The newest holiday hit...

To kinda make up for my lack of posting, I wrote a little something for Christmas or Hanukkah/any other holiday around this time. Mary presents "The Buffalo Bloggers", to the tune of "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town".

Oh, you better play well
You really better try
Or we'll write a post about you, that's why

The Buffalo bloggers are here in town

We're watching the games
Keeping track of the lines
And even finding out who's dressed to the nines

The Buffalo bloggers are here in town

We don't work for a paper
We don't blog for money
Some topics are pretty serious
But we sure can be funny!

So, you athletes work hard
Don't fade away
Just remember that
We'll be here to stay

The Buffalo bloggers are here in townnnNNNNnnn!

Sorry, no returns are accepted. Plus, how you could when it's gonna be like, the number 1 (add a lot of zeros) hit on the Top 40 charts? Silly people.

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, which means a ton of cleaning and preparing before people come over for our annual party, and then Christmas day I'll be testing out my new camera. So stressful that it deserves a little break from BAGMG, I know! But anyway, I'm looking forward to it. Christmas is my favorite holiday for sure!

Whether Christmas or any other celebration, I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday! :)

It's the cat's pajamas.

I can't comment on yesterday's game, as all I've seen is the replays. Instead I was at my brother's band concert... no offense to him but I'm pretty sure both sucked.

Instead of trying to get filled in about the game today, I played guitar and watched random YouTube videos and the like.

Then I ventured over to the Sabres site to catch up on stuff and saw this.



I like that Patrick Kaleta and Adam Mair are never seperated. Ever. What a true bromance right there! But honestly, how I wish I could be a part of this event, if I had $175 and was 21. For one single day, the suits and the "looks" (I'm talking to you, Ryan Miller) have made me forgive them. They're like a sweet talking ex-boyfriend sometimes...

Really though. Y'all look all sly with your fun fedoras and the like and it makes me laugh hysterically/it warms my heart. But if you lose against the Kings, I'm gonna be hurting some Buffaslugs. If they can have a fun commercial and win (sometimes), then you can too.

And in other news, Mats Sundin finished his never-ending game of eenie-meenie-miney-mo and is now a Vancouver Canuck. Woo? The Sedins, Sundin, they're gonna have fun with that!

Now I'm off to ANOTHER band concert. That's what you get when your family is too stinkin' musical, ha.

Maybe you'll rest sometimes...

... I wish I could. Except now, I can! I'm done with school for a month!!! This picture accurately represents my feelings.


Hank and Clarkie are ecstatic from way-back-when time aka last season 'cause Clarkie won it in overtime. And I'm ecstatic because I'm done with school for the semester!! Pure joy!
Granted, I'm gonna miss my friends, but November 'til now has been so disgustingly busy and filled with work that I wanted to cry. Sometimes I wonder why I'm an education major...

I did have a slight amount of free time, some of what was spent with hockey. My Student Activities Board has a "mandatory fun" outing for the executive board members. They tried to keep the winter one a secret, but nope, we knew we were headed to an Amerks game. (If you write in the email saying we'll be sitting inside watching but the ice makes it chilly, there's not much else). I fully prepared myself for a really bad game, and wasn't disappointed there (4-1, yeah).
But they played against the Iowa Chops, so we saw Drew Miller score on a breakaway 30 seconds into the game, which was fun! Also, since when is Rory Fitzpatrick affiliated with the Panthers? They announced him in the starting lineup and all I could think of was the All Star Game campaign. Since he wasn't noticeable throughout the game, that's all that I could associate him with after too.
And we got upgraded to a suite and were typical college kids inhailing all the food that was there. I also had fun explaining things to people because evidently I'm "askmary.com, for all your hockey needs" and no one else knows anything. Now I really earned the name "hockey girl". Good times.

ANYWAY. Now that I'm free from the School of Education's grasp, I have time to write up posts less than 4 weeks apart from each other. I know everyone missed me. Riiiiight.
Though, I do I get to go back to work. I'm not so happy about it 'cause I hate where I work with a passion, but unfortunately I can't work as a summer school aide for double the hourly rate during the winter. Money is money I guess, but I still feel like this...

Dear Ryan Adams, I'm just as excited as you are!!
(I'm on a DRA kick so that's the reason for the picture + title.)

Oh, right. Blogging. And the Sabres. I'm not gonna try and cover everything that's happened in a month, 'cause everyone's already read about it.
I'll just say Nathan Gerbe looks much smaller on TV then in person, I'm glad we had a good game on Wednesday with the fights and the effort, and TVans is a crazy foo'. And that we're playing Toronto tonight. That's all that needs to be said.

Now I'm gonna have some homemade pizza and watch the game on our flat screen TV. Sometimes I reallllllly like being home!

PS. I can't get this song out of my head, so stinking catchy. And I finally found a whole video to rewatch the greatness, ha.

Do it, you won't!

Seriously, I finished my work in my night class tonight but instead of working on homework, I played around in Photoshop. The text doesn't match, but whatevs. Good way to spend my time, right? I really miss having the program on my laptop.

Vote for Teppo and Ryan and Thomas and Derek!

Anyway... I heard the game was 3-0, then 3-1 at the end of the 1st, now it's 3-2. Hey Sabres! I like the things you do Stop letting in the goals to let teams come back. And now I have pit rehearsal, so I get to see a total of 3 minutes of the game.
Let's just hope when I check about the game tonight, it's a positive, not a negative. No keeping the Blues' 6-0-2 record at HSBC alive, boys!

