Capital against the Penguins, but his defense gave up too many opportunities that Pittsburgh capitalized on, and in the end it came back to hurt them.

The Sabres could have beaten the Capitals in my eyes. If Buffalo could have been firing on all cylinders, and brought that proud feeling to the fans back in town, then they could have moved on to the Eastern Conference finals in six.

Now, we get to the semi-finals for the Eastern Conference. The Sabres would have been playing the Pittsburgh Penguins. Buffalo split the four-game regular season series with Pittsburgh, losing in regulation 5-2, then in overtime at home 4-3 on a goal from Malkin.

The Sabres won their two games in the season against them both by scores of 4-3, but all four of those games were back before the trade deadline in December.

Sadly, the Sabre train would end here, as I wouldn't see the likes of our youth pulling out four games against Malkin, Crosby, Fleury, Orpik, Staal, Guerin, and Sykora. I would say Penguins in six, as I give us wins both at home.

But, let's just keep dreaming (as if we aren't all ready) and say that Buffalo won again, and went to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1999. Oh, what a season!

They would end up facing Detroit (unless somehow the Blackhawks can muster out a series win as they are all ready down three games to one), a team that they couldn't beat in the regular season, losing all three match-ups.

Maybe a little intensity could get them past the Wings and onto the team's first Stanley Cup ever, but it just wouldn't seem likely to beat the cup reigning workforce. Detroit would have won in either five or six.

How can I predict all this stuff? I can't. I'm just giving all us Sabres fans out there a little thought, and a barrier to how bad our season ended. Hey, there's always next year, huh?

Buffalo Bills in Reality

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:59:49 -0400

I am a Buffalo Bills fan by all means don't get me wrong, but all this hype surrounding this team is too much. It's time we come to our senses, and start becoming real.

The Bills will end up going 9-7. They will lose to the Patriots twice, the Dolphins and the Jets once, and the Panthers, Titans, and Falcons.

Buffalo will beat the Buccaneers, Saints, Browns, Dolphins, and Jets once, as well as the Chiefs and the Colts.

The reason for my prediction is simple really, and it is as follows.

Trent will start off great and the Bills will do great for the first five weeks, but Trent will have something bad happen, like an injury, or the cold weather will kick in will start to get to him.

Turk Schonert's "no huddle" offense will go bad when Marshawyn Lynch decides he "needs a PB and J sandwich" in between plays or else he can't perform.

Lee Evans and Terrell Ownes will engage in what would mimic an episode of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" over who is the No. 1 receiver, in which Evans will end up killing T.O. and will proceed to eat popcorn in Owens' respect.

By the way, Owens will ask the front office to make one of the home games "Terrell Owens day," which will feature the field to be painted with his face in the middle, and the fan giveaway will be a bag of popcorn and some chicken wings!

When Trent is out for who knows why, Ryan Fitzpatrick will complete the process of upsetting Owens and will cry to his mother when Owens "used his pimp hand" to beat up Ryan.

Dick Jauron will flee to Canada after he is worried the Bills will go 7-9 again. That or Dick reveals he is actually a robot and that he has came to make peace with Earth. He will reveal this at a press conference after being asked why he shows no anger when loosing 72-0.

I try to remain optimistic but this team really can't prove themselves until I see them at training camp in August. In reality the Bills will probably end up somewhere in between 7-9 and 9-7, which means another great year of .500 football! I cant wait...

Which Buffalo Sabres Should Stay, Which Should Go?

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Mon, 25 May 2009 00:55:13 -0400

I could sit here and write fifty-billion articles on what the Sabres need to do this offseason, so why not just put it all out there at once? This could get fun...

DEREK ROY- [keep] I would like to see what he can do for the next two years. He is signed on for four more seasons, so I would like to see what he can do for us in those years. We can then see what is value is in 2011.

JASON POMINVILLE- [Questionable] If this is the guy we need to get rid of in a trade to acquire some SERIOUS draft picks, or a top notch guy in a package, then by all means trade him. He only had 20 goals last year and needs to produce for the city of Pominville, or they will all be poor and out of jobs.

THOMAS VANEK- [keep] This is an obvious keep unless you're some crazy fan that wants to deal him for fifty picks and a goalie. He is the center of our franchise and is needed to make a playoff run in the near future.

