Miller signing has major implications in Carolina

On Friday, the Sabres announced that they have signed goaltender Ryan Miller to a five-year contract extension for a total of $31.25M. His current contract runs through this season, and he will make $3.5M. When the new contract begins, he will make $6.25M for each of the next five seasons. Crunchy is also an internationally renowned master of the pan flute, an accomplished amateur photographer, and has twice hiked the entire 2174-mile Appalachian Trail. Only one of those things is true.

This means a lot to the Carolina Hurricanes. In the summer of 2007, Carolina netminder Cam Ward was given a three-year deal that was EXACTLY the same as the three-year deal that Ryan Miller had been given by Buffalo. Cam Ward's contract runs through 09-10, and it seems likely that they will have no choice but to continue to use Cruchy's contract as a template. Barring a complete disaster, massive injury, or a late meteoric rise by Michael Leighton, Cam Ward will need to be pegged as the franchise goalie. Truth told, he's already been pegged as such. It's becoming more and more obvious that a franchise goalie is gonna have to get paid Kiprusoff money even if he can't carry a Brodeurian load.

The summer of 09 will present a much bigger challenge: Eric Staal. Hopefully, Jim Rutherford will break the silly franchise rule of not extending contracts until the final weeks before expiration. There is no doubt about the fact that Eric Staal is the face of this franchise, the captain-in-waiting. Hopefully he will be a Hurricane for life. Hopefully, they will get something worked out sooner than later so we don't have to fret about it next summer.

The big question, which is a bridge we're gonna have to burn when we get to it, is "at what cost Ward?". Assume that Staal gets a raise into the neighborhood of $6.5M. If Wardo is given the same contract and Tim Gleason and Joni Pitkanen's massive blueline contracts are taken into account, something's gonna have to give. "New, more fiscally responsible NHL"? What?

Three summers in a row since I've been paying close attention, Darcy Regier has let players walk away or slip through the cracks. This time, he did the right thing. He did the right thing by locking down their franchise goaltender, and it's a bit of a surprise. A surprise that Regier worked something out, and a surprise that the contract is as long as it is.

The only trouble is, Regier's play will force Carolina into a tough spot in the summer of 2010 when they need to re-ink Ward.

US squeaks by Germany

On Thursday, at the IIHF World Championships, USA barely got by Germany 6-4. The Americans got off to a 3-0 lead in the first three minutes of the game, but the rest of the game was decidedly Germany's.

One thing is abundantly clear. I didn't watch or even listen to the game, but it's clear that Craig Anderson did not have a good game. He faced only nine shots, and he surrendered four goals before being lifted in favour of Robert Esche. If you're scoring along at home, Anderson's save % is a nightmarish .555. That won't cut it. In 15 minutes of relief, Esche was perfect, stopping all six shots he saw.

Germany is not a very good team, but Finland is. If Anderson plays like that on Sunday, the Finns are likely to beat USA 12-2.

Zach Parise had two goals and an assist to pace the Americans. Our native North Carolinian Patrick O'Sullivan scored his third marker of the tournament. Dustin Brown and Jason Pominville had the other goals.

Hopefully, Anderson can snap out of it. Otherwise, it's going to be embarrassing.

Now. Here's the big question.

WHY IS RYAN MILLER NOT ON THIS TEAM?

Ryan Miller is without a doubt the best active American-born goaltender. The simple answer to the big question is that he declined an invitation to play. My guess is that he's still pissed about getting snubbed with respect to the 2006 Olympics roster. Miller had a thumb injury early in the 2006 season and was taken off the USA Hockey's radar. He returned from injury and had a sensational first half of the season. He was named to the "taxi squad", which didn't make any sense to him or to anybody else for that matter.

As for his refusal to play at the IIHF World Championships, he is using "I need to train" and "I need to focus on securing a new contract" as excuses. The real reason is that he wants to drink USA Hockey's milkshake.

I... Drink.... Your..... Milkshake. I drink it up!!!

Sabres rout Hurricanes (again)

On Friday, the Sabres demolished the Canes 7-1. They got goals from six different players, and they played a sound game all the way around.

Like the last visit to HSBC, the Sabres got off to a roaring start and had the game well in hand by the second intermission. Like the last one, Miller gave up a meaningless goal late to spoil the shutout bid.

The Sabres got goals from Daniel Paille, Adam Mair, Derek Roy (shorthanded), Paul Gustad, Patrick Kaleta, Roy again and Ales Kotalik (power play).