Tonight should be fun...

...'cause Atlanta's in for a good thrashing! ZING!

Ridiculous puns aside, it's a game night again after what feels like a month. And looking at the statbits, it should be an interesting one. Atlanta, who is 4-7-2, has yet to win a game on the road. And while the last game we've played against them this season we lost in OT, the last 3 times that they've been at HSBC, we've been the winners.
The one game last season that I specifically remember is the 6-0 shutout after the death of Ryan's cousin Matt. Actually being at that game was such a thrill, and the emotion after was just so intense. I'll never forget it.

Anyway, it should be a fun game. Plus Yo-Yo is coming back tonight! Lindy is all secretive about it, so we'll find out at game time the changes. I have the same thought with most people: Drew Stafford probably will be the one out. Drew, Halloween/your birthday is now over. Maybe you were distracted with the planning or whatevs, but your game needs a little more attention then partying with Canish peeps. Tough love is the best medicine dude! Because seriously, who can hate you and those eyebrows?

Then after this game we'll see how tomorrow works out, because our schedule is ridicilous! Don't understand, watch this. The schedulers have a sick sense of humor... leaving 3 days between the Saturday games and the Wednesday games with 3 weeks in a row is not nice to the fans or the guys.

On another hockey note, my relationship with the New York Islanders has now changed. During the summer, the Isles posted a video about their young players to the tune of Trevor Jackson's "Bus Song". Trevor Jackson is a side project of Boots Factor, the drummer for Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers, and Kyle Riabko, a super awesome Canadian singer/guitarist.
I go and check the Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers website today, and I see a link to this.



Um, what the heck? Now they're using SK6ERS in their videos? I could care less about the Islanders, their last season recap (though the Sabres clips brought back bad memories), but when they use my favorite band's music, I have to pay attention. Awesome that it brings more attention to the guys, but blah to the Islanders. Which means I'm putting the Sabres on notice, Stephen Colbert style.
Play some kind of SK6ERS or Trevor Jackson music at a game, on a video, and seriously you will gain even more of my money. Stephen, Kit/Goose, and Boots have got a good following here, and in ROC City too. So just do itttt! (oh, if only they really would, hahaha.)

Now I'm off to pit band rehearsal. Who schedules a rehearsal from 5-7 on a Friday night? Crazy people, that's who. Thank god I'll be out for the game. Go Sabres!

Adam doesn't think you're a joke, he hearts you.

Back into the old grind... now that I actually have time and something to blog about! Woooot.

So, according to The Buffalo News, Paul Gaustad is fully practicing on a line with Peters and Kaleta. This is definitely a great sign, seeing that means Goose is getting even closer to coming back Thursday. Besides the positive of having another center/more options/more PK power and toughness, it means a higher winning percentage on faceoffs! (I seriously just typed Facebook. Sad.) I know the Ottawa game is a different story, but it was rough. So with Goose almost back, I'm pretty happy. I'll also confuse people less when I wear my Goose jersey and try and tell people who know nothing about the Sabres who he is... when he's not playing.

Also, Adam Mair has been fined $2,500 for the Ottawa locker room incident. My view on this whole thing was that I understand Mairsy was upset, and he has strong dislike for Neil, but it wasn't a great move. I was hoping that the NHL if anything was even needed, would give a fine and that's what happened. Even though I say the fine is still out there, I guess they had to do something as the commissioner was there, and the like to "uphold their image"... whatever.

Despite that, the reports of a suspension were completely ridiculous. If that'd happened, the NHL definitely would have needed to get their priorities straight. There wasn't a fight or a huge brawl or anything, just a little altercation... not something that warrants a suspension. It just makes me wonder how suspensions and other things are passed out, what they are based on, etc. Different is all I can say.

But speaking of the event, it seems like it was based on feelings towards Neil, but also dealing with Kaleta. Getting Caught From Behind says it well, that if anyone interferes with Kaleta, Mair is like the Hulk and goes off. Another clip on GCFB shows Mair going for Neil after he and Kaleta had a little mixup. And from the 10 Stupid Questions video on The Sabres Show, you can tell how close Adam and Patty are. I think the combination of standing up for a teammate along with the hatred from past seasons created the whole situation. The community of the team and other things are interesting to see as they fit in with this situation. No matter what, Neil is one hated player and can be dirty. Things should have been settled on the ice... but now I'm excited for the next Sens game even though it's January, ha.

Basically, what we all need to learn from this story is never piss Adam Mair off. It's much better to have a bromance then be on the recieving end of the fists of fury. And once you're on his good side, you're pretty much set for life.

No one's a joke here.

Oh, and welcome to all the new blogs popping up! I added a bunch to my now super long blogroll, but it's all good. I'm looking forward to new stuff from Caroline, Rachael and Lucinda, etc. Good times!

I'm back!

Moral of the story from the past two weeks: Don't go to a Matt Nathanson concert and have tons of fun working merch and the like, then catch some nasty cold/strep throat for the next week and a half, while at the same time you have midterms, a pit band rehearsal schedule that keeps getting crazier as the show gets closer, SAB e-board/Spring Event applications due along with meetings right after night classes, the School of Education application due, observation hours at a middle school, and family weekend where I was not in my room except to sleep.
Life: 1, Mary: 0.