TIM CONNOLLY- [keep] Timmy, we all love you man, but if you can't play more than 60 games in a season, its not worth keeping your $4.5 million-a-year contract. He played in 48 games last year and notched 47 points, so he can put points up, but he needs to stay healthy if he wants to stay another year.

JAROSLAV SPACEK- [keep] Try to sign this guy. He is a unrestricted-free-agent, but he did say he wanted to come back to Buffalo and play, so we could possibly get him for little money. He was our leading scorer on defense last year could repeat those numbers should we sign him this off-season.

DOMINIC MOORE- [questionable] How can you seriously play two whole months without knowing you broke your wrist? Nonetheless, he produced only one goal and three assists as a Sabre.

At the same time, he totaled 13 goals and 32 assists last year. He is good on the draws and is a great penalty killer, so having him could help immensely. We should try to sign him, but we could see him walk out for the best offer, which could be as high as $3 million.

DREW STAFFORD- [leave] Drew put up decent numbers last year but couldn't find the scoring touch enough in the clutch. It seemed to me that he scored in games when the Sabres were in control, but couldn't bury his chances when they were down late. He isn't consistent, and that could come back to bite him in the end.

CLARKE MACARTHUR- [leave] Let's face it, he is never going to be a top six winger, so why wast our time on him. He is still young at 24 and put up 31 points last year, but that wont cut it. He is the one who sees the boot in my eyes.

PAUL GAUSTAD- [keep] Paul Guastad is probably the only guy, other than Mair and Kaleta, on the Sabres who plays with heart night in and night out. He is a fan favorite in Buffalo and doesn't have to score a 60 point plus year to be considered good.

He just needs to win face-offs, provide enforcement, and hit to live up to his role on our club. He is a keeper for sure.

JOCHEN HECHT- [leave] Please let Hecht go. He doesn't help our team at all. Its funny to think that just two years ago he had 50 points. Since he wont help our team, let him go.

DANIEL PAILLE- [keep] Since management has already signed him this off-season, it looks like we won't be seeing him go anytime soon. This is good because he announced his marriage date just a week ago.

I personally like Paille. He is young, fast, and a very gritty guy who can take the body and crash the net well. I predict him to be a future captain or co-captain, so I like the re-signing of him by the Sabres.

CRAIG RIVET- [keep] He was last years captain. Rivet doesn't need to score a million points. He needs to enforce his role as a strong checker and look out for our smaller guys to fulfill expectations. However, a 40 point season would be lovely from a guy like him.

TONI LYDMAN- [leave] I am sick of watching Toni stand around the front of the net pivoting in circles whenever the opposing team has the puck in our zone. Toni needs to either find a new team or just retire and go into coaching. Either way, the Sabres should definitely let go of him.

MAXIM AFINOGENOV- [questionable] Max needs a BIG year. This could be a make or break year for him regarding his career. If he can't step up big and get another 60+ point year, we should let him go or package him up. The only reason I believe he is still here is due to his $3.5 million tag, which can't sell his 20 point season.

ADAM MAIR- [keep] Mair is a great guy who isn't afraid to get in someone's face. He even walks into other teams' dressing rooms and starts fights with their players and staff! He is good at what he does and understands his role, which is being a rigid fourth line center.

I like Mair and hope the Sabres find a way to keep this guy, which could be hard with enforcers like Kaleta, Guastad, Paille, Mair, and Peters on the roster.

ANDREJ SEKARA- [keep] Andrej played great during his second year with over 35 games played. He produced 19 points last year from the point and is still developing in a faster league, so we haven't seen him in full effect yet. We could see him play better next year.

TEPPO NUMMINEN- [leave] No one notified Teppo that it isn't 1987 anymore. He still rocks the mullet and believes he can produce consistently at age 40. We need to become serious if we want to make a playoff run and keeping this guy around doesn't cut it.

HENRIK TALLINDER- [questionable] He played most of last year paired with Lydman, ruining his stats. I admit that his play has declined, but I also believe he can turn it around in 2010 and produce more for this team.

PATRICK KALETA- [keep] Kaleta plays fierce hockey and competes harder than any player in the NHL. He may not hit or pick fights with the right guys at the right time, but you can always expect him to be checking and creating chaos and disruption with the other team every night, which is why I would like him to stay.

Calgary Flames Head Coach Mike Keenan Fired: Who's In?

