Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Tonight on Versus: Ticked off Sabres roll into Montreal without Ryan Miller

Lindy Ruff

This Sept. 20, 2011 photo shows Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff, left, talking with players during NHL hockey practice in Buffalo, N.Y. Terry Pegula doesn’t know or frankly care how much he’s spent on buying the Sabres or adding salary with an objective to turn the team into a bona fide contender. (AP Photo/David Duprey)

AP

Don’t suppose there’s been any news out of Buffalo over the weekend, has there?

While the Montreal Canadiens are looking to get consistent after a road trip, the Sabres come rolling into Montreal (7 p.m. ET on Versus) in a most foul mood. Ryan Miller is out indefinitely with a concussion thanks to being treated like a bowling pin by Boston’s Milan Lucic. The goalie battle that was lingering in Buffalo is now put on hold as Jhonas Enroth gets to prove that he can get it done full time.

Also needing to prove they can do anything other than give up continuous two-on-one’s and not stick up for their teammates is the Sabres defense. Guys like Tyler Myers, Andrei Sekera, Christian Ehrhoff, and Marc-Andre Gragnani are going to need a refresher course in how to defend opponents. Myers in particular looked brutal against Boston. For a guy with a fat, new contract extension he should worry about the part of his game his position is named for better.

With how chipper coach Lindy Ruff was after the team practiced in Montreal yesterday, it’s safe to say that if the Sabres don’t come out like a team on fire tonight,

Montreal, meanwhile, is getting things back together slowly. Mike Cammalleri is back in the lineup and with him comes the threat of goal scoring. Max Pacioretty and Tomas Plekanec have held strong for the Habs in the meantime while Carey Price hopes to get things under control in goal so the Habs can get back to being the tough team to beat we’ve gotten to know.

How will the Sabres come out after their total screw up in Boston and getting torn apart by Ruff? Will Montreal continue to make things worse for Buffalo? The drama is there for the taking.