Needless to say, I haven't seen more than 15 minutes of a Sabres game since last FRIDAY against the Canucks (which I have to say was awesome. Roy under the Canucks, bench, the man hug goal celebration, Peters actually fighting, Vanek being a crazy man...). Yeah, I watched the whole game then, but after that? Forget it.

I have tried to catch up though, as there is a lot I've missed. We're still unbeaten in regulation, we have more injuries with phalanges (seriously, do you need to do finger exercises?) and then Rivet out with his knee surgery...
I have to say, I'm not a fan of the whole not playing a full game and then coming back in the cardiac kids style. But we did get at least a point of out of the last few games (and all so far for that matter) so that's good.

Also, I would just like to say that I love the pigeon. And apparently Patrick Lalime really loves him/her/it.

no, he does not have a twitch.

That video will never get old, because you understand one more word of what Spacek is saying each time. And the 10 Stupid Questions thing, could Adam Mair and Pat Kaleta become even more like 13 year old kids laughing at "naughty" words? Sometimes they're ridiculous but it's still funny.

So tomorrow is at Ottawa. The Sens are 2-5-1, but that's basically all I know. Like I said, I haven't been keeping up with many things lately. But it should be an interesting time. We'll see what happens with Tallinder and his laceration, who's in goal, if Vanek can keep up his streak (The luck of having him on my fantasy hockey team), and the effort factor/playing a whole game. Who knows. I'm just glad I can watch!!

Oh, and the World Juniors basically being held here? SO AWESOME. I would LOVE to go to a game, but I'm sure tickets will be expensive and definitely hard to come by. It's such a great thing for this city to show off our love for the sport and all that comes with it. I keep thinking about it, and it's really an even bigger deal then most people even think of. The best 20 and under players from around the world. Just even right there is huge. But there's one happy camper right here. :)

I don't like matinee games...

...But this is fun. I wasn't happy walking to class at 2:30, but coming back to the end of the 2nd with a 5-0 lead is awesome. Maybe not having Columbus Day off after all isn't so bad.

Even though I missed most of the game, it seemed like the Islanders just completely fell apart. There was no defense in front of Joey MacDonald, and can you even name scorers or highly offensive members of the team? (the closest is Mike Comrie and he doesn't count since he's the only on people know.)

The last parts of the game that I caught were interesting, to say the least. First of all, let's hope that Jochen is okay. But I had to catch up on what had happened, including the fights. (It's on YouTube of course...) I did see Adam Mair coming back on the ice, then back on the bench, then into the penalty box, then back to the dressing room and knew I had missed something spectacular!



There's just something about a fight and teammates standing up for each other that I really love. The high scoring and players contributing is great, no doubt, but that close knit factor is something that doesn't happen everywhere, especially with a new player. It's a great sign of things to come.

Oh, and has anyone watched hockey on Versus yet? I did though I'm not the biggest fan of the announcing, but there's a commercial for a sports style The Soup show... called Sports Soup. Anyway, I don't know if I'll check it out or not, but one of the commercials talks about what's going on in sports. A number of sports have a person represented, including hockey. What hockey says is, "I've got a line brawl in Buffalo, two Finns jumped on a Swede." I laughed, because immediately I thought Swede = Henrik Tallinder. Then Finns = Teppo Numminen and Toni Lydman. It doesn't really work in that case because they wouldn't fight each other, but it was amusing nonetheless.

I am in shock that Alexei Cherepanov died of cardiac arrest. According to TSN, he collapsed at what is said to be the end of a KHL game, and no portable defibrillator was available before the ambulance arrived.
More information'll become available, but that is just so sad. He was 19, I'm 19, and I can't grasp that fact. He had so much talent and so young. Just a horrible situation, and my thoughts and prayers are with his family and teammates.

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

Oh my god I thought my iPod just died because it wouldn't start. Leaving it alone for 5 minutes evidently does the trick. Thank goodness because I don't have any money to spend on a new one, and I am attached to my iPod like no other.

I'm pretty sure it was the same for everyone, but there was just something so awesome about yesterday. I was so excited the whole week, and Friday my mind was just "hockeyhockeyhockey!" But once game time came around, there was just so much more. It was our hockey back after a long offseason, it was the city back together supporting their team and in some cases, their life... this opener just seemed to be different than others. And look how it turned out...

- Did anyone else LOL when RJ announced Toni-Bon Jovi, he didn't come out right away, and everyone was like, "Um, where is he?" I guess everything can't go perfectly.

- Speaking of, when the power play clock didn't show up, I thought they had eliminated it or something. Way to freak me out, guys. Turns out it was just a technical issue... they had quite a few of them. Especially when it stopped playing the game and went black, then when it came back on Vanek was in the box. My TV, Dish Network, or MSG? We'll never know.

- Can I just say I love Teppo? I'm so happy that he's back, and the little interview that was played/is online was great. I even went and found his TBN poster from way back in the day (yeah, I pretty much have every one in my "Sabres box". This thing is filled with the posters and some other articles, autographed stuff, the ticket stubs from games I've been to, pom poms and posters... it's heavy!)

I'm so excited I can't even take a picture the right way! (It was a strategic placement though, no one wants to see the zit on my chin.)