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Fri, 22 May 2009 20:03:30 -0400

Calgary Flames head coach Mike Keenan was fired Friday by his eighth NHL team. He's also been sacked by the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers, St.Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Boston Bruins, and Florida Panthers.

Flames General Manager Darryl Sutter had this to say on the topic: "Our team did not meet expectations. Following detailed evaluation over the past three weeks and taking into consideration all factors affecting our season ending result, we believe this is a necessary change required to allow our team to continue toward our objective of winning the Stanley Cup."

The Flames were 46-30-6 last year, which earned them a fifth place in the Western Conference. The Flames were then eliminated in the first round by the current semi finalist team, the Chicago Blackhawks.

A good filler for the vacant job in Calgary could be Bob Hartley. I've personally met the man and he is a great inspiration to people, and knows that good work ethic and heart can go a long way.

Hartley was recently fired by the Atlanta Thrashers but has a long history behind him. He won the Stanley Cup with Roy and Drury back in 2001, and made it to the Western Conference Finals in 1999, 2000, 2001, and a quarterfinal appearance in 2007.

Hartley made the playoffs and got as far as the quarterfinals in five of his ten years as a head coach in the NHL, with one Stanley Cup victory.

Buffalo Sabres Must Make the Playoffs Next Year

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Fri, 22 May 2009 17:04:25 -0400

The Buffalo Sabres need a big upcoming 2009-10 year if they want to keep the fan base from completely vanishing.

Ever since the president's trophy team of 2007, the Sabres haven't come close to hoisting Lord Stanley, or even making the playoffs.

Should the Sabres have another train-wreck year, things could get crazy in Buffalo.

The Sabres need a playoff year. Plain and simple, no way around it, it's already set. The Sabres need to make the playoffs in order to satisfy the fans.

Not only that, the team needs to be playing in the postseason for many other reasons. One would be retaining current head coach Lindy Ruff's job.

Ruff is currently the longest-serving head coach in the NHL. Ruff is a great head coach, and knows how to run a team. The problem isn't Ruff—it's the players that are put on the ice night in and night out for this team.

The management of the Buffalo Sabres needs to bring in better-skilled guys if they expect Ruff to do something this year. Larry Quinn and Darcy Regier need to bring in guys that are as skilled as Chris Drury or Daniel Briere, who left the team just two seasons ago.

If the team can manage to bring in three to four guys who can perform, they should be able to make a playoff run that resembles their past glory.

Another reason this team needs to make the playoffs is for the fans.

The fans are dying for a playoff run, and should the Sabres not deliver again, we could see many hop off the bandwagon. The reason the Sabres still have many fans is due to the two deep playoff runs just three years ago. Many of those fans still support the Sabres, but this could be the last year we see them in the crowds.

The Sabres need to make the playoffs now, and should this not be the year again, Buffalo could see many fans, as well as players leave. Buffalo could end up being on the other half of the best teams in the NHL again.

Top Ten: Worst NHL Mascots

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Thu, 21 May 2009 22:00:30 -0400

Marc's new weekly top ten! Each week He will count down the top ten of whatever is on his mind! This week, he counts down the ten worst mascots in the NHL! Will your team be the team that holds the worst mascot of the NHL? Click to find out! All of the mascots were chosen by me, and it is my sole opinion on the topic. (Note that none of the Mascots paid or bribed me with extra tickets, or popcorn in the making of this article)

Begin Slideshow

Buffalo Sabres Safe for Now

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Wed, 20 May 2009 19:17:02 -0400

When the Buffalo Sabres host the Toronto Maple Leafs, it's safe to say that about one-fourth of the building is filled with screaming (mostly drunk) Leaf fans, most, if not all, of which make the 100-mile trip to Buffalo.

Now, with one of the greatest rivalries in hockey, imagine if a team moved right in between them. Literally.

Co-CEO at Research in Motion, the developer for the well known BlackBerry wireless solution, Jim Balsillie now is trying to move the Phoenix Coyotes into southern Ontario, possibly Hamilton.

The problem with this is that the NHL has legal rights on the team, and argue that even if Balsillie was to purchase the team from Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes, the NHL would still have the ability to have the full say in where they are located.

