Compared to last year's first round playoff series, the HSBC crowd's excitement level was not there during most of the series-clinching game 5 against the Islanders Friday night. Instead of being happy about the team advancing, I found myself wanting to watch a game that counts. A game that I don't know the outcome of. The Sabres seemed disinterested throughout the series, and I believe they could have beat the Isles a lot more convincingly than they did. Having adopted their psyche, like most other fans, I do not blame them. I won't be satisfied until they make it to the Conference Finals, at the least. Even then, I will be only slightly more excited than I am now. I want the cup. Think about how much better this team is than they were last year, and we all know how far they went.
My theory is this: Starting about a week before the Penguins game, Lindy Ruff started to get concerned about the amount of shots on goal the team was letting up. The rationale, of course, is that they can outscore anyone. And possibly, Lindy wanted to test the limits of Ryan Miller as well as the offense. Being the mastermind that he is, Ruff knows that the team is going to have to play more than one style in the playoffs. I believe from that Penguins game on out, he stressed a tight defensive strategy to see if the team could still win. A lesson in patience is what it was. Of course, we all learned that the team could still outscore their opponents, while playing a stifling defensive game. The Penguins were one of the hottest teams in the league when the Sabres played them on national television. The Sabres were even money, not a favorite, this year the times of which I could count on one hand. That game showed me just how good this team is. They proved to the world that they are not just a one-dimensional offensive juggernaut, but also a team that can shut teams down. It was the best game I've seen them play in the last two years, and I've seen them all.
Lindy knows that his team can't give up 40 or 50 shots to teams like the Senators or Rangers. He knows that his team is so offensively talented that the goals will come most of the time. Now he knows that when the goals aren't coming, the team can take the lead and protect it. Nobody will admit this in professional sports, but I think the Sabres were "practicing" against the Islanders. After winning the first game 4-1, Ruff knew that they would win, and he decided to try new things defensively. They allowed only 2 shots on goal in 2 separate periods in the series. Sabres fans haven't seen that all year. Compared to the amount of shots they were letting up the month before, it was a major turnaround. Also, I think Lindy was trying to rest his number one defensive unit of Lydman and Tallinder, (as well as Brian Campbell) since the Numminen and Kalinin pairing seemed to get a lot more ice time than usual.
Speaking of Lindy's great hockey mind...What a time to light a fire under Ales Kotalik's butt....He has a hard shot, but we do not need goals. He is not a great puck carrier and I believe he was a minus player this year. To me, that fact alone sticks out like a sore thumb. Remember what Thomas Vanek was doing in last year's playoffs and the kind of man it turned him into? Ruff remembers that when he was fighting for a roster spot, Kotalik used to hit people....hard and often. Trying to play his way back onto the 2nd line has seemed to refresh Kotalik. Maybe was playing too many minutes and getting fatigued. No matter what the case, he could be tailor-made to be an "energy line" player. The line of him, Tim Connolly and Adam Mair has been inspired and inspiring. If we don't dump Kotalik in the offseason and as unlikely as it will be, I would love to see this line together next year.
I think Lindy Ruff has his team prepared to play any way they need to in order to win. I'm not sure that they will have a lopsided victory in the playoffs, but as long as they win, it doesn't matter. I think that no matter how exciting the run and gun style (like the 7-6 game vs. Ottawa last year) is, a win is more important. And to win, you have to learn how to keep the lead. Right now, the team is learning to do just that. And think about this: If it's not working, they will just turn the throttle up on the offense like we've all seen them do this year.