The Hurricanes could only muster one goal, a shorthanded marker by Scott Walker.

The FSN South crew kept talking about how Lindy Ruff held his team on the ice after practice yesterday and "held court" with them for some period of time between 13 minutes and 17 minutes. Whatever he said to them worked.

The Sabres came to play, and they came out of the gates hard and fast. The first goal came at 4:44 of the first, and the second at 5:06. The game was already over.

In addition to the embarrassing loss, both the Capitals and the Panthers won their games, trimming Carolina's SE lead to five points.

There were a ton of bad things about tonight, but there were actually a few good things. Carolina took about a million penalties, but the PK units did a spectacular job of killing all but one of the power plays that Buffalo enjoyed.

As the game neared the end, Carolina lost its composure and took a bunch of undisciplined penalties. By the end of it all, Carolina had 20 penalties to Buffalo's 13. Where it really mattered was that the Hurricanes were shorthanded for 18:44. Buffalo, on the other hand, was shorthanded for 6:33. In the first two periods, the penalties were even, but Carolina let frustration get the better of them and there was a constant parade to the box.

Carolina ruined the shutout, which is (sort of) a bright side.
They scored a shorthanded goal, which is (sort of) a bright side.

Most importantly, Carolina won't be going back to Buffalo until next season. In two games there this year, Carolina has played very poorly and have been outscored 15-2.

Carolina will now lick their wounds and return to Raleigh, where they will meet the Senators on Sunday.

The RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Ryan Miller, BUF --- 27 saves
SECOND STAR Adam Mair, BUF --- GWG, 2 assists
FIRST STAR Derek Roy, BUF --- 2 goals, 1 assist

Special mention to Scott Walker, who scored Carolina's only goal on a shortie. He also amassed 23 penalty minutes.

Somehow, Glen Wesley of the Canes ended up with a +1 rating.

Somehow, Ales Kotalik, Max Afinogenov and Jochen Hecht of the Sabres all ended up with a -1 rating.

Eric Staal, Sergei Samsonov, Matt Cullen and Joe Corvo all had their five game points streak stopped. The Hurricanes had their five game win streak snapped.

Canes down Sabres, widen lead

On Saturday night, the Hurricanes beat Buffalo 4-3 in overtime. It was the second of three things to make this a perfect day for RBH.

Earlier in the day, the Capitals self-destructed in the third period of their game against Boston, handing the Bruins the game. Thing one.

Thing two was this game. Just as I suspected, it wasn't at all like either of the two previous games between the teams this season.

It's beginning to sound like a broken record, but the new guys and the "Rat Pack" were major players in the game. There is no way Carolina would be where they are today without the major contributions from new guys (Sergei Samsonov, Joe Corvo, Patrick Eaves, Tuomo Ruutu) or the "Rat Pack" (Keith Aucoin, Ryan Bayda, Tim Conboy, Wade Brookbank).

Aucoin got the Hurricanes on the board first with a really nice finish of a well played shift. Ryan Bayda was relentless with his shot and rebound attempts. Finally, a rebound went out to Aucoin at the inside hashmarks of the right circle. He snapped it in at 16:35. Bayda and Corvo had the assists.

As the goal was being announced over the PA, Tim Gleason made it 2-0. Matt Cullen won the draw back to Gleason, who tried a shot from the right point. It was turned aside by Ryan Miller, but Eaves fed it back to Gleason for a second shot. This time it found the net. Officially, the goal was Gleason from Eaves and Cullen at 17:01.

Derek Roy pulled the Sabres to within one goal at 7:46 of the second. Cam Ward made a sloppy play behind his own net and Roy capitalized on it by pouncing on a loose puck in front and sliding it past Ward. The unassisted goal was Roy's 27th marker of the season. He is now tied with Thomas Vanek for the team lead.

Sergei Samsonov continued his skyrocket-like success by notching his 12th goal since joining the Hurricanes 27 games ago. Eric Staal fired a shot from the high slot that was answered by Miller, but Samsonov swatted the rebound out of mid-air and into the net. Dennis Seidenberg got the secondary assist, and the official time was 8:52 of the second.

Drew Stafford again cut the lead to one when he got a tip-in at 18:07 of the second. The Sabres worked hard and created a ton of traffic on the play. There were two unattended Sabres right on the front doorstep, and Stafford just happened to be the one who got his stick on it. Dmitri Kalinin and Derek Roy got the assists.