Should the Coyotes be moved to Hamilton, the only building that would satisfy NHL regulations would be Copps Coliseum, where the current AHL farm team to Montreal, the Hamilton Bulldogs, play. The arena is almost twenty-five years old, and would need some serious upgrades if it wanted to satisfy an NHL crowd and players.

Also, how would Montreal feel if the bulldogs shared a home with the Hamilton (insert team name here). While on that topic, what would the new team be called anyway? The Hamilton AutoBots, BlackBerries, or even better, the Ball sillies. Get it? Obviously I'm just poking fun at the idea, but should a team come to Hamilton, if you really think about it, no actual team names make sense for that area.

Besides, the average yearly income for the city of Hamilton is steady, around $35,000. That surely wouldn't be enough to support an NHL-caliber team. Especially with where the economy is right now.

Another thing, isn't Hamilton a bit close to Buffalo and Toronto to build a franchise there? If you look at a map, Buffalo to Hamilton is about 70 miles, and Toronto to Hamilton is only 40 miles away from each other. In my opinion, the three cities are way too close.

A more realistic location would be in London. The cities have similar populations, and it is in the middle of lower Ontario.

Should the team move to Hamilton, how many Sabres fans would we lose? In reality, close to none, as very few die hard Sabers fans make the 45-minute drive to the HSBC Arena every game. But should a team move there, the danger of losing our team to a bigger market team if Balsillie lets his franchise grow, we could see some changes over a longer period of time.

Michael Vick: A Whole New World

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:20:01 -0400

With the release of Michael Vick from federal prison, millions of questions are swirling in his mind as we speak.

How's my wife? My Kids? My Money? Will I be loved? Will I be hated?

But the question that has been burning in the back of his head for 23 months now is if he will be reinstated back into the NFL.

Here's what I have to say about it:

ON MICHAEL VICK'S RELEASE FROM PRISON

I think that Vick learned some good life lessons after being in jail for his 23 month sentence, like how to make a shiv. Joking, of course.

Michael Vick is not a new person, and he hasn't changes much at all in my eyes. I mean, seriously, this guy owned a dog fighting arena in his backyard.

I have no sympathy for that. This guy is a straight up monster. There is nothing that this man could do that would reverse my opinion on him.

ON HIS REINSTATEMENT BACK INTO THE NFL

Well, we all know Vick can play. He had over 11,500 yards through the air, and just under 4,000 yards rushing in his six-year career. The problem isn't going to be his performance, but if he will be allowed to play.

The decision really all comes down to Roger Goodell, and if he wants to allow Vick to play again. We saw Adam "Pacman" Jones get reinstated after a club fight, why not Vick right? I hope he does get reinstated, but then gets booed everywhere he plays.

ON THE TEAMS THAT MIGHT WANT HIM

No one, because he won't be allowed to play again!

No, I'm joking, but the thing is, many teams won't want Michael Vick's reputation on their hands.

Sure, Buffalo took a lot of heat for signing Terrell Owens, but he is only a hazard to the locker room due to his mouth. Imagine how much heat a team would take for signing a guy who gave reporters "the finger" during interviews, and not to mention a guy who enjoyed watching dogfights in his backyard.

Teams that might want him could be Denver, Washington, Oakland, Miami (wouldn't a Marcus-Michael Vick duo be awesome?), New England, Jacksonville, or Tampa Bay.

THE FINAL VERDICT

Michael Vick is a monster, and he deserves to be held out of the NFL for a while, possibly two to three years. Should Vick come back, hopefully he won't play for the Browns, or he'd be in the Dawg Pound.

Pretty ironic, huh?

Buffalo Sabres: The Year of the Backup

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Tue, 19 May 2009 18:50:50 -0400

Flashback to February where the Sabres were hosting the Rangers at HSBC Arena, and winning 4-0 in the third period when New York's Scott Gomez runs behind the net, "accidentally" running into Miller.

Miller hobbled around a bit, until he was carried off by trainers to the Sabres' dressing room. It would turn out Miller would sustain a high left ankle sprain and would end up missing about four weeks which during that time the Sabres went 3-8-1.

Patrick Lalime, who took over for Miller on his absence, went 5-13-3. When Miller came back, the team finished off the year 7-2-1. Miller is the obvious answer for the starting job here in Buffalo, but with possible injuries next year, a backup shouldn't just be some random guy anymore.