- RJ had some good lines last night: "A little lovin' going on around the boards." "He dropped faster than the Dow!" "Toni on the spot"... This is what I've missed.

- I think my new shirt is a good sign of the season to come. I couldn't pass up a $5 shirt at the Sabres store, and now it may just be lucky.

What I remember as not so good: the failure of a power play (o-6, really?), the fact that Tim Connolly needs to be put in a bubble/leave (because we know he won't stop partying, though the whole back thing might explain him laying on bar floors), and commercials that I already hate (HSBC logging commercial?)

What I remember as good: Miller and Vanek back to their old selves, winning a shootout!, keeping the Montreal to 3 shots on 4 power plays (6 minutes total), Toni's save, seeing players step up and really playing hard (Paille, Clarkie), pretty solid D (besides the Montreal goal) and just a pretty awesome game in general!

It was a great game to watch and great for an opener, even with the low score. The team looked like they were ready for hockey again, and it showed through the hard work and the effort that they put out. Love it.

Now... about Monday. What kind of school/college doesn't give Columbus Day off? I know we didn't have it last year, but I have my only class of the day at 2:30. Until 4. Basically I'm missing a good chunk of the game once I get out. I'm glad I'm already missing a game... but now that I think about it, might be missing a game ;)

Good weekend though. Great opener for the season, awesome weather at home, and I'm already making money selling the first Jonas Brothers CD on eBay. Yeah, I actually bought it back then, and at the moment it's at about $26 with 8 days left. Others were going for about $100 at the end of the auction! Plus, Ray LaMontagne's new CD is awesome, and I'm also not dead last with my fantasy hockey teams like I was with my one team last year! I'm on a roll.

Oh captain, my captain: 08-09 remix.

I love Sabres Insider texts. Breaking news is: Craig Rivet is the captain for this season, with Jochen Hecht, Jaroslav Spacek, Jason Pominville and Teppo Numminen as assistants... 2 home and 2 away.

I'm pretty happy with this, because I was never a fan of the rotating C. I did assume that Pommers would get the C, but this is definitely a good decision. From what I saw of him at the games and what I've heard, it's a great choice. Wooo for deciding a captain!

I'm sure he's actually more excited that that.

And additionally, Goose is now on the IR, so it's looking more like a longer time out that was originally said. No 82 games this season I guess! Poor guy and all his injuries. I'm still hoping that one day he could get a letter, because it seems like he's starting to get into more of a leadership role. He might not be the most outspoken guy though, so who knows. With the injury and the less of a veteran status, it might happen in the future.

But more importantly... THE SEASON OPENER IS FRIDAY. Friday guys. It deserves caps. I feel like this offseason/preseason has dragged on FOREVER. Like I'm 10 years older. Kinda. But I really can't wait for it all. I'm going home for my long weekend and doing the Party in the Plaza and the like, so it's going to be a fun time for all. FRIDAY!

EDIT: Mike Weber has now been assigned to Portland... too many defensman so Sekera says. Weber and Reggie were the only ones who didn't have to clear waivers, so there you go!

Liar, liar...

So I lied. I had that liveblogging post, and it was so atrocious that I deleted it and learned that I should never liveblog again. Or at least pay away more attention to whatever is going on instead of gossiping about the newest rumors going around campus.

The game? I saw 2 periods, ish. I missed the Derek Roy non-goal, though I did see some of the 10 failed powerplays, Millsy almost being decapitated, Derek Roy also getting elbowed in the head, Andrew Peters trying to get Downey to fight then drawing a penalty in the process (and looking all smug after, aha) and other nonsense. When I saw the 0-0 score after the TV finally worked, and I realized it wasn't going to be that great, I kinda was like, "Okayyyy."
I wanted to be all ~srs~ about liveblogging, but next time it'll be about something that maybe is more influential to my health, like a regular season game. Yeah, that's it.

Also on my mind, the Bills. Those stupid Cardinals. My school is the Fisher Cardinals, so I like them (even though we had a heartbreaking fumble loss B-lo style at our homecoming game yesterday), but not these other birds, no thanks!
Funny story. There's a guy on our varsity football team named Ryan Miller. He even looks like Sabres Ryan Miller, no lie. And his number is 30. I wonder where he got that from...

At least we're 4-1 into the bye week... but knocked out Trent Edwards is not as much fun.
What's with all the Buffalo athletes getting hurt? Paul and Roscoe and now Trent... Tim Connolly doesn't count unless laying on the floor of a bar from too many shots at 4am counts as a lower body injury. It doesn't even matter anymore since injuries don't have to be fully disclosed. Now we have to make up even better stories!

Now that I think about it, this weekend kinda sucked. I'm hoping things will pick up. I have no night classes this week, and it's a "long weekend" (though every week first semester is for me) so I'm going home. Most importantly, Sabres season opener time! Open practice on Friday with some people...mad sweet.

In closing, because I'm so tired so nothing is making sense, here is one of my favorite videos ever. It doesn't make sense (and that's just how Trevor Jackson rolls) but Boots and Kyle are so absolutely random that it's amazing.

Hockey is back!

Excuse me for deleting my liveblog on the first preseason game. I found a live online feed to watch from Sportsnet and was watching it with friends... I think minimizing it every two seconds would have created even more of a ruckus. Yes, ruckus.