Both teams really battened down the hatches and everyone knew that the third period would be a good one. The only scoring came at the midway point of the period. Bret Hedican took one of his trademark bad penalties, tripping Maxim Afinogenov. On the ensuing power play, the Sabres created havoc in front of Cam Ward, and in the havoc, Ward lost his stick. Toni Lydman willed the puck in, and there was a brand new game. Officially, the power play goal came at 10:00 of the third. Lydman from Jochen Hecht and Afinogenov.

Late in the third, Ryan Miller was outstanding. He made a dazzling stop on Eric Staal, exploding from his right to left to rob Staal at the right post. Staal had already raised his arms to celebrate, but Miller was better. A few minutes later, he made a fantastic save on Sergei Samsonov, taking away another sure goal.

The game went to overtime, and Miller again robbed Samsonov early in the extra frame. I was thinking that Samsonov was going to have nightmares about Ryan Miller. However, Jaro Spacek was called for hooking, and the Canes were given a 4-on-3 overtime power play.

Near the end of the power play, Eric Staal wristed a shot from the high slot. Scott Walker was parked in front of the crease and tipped it off the right post and in. After a series of remarkable saves, Miller got beaten by a shot that he had no chance of seeing. Staal and Corvo assisted Walker for the game winner.

The "official" three stars went to Eric Staal(third), Sergei Samsonov (second) and Scott Walker (first). That's just not fair. Ryan Miller played a hell of a game. He was on his head for most of the third period and the overtime. I don't feel right not giving him credit for a heroic effort.

Trevor Letowski was an unsung hero of this game. He did some very nice work on the penalty kill, and he had a good night in the faceoff circle. He finished with a -1 rating and had no points, but I need to mention his hard work tonight and throughout the Hurricanes hot streak.

With special mention to Letowski, Matt Cullen and Ryan Bayda, the RBH three stars:
THIRD STAR Ryan Miller, BUF --- 31 saves
SECOND STAR Joe Corvo, CAR --- 2 assists
FIRST STAR Eric Staal, CAR --- 2 assists

Carolina now has a seven point lead in the division. They have eleven games to play while Washington has 13. The Caps have two games in hand. One will be expended Sunday against the Penguins. The Hurricanes will be off until Wednesday when they will visit Kevyn Adams, Craig Adams, Andrew Ladd and the Blackhawks.

This game made my night good enough, but to cap it off, UNC held off a furious second half rally by Duke to win the big game 76-68. All the detractors have been saying that UNC doesn't deserve its #1 ranking because they "haven't played anybody". Duke is the #5 team in the nation, and UNC beat them in Durham. That should be good enough. It was an emotional day for both teams. Duke had "senior day", and Carolina was playing the first game since the shocking murder of the UNC student body president earlier this week. Duke was classy enough to observe a moment of silence before the game and hand out Carolina blue ribbons in her honor.

Overall, a very good day for RBH.

Canes don't bother showing up to HSBC; Sabres win 8-1

As I write this, the Hurricanes are getting drubbed 6-0 by the Sabres with about 10 minutes still to play. This is completely embarrassing. The defense has been absent. The forwards have been absent. The goaltending has been absent. The PK has been absent. The power play has been absent. There is simply nothing there.

I don't mean to take anything away from Buffalo. They knew the Canes would be tired and built a game plan around that. It has worked beautifully.

Update: 7-0.

I really hope that Peter Laviolette makes the whole team skate their asses off. Immediately following the game. In front of the Sabres fans. Herb Brooks style.

Update: 8-0.

It got started early, and it was probably a harbinger of doom. Ales Kotalik beat Crackers with a shot from above the left circle trough a screen. Time of that goal was 1:32 of the first.

Tim Connolly got the only insurance the Sabres would need game-winning goal when he beat Grahame with another long range shot for a power play goal. This time from the blue line. Grahame was out of position on this one, as he was all night long. He was too deep in his crease, which is fine if you're 5'8". But he's 6'2" and needs to use his size to his advantage. Time of this goal was 4:18 of the first.

Adam Mair scored at 15:32 of the second to make it 3-0, then Max Afinogenov bombed one in from North Tonawanda at 16:28. This just seconds after Tripp Tracy (Canes color commentator) criticized Afinogenov for not having any finish. The onslaught almost continued just a few seconds later when Drew Stafford was awarded a penalty shot at 16:58. He made one move too many, then couldn't get his shot past the downtrodden Grahame.