While looking at some upcoming free agent goaltenders, I noticed that there were many low paid goalies who could carry a bit of the load for Miller next year.

Brent Johnson from Washington could be a good fix if we can sign him. He isn't a cap hit at only 825,000. Last year for Washington, he went 12-6-1, with a .908 save percentage.

Another guy I look at is Ty Conklin. He played on the Sabres about three years ago, and would definitely help Miller out. He is cheap at 750,000, but is probably looking for a starting role somewhere as he played in over 35 games last year.

One other guy the Sabres should look at is Craig Anderson, who appeared in 27 games last year for Florida going 15-7-5. He is cheap as well, and if Florida opts not to re-sign him, the Sabres might target him. Also, Buffalo Sabre's prospect Jhonas Enroth would benefit if he played in about five games this year.

Any way you see it, the Sabres need to acquire a backup goaltender this offseason who can carry a bit of Miller's work load, appearing in 15-20 games with a record above .500.

Should Miller go down again, the management better be ready to throw in the right guy.

Terrell Owens Given Key To City, Brings Excitement To Buffalo

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Tue, 19 May 2009 11:22:27 -0400

Terrell Owens arrived in Buffalo Sunday Night, met by hundreds of screaming Bills fans.

No not the same fans that have been through four straight Superbowl losses, almost 10 years without a true starting quarterback who is consistent, but instead, the fans that showed up to welcome Owens to Buffalo showed a sense of excitement, something that hasn't been there for years.

Owens arrived in Buffalo at the Niagara Falls International Airport late Sunday night. He got his luggage, and then stepped out into the main lobby of the airport. He was greeted by many screaming fans, and the whole time kept a smile on his face. He then proceeded to answer a few questions about the feeling, and about his new reality TV show soon coming to VH1.

The next day, he received the key to the city of Buffalo by mayor Byron Brown at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery Monday afternoon, and also attended a Bills voluntary workout, where he caught a nice 40 yard pass from Trent Edwards in double coverage.

The best part about it while watching it on the news that night and the next day, was the feeling that it brought to each and every Bills fan. Watching the video of him at the voluntery workout the following day, and the amount of happiness and amazement he brought to the fans, really made me feel for the first time in a while, like a true Bills fan.

So what's different from Owen's arrivals in Philadelphia, and Dallas? The sad truth is nothing.

Sadly, Owens is the same player and person he was on the other teams he played for. He arrives all happy, and gets every ones hopes up and makes the city excited, but then crushes it with his big mouth, and attitude come start of the season.

So what are us Bills fans, who are so excited to see him perform come September in Blue, White and Red, supposed to do or say about this. The answer once again is nothing.

Nothing, yes we should do nothing.

We should soak in the whole thing now, let it enjoy us and excite us now, before Owens ruins it, and crushes all our hopes for a playoff year. For me, I am going to enjoy it all now, and get on the Owens fan train, until he starts disrupting this team.

I hope he doesn't, I hope Terrell can change his ways as a player, and more a person. If he can do that, the Bills and their fans will have a truly special upcoming year.

Here are some links to videos of Owens on the news WKBW doing a sports segment, and of his arrival in Buffalo.

On WKBW- http://www.wkbw.com/news/local/45363652.html

Arrival in Buffalo- http://www.wkbw.com/news/local/45269667.html

Click watch video to watch it.

(Photo Courtesy of WKBW.com)

Buffalo Sabres Need Big Offseason

Marc-Andrew Bezbatchenko — Mon, 18 May 2009 21:19:25 -0400

As the 2009 NHL Playoffs continue on into early June, the Buffalo Sabres find themselves on the outside looking in once again for their third straight year. So how do they correct that? Play like they did during the 2005-06 campaign.

KEY

(NOW- This past year, 2008-09)

(THEN-The 2006-07 campaign)

(SOLUTION- What they need to do this off season)

POSITIONS

THEN

The Sabres had two elite centers in Daniel Briere and Chris Drury, and not to mention Derek Roy, who was still developing as a top center. Regardless, Drury was the man to count on, and won faceoffs at big times, like his faceoff win and goal with 7.8 seconds left in the playoffs against the New York Rangers in Game 5 to keep the Sabres alive.

NOW

The team has been strong at center, but doesn't have many guys who were noticeably consistent at draws when it was much needed. Roy was consistently around the 40 to 60 percent range with faceoffs this year.