Mostly everyone has covered the media guide, the first game, the Red Carpet extravaganza, and the like. The one weekend that I'm swamped with stuff, I miss everything! Anyway.

I went to the preseason game against the Wild Sunday. Despite it being preseason, I still treated it as a regular season game given the few times I ever get to go to a game. So I was a complete fool there. Luckily, I wasn't the only one as it was the first hockey game for one of my friends which made it fun.

My record of winning games that I was at was 7-0. At this point, it's 7-0-1. I say since it's preseason and it was a shootout loss, it's not technically in my record. Right?

- My seats were awesome. 110 row 18. This was the game included in the season tickets package, so whoever had them (I think my friend's cousin) has a nice view. I'm very jealous.


And I guess it was almost a sold out game, but it didn't look that way. Attendance was 17,311.

-The game itself? We controlled most of the game, and besides the one little mistake from Spacek, (oh Jaro, you and your square head), it was a pretty good game. Boring at parts, but still good.

-I liked the tribute to Paul Newman a la Slapshot. There was a lot of clapping for him and what he did for charities, very nice.


-I'm LOVING the physical/stand up for your teammates kind of stuff going on. I haven't gotten to see the Rivet fight on YouTube yet... and even though there wasn't much with Goose's little fight, it was great to see.
Though, when I noticed that he didn't come back, I got worried. And now we know it's not good... surgery on the ligament in his thumb and out for 3-4 weeks. Bad times for my favorite, how many surgeries has that been now? The tendon stuff 2 seasons ago, sports hernia, this... not fun.
On the upside, it gives us a chance to maybe keep Clarkie in the lineup. Otherwise it could be waivers for my favorite rookie boyfriend :(

-Speaking of, Clarke gave a good effort in the game. He had some chances and set some good plays, like he's really trying hard to say up in the big leagues even with our over abundance of forwards. I was impressed with a lot of the rookies, especially Nate Gerbe. I saw him in rookie camp a few years ago, and it's still the same: he zooms around, goes into the corners, and obviously has the skills. He shouldn't be put in the lineup right away but definitely should be on the list for call ups. Impressive. But dude is short.

-Max was a crazy fool. I didn't see any of the bad actions that usually can come from him, more of the fast skating and the like. He's such a love-hate guy, and it was love that night.
Then Lalime got a lot of cheers for stops when he had the puck and the like. People are definitely liking him already.

- Benoit Pouliot was in the lineup for Minnesota and all I could think of was that NHL Access DVD or clips that they show from the past drafts on the NHL Network where he's doing his hair and depletes half the ozone layer with all the hairspray he uses. I didn't see him up close during the game so no hair check there. (There's a little clip of him here... this video and another one both have parts of him with the hairspray but get cut off. It's srsly a lot though!)

It was a fun time though, and now I'm dying to go to a regular season game. Who knows what's even left now... all I know is that I need to go to one if my Student Activities Board definitely decides to replace the Sabres game with an Syracuse basketball game. I'll kinda play basketball, but not watch it, sorry!

And the Bills 4-0, wooo!! We watched part of Sunday's game when we stopped at my house before the game, and then they showed parts on the screen at the game. Lots of cheers there too.

Oh, and last thing. Is anyone else a "The Office" fan? I'm a HUGEEEE fan and oh. my. god. the premiere. SO GOOD. Favorite part obviously was the Jim and Pam proposal. My friends and I squealed (no other way to describe it) so loud I'm sure people thought we were crazy. Good times.

EDIT: The Vancouver Canucks are naming Roberto Luongo as their captain, with 4 others becoming alternates, and two dealing with officials, then ceremonial issues. Very interesting... we'll see how that plays out.

"I don't think I'm in here..."

I wasn't planning to come home this weekend, but I'm really happy I did. The Puck Drop spec-tac-u-lar was pretty awesome. My brother was volunteering with UNYTS since a family friend is a VP of something or other, so we were there super early. Good ol' Catholic schools and their service requirements.

We had pretty close seats, but not pretty great seats. I've only sat in the 100's twice, and neither was that close to the glass (we were 6th row today). I realized today that you can only pretty much see your end of the rink, but whatever. I guess I'm spoiled by seeing everything from the 300's. And that sounds silly to say, ha.

Stupid glass things wouldn't let me take a picture of Rookies 1, 2 and 3.

I liked watching the scrimmage, even though I'm pretty sure I had no idea who most people were. Two different colors with some of the same numbers but no names. Besides the regulars, and then Nathan Gerbe and Tyler Myers, who worked by height alone, it was all guessing from there. I did like the kids behind me and their reasoning, "He looks like he's not American." Genius!

I noticed Teppo and Thomas Vanek both didn't play... Vanek wasn't in the jersey unveiling either but still signed autographs. Go figure. Anyway, according to the Buffalo News, Vanek and Goose are a little beat up.
Oh, and there was no logo at center ice, and no ads on the boards. I know it's just preseason, but it seemed super weird.

Then the jersey unveiling. I loved the intro video clip and then the theatrics along with it... dry ice, RJ announcing, the clips along with each player (even though the whole 'pick up your head really quickly then look at the camera and smirk/stare' was pretty amusing), everything. Every player who came through the zamboni entrance and onto the ice just made it feel like hockey season again.
I also loved the cheering for Teppo, which was easily the loudest, and a welcome for Craig Rivet and Patrick Lalime. Just awesome.




