A Second Half Agenda for the Buffalo Sabres

As the second half of the season begins, the Buffalo Sabres will need to buckle down to make the big push to secure their spot in the 2008-2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs. They are hovering around that 8th spot in the Eastern Conference as we speak and could use a solid second half performance to ensure a playoff spot without having to rely on other teams to help them “back in.”

If you can recall in recent years, the Sabres have become synonymous with slumping at the most inappropriate times of the season and with the race as close as it is right now in the East, you would like to hope that they got that out of their system in November.

So besides the absence of a major 2nd half slump, what would I like to see out of the Buffalo Sabres as we head down the home stretch here?

First things first:
Let’s get through this west coast swing and start the second half of the season out on the right foot. Since 2000, Buffalo has a record under .500 when making the trip to western Canada and the U.S. west coast. Edmonton, Calgary, Phoenix and Anaheim are going to test the true talent of the Sabres and it would be ideal to come out of this road trip with 3 wins. With Carolina, Florida and Pittsburgh nipping at their heels, Buffalo has to be extremely aggressive in overtime/shootout situations to ensure they land that extra point, especially in out of conference contests.

Second on the agenda:
If they remain in contention, I would like to see them pull off a deadline deal to acquire a player or two to help them make a push deep into the playoffs. Keeping next year in mind as well, it may be ideal to bring in a young, solid offensive defenseman that they would be able to keep around for a couple years. With Numminen and Spacek’s future with the club in question, it seems proper to consider bringing in someone who could service the team for the next several years. Looking back at it, it’s too bad that deal with Kimmo Timonen a few years back fell through. That type of player may be what the Sabres need on the back end with veteran leadership in question.

Last but not least:
I would like to see them lock up a few players in limbo before the end of the season to have a completely clear conscience heading into the playoffs. Drew Stafford and Clarke MacArthur are two players that I can see in Buffalo for a number of years and it would be nice to see those two players inked before the regular season is out. As we know, Lindy and Darcy are notorious for waiting to offer extensions, so hopefully they’ve learned from their mistakes in the past and will move swiftly.

The Sabres have a lot of business to take care of before the regular season is out. However, if they take things one step at a time, they certainly can fulfill each agenda item and head into summer (whenever that may be) feeling good about the future.

-Schrembs
schrembs@saucerpass.com

Posted by Schrembs on Jan 26 2009. Filed under Buffalo Sabres, Eastern Conference, Northeast. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.