Paul Gaustad was all over the place and was very inconsistent, but had many games where he was above 70 percent, and one game where he was perfect. Still, he isn't a go to guy when your down one with a minute left in the third.

Tim Connolly, who is one of our elite center men, sadly is in the 20 percents with most of his games, but somehow keeps getting the call in the late minutes. Finally, our best face-off man comes from a man we traded for at the trade deadline back in March, Dominic Moore.

Moore was in the 45 to 60 percent range all year in draws, and was a major reason the Sabres decided to acquire him. Maybe they were remembering how important faceoffs were in tight situations, and needed a man to fill that role.

SOLUTION

Trade or sign a guy or two who you can truly trust at times to win the draw to set up a scoring chance. The Sabres need a guy they can send on the ice and have faith in, something we don't have with any of our centers right now. Here is a guy I think the Sabres should make some serious offseason talks to.

Jamie Lundmark—The guy makes $600,000 a year, and could be an asset to the team by winning draws in clutch times (he had four games with 100 percent faceoffs, and six games above 80 percent). For that cheap, bring him in and let him take draws.

THEN

The Sabres had good young developing players such as Jason Pominville, Maxim Afinogenov, Drew Stafford, and Ales Kotalik, all who had a 25 point plus year. Afinogenov was sixth on the team in points with 61, almost triple what he's put up in the last two years (28 and 20).

NOW

The Sabres still have most of their wings from the playoffs back in 2006, and now Stafford is more of a contributor, but we might see him go this off season.

Daniel Paille is more of a player as well, as is Patrick Kaleta, who doesn't put many points up, but is our enforcer now (sorry Andrew Peters). Afinogenov has stopped producing, and Clarke MacArthur doesn't deserve a starting spot.

SOLUTION

Alright, so I think were pretty set on the wingers, but might need to add one top line winger, and two third or fourth line wingers too. Here is a guy that the Sabres might want to look into during free agency this off season.

Mark Recchi—For a guy that is 41 years old, he put up 61 points last year. He is a veteran, and could lead this team if the Sabres management can sign him. He's also very cheap as he came off a year earning only $1.25 million.

THEN

Agh, flashback to the good days with Brian Campbell getting 48 points, Dmitri Kalinin not absolutely sucking and getting 29 points, Teppo Numminen put his heart monitor down and notched a nifty 29 points as well. In addition, Henrik Tallinder and Toni Lydman ACTUALLY played WELL as a pair! Agh those were the good days.

NOW

Well, we have a 40-year-old defenseman who thinks he's 25 and who we believe can still cotribute, probably the worst defensive pair in hockey with Lydman and Tallinder, who cant even watch the front of the net (I cant even count how many times last year after a goal against us that Lydman was just turning in circles in front of our net).

Jaroslav Spacek is our best defenseman by far, he had 45 points last year. Chris Butler played well last year in the action he saw, which could help in the future, but still, I don't think he is ready to be a full time player next year.

Andrej Sekera played really well for his early career, and is looking to take a top four spot next year. Craig Rivet played well, as expected, leading the team, and nailing 24 points, 22 of those being assists.

Don't be upset at his low numbers however, he isn't much of a goal scorer, but enforces on the ice, and takes control of his team, which was a major reason he was granted the captain role around the first week he met his new team.

SOLUTION

The Sabres need a young defenseman, but also need good proven guys back there as well. This off season, the Sabres should be looking to get one young player who can still play, and two proven guys all ready. They should also let go of Nathan Paetsch, Numminen, and Tallinder. Here are some ideas:

Jay Bouwmeester—At least make a run for him and keep offering to him until you go over $5 million.

Marc-Andre Bergeron—He had back surgery in April, but if he can return fully and play like he has been, then he can be a 30 to 40 point player.

Filip Kuba—He is a proven defenseman, and had 40 points last year at defense for Ottawa. It would be nice to get a guy who can contribute as much as he did last year, as he had 37 assists.

Goalie

The Sabres are set with Ryan Miller, and could bring up Jonas Enroth for next year just to get some experience in. They may also need a back up.

All in all, the Sabres need some work during the off season, and if the management of Larry Quinn and Darcy Regier don't make any major moves to satisfy the fans who've stuck around during this two year playoff drought, it could get ugly in Buffalo.