I also got sucked in to wating for autographs with my brothers, my sister, and her friends. The first line we were in wasn't that bad (near the section 100 entrance), but when a security guy told us that players were up on the 200 level sections and more tickets were there, I was stuck waiting in line so they could get stuff signed by Mike Weber and Danny Paille. I didn't get to go up but they got my yearbook signed, which was nice even though I had to ask! Then the line next us near Sabretooth's House was announced as Ryan Miller and I think there was a stampede. The staff had 300 tickets for each autograph line around the arena, and what he had left for that was gone in about 15 seconds. And then about a quarter of our line was gone too.

Eventually after waiting for a while, we find out it's Hank Tallinder and Drew Schiestel's line... both very nice. Hank was pretty funny. When he was signing, he said, "Let's put a big one right here..." and did it probably as slow as he could. Or at least that's what it seemed to me. He also made a mark with the sharpie on my page after signing and was like, "Oops! Well, I'll have to fix that." Into a smiley face.

Oh Hank, you're such a jokester.

...and he knows it too.

Then after, somehow we jumped into the last few tickets of what was supposed to be Paul Gaustad and Jason Pominville's line... turns out they had left just a few minutes before we got into the line and it was turned into Tim Connolly and T.J. Brennan. The security guard led me to believe false statements! Evidently their tables were back to back. Anyway, I was disappointed, but it was still good. T.J . Brennan looked at my yearbook and was like, "I don't think I'm in here..." until he actually took it from me, looked through and did find his little blurb. "Oh, wait!" It's okay T.J., just do what your shirt said, hug it out. It'll solve all problems, just ask Michael Scott.

Oh, and I have some videos if anyone wants to check them out. This post is already tl;dr, so let's make it better!



(Please excuse the taping in that one. I guess my youngest brother can't work his own camera.)



All in all, it was a really great time and I'm really glad that the Sabres did something big for the start of preseason/basically hockey season. And now, I'm sooooo much more excited for the season to start. Yay hockey!!

(I have a post talking about Pommer's contract and this summer and real stuff ready to post... eventually. And I'm hoping before the end of the year I can finish my 100 things. Just maybe.)

Yay!

Six more years of the system and puppies and rainbows and bliss!

(PS. I'll have stuff that's not stupid soon. But I'm going home for the weekend so yeah. Sorry so obnoxious. And don't ever go to Blingee, it'll eat your soul.)

Now I never want to play poker again.

I am LOVING my schedule this semester. Yeah, I have a night class on Tuesday and Wednesday, but they're just educational tech classes, no big deal. But that means after 12:20 on Thursday, I am done with classes until 2:30 Monday. Nothing on Fridays... so awesome. If I was the kind to drink and party, look at the time I could have! But what this all relates to, it's probably when I'll be updating the most now besides when I try for game days. Who knows.

Anyway... the list idea Dani had today looked good so I imitated a good idea :)

1) I'm going to a preseason game! It's the 28 against Minnesota and I'm excited. I know it's just preseason, but I've never been to one before. Let's hope my record of winning every Sabres game I've been to still holds... the 7-0 is still intact.

2) The Sabres are now giving everyone the chance to have a player related MySpace! If I still cared/didn't just go on to check band updates and contests, Goose would TOTALLY be my layout.
Related is the postings on the Sabres Facebook page about internships. How I would love to get involved with that, but infortunately I'm not a communications or business or anything related major. Plus I'm not home. One of my friends from Mount who actually goes to school with me now gets to do it and I'm super jealous.

3) I know I'm way late on this, but Mats Sundin signs... with PokerStars. I LOL'ed for a while after being frightened by his slightly uneven looking face.

4) I'm so excited to see Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers. It's their 5th anniversary as a band tour and they are going full out with things. A magazine all about their time together, chances to win all these personal meet and greets, video blogs about behind the scenes things... so awesome. They're gonna be in Rockchester on Halloween (awesome), then I'm roadtripping with my friend to Northampton, MA to see a hometown show the next day. Then they play in Buffalo on November 18. The best part is that it's acoustic and at Ashbury Hall, Ani DiFranco's redone church. It's gorgeous inside and I love it there.
And then before that, I'm working the merch table/get in free for Matt Nathanson on October 14. If you haven't heard of Matt, definitely check him out. He's getting much bigger with his music on TV shows and all this other wonderful nonsense. If you're going come visit me! October is going to be so awesome.

5) The David Archuleta song "Crush" is so catchy. It's been in my head alllllllll week.

6) The Penguins hand delivered some of their season tickets again, and I have to say I love this picture the most.

I bet you that cat has awesome seats.

7) We may be behind here at school, but I will never get sick of this video. All of my friends have resorted to quoting this almost 24/7. Can I have your numba? Can I have it?

8) There are only 29 days until Sabres season. And only 9 days until camp and the like. Thank god.

And the third jersey has been confirmed as the one leaked on message boards/TBN. Besides the weird piping near the arms, I'm a fan. 9 more days, for serious.

It's a hard knock life for this blog.

Poor little BAGMG. I've neglected you so much, I'm surprised I haven't been contacted by social workers or something.