Derek Roy had a shorthanded breakaway goal at 1:16 of the third, then Tomas Vanek followed with his own breakaway goal at 6:48 of the third. Already, it was 6-0, and at this point, Peter Laviolette had decided that the game was a lost cause. John Grahame was forced to finish the game.

Ales Kotalik added another power play marker at 10:34, tucking in a rebound from close range.

Jaro Spacek scored the eighth and final Sabres goal at 12:03 of the third.

Honestly, at this point, I was hoping that it would get worse. The Sliding Pokecheck and I thought that 10-0 would be a fine end to this game. We also agreed that the boys should be bag skated right there in HSBC Arena immediately following the game.

The only bright side to this game was that Michigan State alum Ryan Miller wasn't allowed to have a shutout. His Spartans beat the ever living crap out of NC State in the ACC-Big Ten Mens Basketball challenge this year, and his Sabres certainly beat hell out of the Hurricanes tonight, but he wouldn't get the shutout.

Ray Whitney finally got one past Miller on the Canes seventh power play of the night. From the left circle, he beat Miller high on the glove side at 18:05 of the third.

Thankfully, the game ended and there wasn't any unnecessary rough stuff.

The "official" three stars went to Ryan Miller (third), Ales Kotalik (second) and Maxim Afinogenov (first). There were so many Sabres players to choose from, and mine are completely different. The RBH three stars:

THIRD STAR Derek Roy, BUF -- 1 goal, 1 assist, +6
SECOND STAR Ales Kotalik, BUF -- 2 goals
FIRST STAR Jaro Spacek, BUF -- 1 goal, 2 assists, 4 hits.

After the boys skate until their legs fall off, they'll head to MSG to play the Rangers.

Fortunately for the Hurricanes, the Kitties also lost tonight, meaning the Canes still have a six point lead atop the Southeast Division.

Something needs to be done. This team needs a shakeup. They're flat, lifeless, uninspired, and they play like they're bored.

Maybe tonight was a wakeup call. In the year of the Cup, there was a game where the Canes got smoked 9-0 by the Thrashers in Raleigh. There was also a huge loss in Phoenix. I think that one was 8-2. After each of those, the Canes bouced back and got their game into shape. Hopefully they'll do the same here.

Also, now might be the perfect time to send Andrew Ladd and Frantisek Kaberle to San Jose for Matt Carle and change. Or maybe to Denver for J-M Liles and change. This team definitely needs to make some changes. The status quo sucks.

Carolina played terribly tonight, but credit has to be given to the Sabres. They took advantage of their opportunities and they didn't let up. They might have actually done the Canes a favor by whipping their ass so bad. We'll see.

Sabres take 2-0 lead, Ruff pitches fit

On Friday night, the Sabres had to work hard late in the game to cling to a 3-2 lead, and now hold a 2-0 series lead over the Rangers as the teams head into Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon.

I was working, so I missed the game, but I talked to a Rangers fan out in the street late last night and he told me all about the heroics of Ryan Miller. In particular, the insane save he made against BitchJaro Jagr late in the third.

None of the game recaps mentioned it, but Sabres coach Lindy Ruff exploded on the refs late in the game for what he thought was a missed too many men call and a blown off-side call. He was apparently given a gross misconduct penalty. There's no record of a bench penalty for abuse of officials, so I'm guessing that it came in the tunnel after the game, in the style of Jim Schoenfeld v Don Koharski.

Anyway, Ruff has been fined an "undisclosed" amount. Neither the Buffalo News nor the New York Times mentioned this in their respective home-team coverage of the game, but it's all over the hockey websites.

I searched all over for some mention of it, or maybe some video of Ruff screaming at the officials. It was all to no avail. However, I did find this clip of Ruff which I will childishly post here. I am fully aware of the fact that this is hateful and juvenile.


For the record, I am also aware that Lindy Ruff had a productive career as a player in the NHL, while the coach of my team had a very short and unproductive (read : 12 games) career in the NHL.

UPDATE
Someone posted Ruff's little outburst. I don't know what precisely led to the fine and gross misconduct penalty. I'm guessing he referred to one of the officials as a cork soaker. Maybe it had something to do with something he said in the post-game presser. Anyway, here's the clip of Ruff screaming, then stomping off, then throwing things.

open thread -- Sabres 4 - Canes 1

I can't quite "liveblog", but I'll update this thing during intermissions and I might post comments during teevee timeouts.