My concert weekend was AMAZING. Jack's Mannequin was so great (and $5 great bands for $25!), OneRepublic is awesome live and John Mayer is a guitar god, seeing Jon Peter Lewis again was good, and Jon McLaughlin is even higher on my favorites list. Plus, he's also one of the sweetest people ever. I'm so glad I finally got to see him live. I have a bunch of videos on my YouTube account and pictures here if you're interested. It was seriously one of the best weeks ever.
Then my family and I went camping in Watkins Glen. I haven't gone camping in forever, so that was fun... but my sunburn was AWFUL. Still fun.

I'm finally back at Fisher. If there's something else besides the hockey season that seemed like it was 80 million light years away, it was going back to school. Not to say that I'm ready for classes (because I'm not!), but it's great to see people again, and move into my room (HUGE upgrade from my freshman dorm). And our food service changed, which is exciting. Yeah, I'm sorry that food is such a big part of my life. I'm Lebanese and a Mountie, which means food is huge, hah.

Speaking of college, I think I have seen about 15 rooms so far with Sabres things, 6 on my floor alone. I'm really hoping there'll be some good game watching parties... I know the girls above us are big fans and if we can't watch together, there will be communication through stomping. I CAN'T WAIT!

But seriously. My phone has a "d-day counter", and according to that, there are only 38 days until the season opener. It seems more like 138, but whatever. At least preseason is in 2ish weeks. And then we have some Bills to hold us over, kinda.

And in closing, still no Pommers news. We know it's happening, I just wish it was sooner. Right now, all I can think of him is in Kayne glasses or Boats 'N Hoes. (If my Photoshop wasn't acting up, there would be some pictures all up in here.) Thanks, Summer Mail Bag. Thanks.

Help!

WANTED: A sport called hockey. Played on ice using skates, sticks and a rubber puck. Involves a number of men from various different backgrounds playing on 30 different teams. Has been missing since June 5. If anyone has any information, please call 1-800-WEHATEVERSUS.

I feel like that little fake wanted ad could be true. This summer/offseason feels like it has been the longest time without hockey in a while. ...Yeah, okay, so it is, but this is like torture. So much so that I even forget about it! I know, what a tragedy! No one should have to go through this.

Seriously though, it feels like the season is still so far away. Even the start of training camp aka Puck Drop or whatever seems like it's months away, when it really only is a month-ish. Throughout this remaining time left before it all starts up again, we have these things to ponder:

• Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego Jason Pominville and his shiny new contract?
• How awesome would it be if the World Juniors were held here in 2011? (I think it would be such a perfect event for us: extra hockey, $$$, seeing future players... awesome.)
• What is Max going to do this season? (After the injuries, talk of trading, etc, I'm pretty interested to see how things go. My opinion is that he'll be back towards his normal self, seeing as that he's not with the all crazy lines like last year.)
  
• What world saving event is Paul Gaustad planning now? (He's single handily helping Russia and Georgia stop their fighting, then uniting them with... something environmently friendly and useful.)
  
• Why is John Mayer so amazing? (Actually, I'll get that answer tonight, woooooooo!)
  

And how have 83 people (or maybe 1 person 83 times?!?) searched for "patrick kane nhl awards sister"? I only have one little post that barely mentions it... I know people want to know what he was talking about but it's also slightly weird, haha.

Okay, September 20, or even better, October 10, you can come anyyyy time now.

I have a problem.

I have to admit, I am not a huge Olympics person. I don't really know why, but I rarely ever watched any games, whether summer or winter. For some reason I started really watching this year... now I would like to say that I'm ADDICTED.
I wake up to get ready for work at 6 in the morning (today's the last dayyyy!), yet I still watch until the very end. Hi, my name is Mary, and I am an Olympics junkie.

- There has been a lot that's great so far. First of all, there's the rowing. My brother rows for Canisius HS and then for West Side Rowing Club in the summer, and it's practically all my parents ever talk about. With Steve Coppola, a West Side guy competing for USA, it's like he's a family member. I've met him at various crew events, and he's another great Buffalo guy. His men's eight boat is defending the gold medal from the Athens games; after winning the repechage on Tuesday, they're moving on to the finals on Sunday. I know that in this house, we'll all be keeping track of that!

- Then of course, there's swimming. That 4x100m relay, like most people have said, was crazy. I think with all the screaming, we woke up the whole neighborhood. Since I'm mostly a Olympics newbie, it was one of the best events I've seen. The trash talking from the French, the epic goal of Michael Phelps, how we weren't supposed to win, etc. Pretty awesome.

I love facial expressions.

- ANDDD... speaking of Michael Phelps and his record breaking amount of medals, the analysis of how he is a perfect swimmer made me laugh. They covered a lot of ground, like the fact that he has the legs of a 6' tall man, but a torso of a 6'8" man to help him push off the wall, and "dinner size plate" hands and size 14 feet to use as paddles. All they needed to add was that he takes his dog Splash* out for a walk every 3 hours, calls his mom everyday and then they'd have every known fact about the guy. Whatever, NBC.

and then with his 800 foot wingspan, he flew himself to Bejing to cut down on carbon emissions and smog.

- Oh, and Hungarian weight lifting. That's all that needs to be said. Ew.