The annoying word verification has been temporarily disabled, so comment away!

FIRST PERIOD
Good stuff. Carolina has to be given a slight edge. The teams took turns controlling the pace for two minute increments, but Carolina dominated the shots on goal statistic. After 20 minutes, Carolina has taken 10 shots and Buffalo just one.

Ryan Miller has been great. He's made probably three highlight reel saves. One on an Erik Cole one-timer, one on a Ray Whitney attempt from the low slot, and one on a Justin Williams wrap chance.

If the rest of the game is like this, I wouldn't mind a loss. Of course a win would be much better.

Just one penalty so far, which is mildly surprising given that Captain Hairspray is the charge official.

SECOND PERIOD
1:21. Jason Pominville stuffed in a rebound from close range. Jochen Hecht and Teppo Numinen Daniel Briere got the helpers. Peter Laviolette was barking at the officials about something, but the only thing he should be mad about is his goaltender's inability to control rebounds. Actually, J-Pom stole it from someone (I think Commodore). Either way, I didn't like it.

2:52. Chris Drury attempted a wrap around, then backhanded the rebound in. Unassisted goal. Paul Gaustad with the lone assist.

I really don't like the way Crackers is handling rebounds. Buffalo has also shown that it's not so much about quantity of shots as it is quality.

The Canes mounted a shorthanded rush, and after an unsuccessful shot, Maxim Afenogenov checked Viva into the boards a little rough. A little extra stuff with hands to the face, but nothing all that bad. The two squared off, and there wasn't much of a fight as Afenogenov threw Williams down. Brind'Amour was upset, in case you're wondering, because after both linesman intervened and Williams was down and out, Maxi kept throwing punches. The only penalties were to each player for fighting.

16:18. Tomas Vanek set a beautiful screen in front of Grahame, which ultimately allowed him to give the Sabres the field goal lead. The intitial shot from the right circle (and the primary assist) was Jaro Spacek. The second helper was to Derek Roy.

Once again, Carolina registered 10 shots, but Ryan Miller answered the bell every time. He fumbled with one, but a heads up play by a Sabres defenseman prevented Eric Belanger from getting to a loose puck with an open net.

John Grahame is really struggling with his rebounds. Too many of them are going right to the doorstep, where the Sabres are able to capitalize.

It's never too late, but I'm just about ready to start drafting my "Danny Briere is kool" post.

THIRD PERIOD
Carolina continued to get a bunch of shots on net, but every single time Ryan Miller was on point. His rebound control was excellent, and his defense was great in front of him. The few rebounds that Miller allowed were kicked out to the corners or were handled by the defense. Carolina wasn't getting any of the second chances that Buffalo got and took advantage of.

18:51. Carolina stunned me by avoiding the shutout. CrAdams potted a shorthander from above the right circle. Miller got a pad on it, but it snuck through him. Chad "Sharpie" LaRose and Rod Brind'Amour had the assists.

19:18. During the same Sabres power play, Erik Cole caught up to a breaking away Ales Kotalik, and hooked him. Unfortunately, the referees determined that the criteria were met for a penalty shot. It was the first in Kotalik's career, and he made good on it. He came straight down broadway and at the very last second, made a subtle move to the backhand and beat Grahame like that. Technically speaking, it was a power play goal.

Ryan Miller was far and away the best player on the ice tonight, and it's tough to discern the remaining two stars. "Officially", they were Paul Gaustad (third) and Tomas Vanek (second). The way I see it is only slightly different. The RBH three stars:

Third Star Tomas Vanek, BUF. goal
Second Star Jason Pominville, BUF. goal
First Star Ryan Miller, BUF. 29 saves

For one period, Carolina was good. For one they were bad. For one they were about even. The bad one cost them.

Ray Whitney saw a five game point streak end, and Justin Williams saw an eight game point streak end. Eric Staal looked terrible.

Although the Canes TV announcers think otherwise, I think it's pretty clear that Carolina can't run with Buffalo. They won't have time to cry into their Stanley Cup either. They've got to fly home and play the NHL best Ducks, who are already in Raleigh waiting. Even with injuries to both goaltenders and three other players, the Ducks are a juggernaut, and a well rested one. The Flyers, who are busy snapping their 10-game losing streak, will also be in Raleigh waiting for the Canes.

I guess I better get to finding ways to compliment Daniel Briere.