In other news besides the Olympics, my sister and I made a video to enter a meet and greet contest for the Jonas Brothers. I'm being totally serious. I was a JoBros fan before they were dropped from Columbia and signed with Disney's Hollywood Records (they were pretty great in concert opening for The Veronicas way back when!), and we thought it'd be funny to do it. I think it's too late for consideration, but it's great. We're our own sisterly band looking for our competition/another family band, and we "travel" to NJ and other places to try and find them. I'm surprised we actually even did it, but it was fun.

This Puck Drop Sabres event sounds pretty awesome. I'm hoping I can come home for it, because who can miss training camp and all that other fun stuff. It's going to be a mad house with the tickets on sale and then everything else, but that basically sums up my fan status.

In closing, reader from Gilbratar, you are awesome.

* I don't know his dog's name, and if he even has a dog. I feel like it's stereotypically fitting.

Wait, it's summer?

Is it sad that I want to go back to school so I'm not so busy? There has been so much going on this summer, and especially these past 2 weeks.
I've been working at a special education summer school which is surprisingly fun (though exhausting), I've had 80 billion appointments before school starts, and then this week my brother Joey riding his bike got hit by a racing cyclist.
Yeah, weird situation, but the guy was going so fast in Delaware Park that he ran into him and my brother got knocked off his bike. Stupid cyclist didn't even stop. He's got some really nasty cuts on his arm and legs... so while my parents are taking him to get stitches taken out and the like, I'm doing a ton of stuff at home. I haven't had a lot of time for anything, and it's super tiring.

Anyway, I have been trying to catch up on news in the sports world. First of all, as most people, I could care less about the Brett Farve ~drama~.

BUTTT...Mike Ryan situation say what? I was really surprised by that, mainly because he was still a Sabre in my mind and just hadn't signed yet. According to the Buffalo News:

Regier said the Sabres had inquired with Ryan about a two-way contract so that he could be sent to Portland but Ryan decided to pursue other options.

We never really knew the super true feelings that he had about Buffalo, since he wasn't one of those spotlight players. But it seems like he didn't want to be stuck in the role of the two-way guy or not always having a spot, and that's understandable. Whatever he was thinking, he's caused a broken heart and I hope he can live with that. I'm so sorry, MJ!

I'm also super happy with the Teppo resigning. I think it's a great move to have him back as a leader for the team, and also for the defense. He seemed like he was the solid rock for the blueliners, and it showed when he wasn't there last year.
Quick story... the day Teppo came back to practices, he was one of the first people out there. Mike Funk was still playing with us, and he came out right after. Never playing with Uncle Tepps before, he went over and introduced himself, shook hands with him and everything. Not only was it pretty cute (lol), it showed how much respect Teppo gets, and how his presence was missed by everyone on the team.

new BFFS!

No matter if he's a main guy, or the 7th guy who takes a night off every few games, it's definitely good!

Now, unless there are more unforeseen setbacks, this and next week will be a good one. Summer school ends on Friday, I'm going to the fair on Wednesday to see my sister's/my old jazz band play... then next week is Jack's Mannequin (can't wait!!!) along with John Mayer and OneRepublic (even more excited!!!)! And school starts not too soon after that, which I'm actually really excited for. Not so much the classes, but the seeing everyone and all that jazz. It's going to be a fun end of the summer.

And if it would EVER stop raining, it'd almost be perfect.

All the cool kids are doing it!

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  Everyone's doing the 100 Things (also a list!) thing, and since I go with the cool kids, like Heather B, MJ, and Katie, I'm doing it too.  I never knew it'd be that hard, and this is only 25...

1. I’m going to school for childhood and special education, and a minor in educational technology. I love messing with HTML and websites along with having fun with everything we did...after an A+ in that class last semester, I added it on.

2. I want to be a teacher of the hearing impaired. I love learning sign language, and I’m interested in how people can communicate that way/how they might relearn speaking and other skills… and it was all started by my mom. She’s an itinerant teacher of the hearing impaired in the Buffalo school district. I used to LOVE going to Take Your Daughter to Work Day with her.

3.  I’m the oldest of 4 kids… it goes girl-boy-girl-boy, and 2 years-3 years-2-years. It’s kind of weird how it all happened.

4. If I wasn’t so into teaching, I would go into music in a heartbeat. I’d love to work with record labels and bands and the like.

5. I love playing instruments, but I wasn’t always good. My first instrument was a recorder in third grade, (everyone had to at my school) and I passed 2 levels out of 10. I wasn’t allowed to play “My Heart Will Go On” in the concert and I was crushed.

6. I’m a total band geek. I was in orchestra in elementary school as the only girl sax player, and then marching/concert/jazz band in high school.

7. I have gone to 35 concerts within the past 5 years, and with 58 bands. I’ve seen my favorite band Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers 9 times, local band Seven Day Faith 3 times, Goo Goo Dolls 2 times, Lifehouse 2 times, Ronnie Day 2 times, The Click Five 2 times, Teddy Geiger 2 times, Dirtie Blonde 2 times, Cute Is What We Aim For 2 times, and The Juliet Dagger 2 times. Yes, I keep track.
August is going to be a super concert month: More Than Me at the Tralf, 1997 at Club W, Jack's Mannequin at Town Ballroom, John Mayer/OneRepublic at Darien Lake, Seven Day Faith at the Canal...

8. If you haven’t noticed, Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers are my favorite band. I saw them accidently when I went to see Howie Day at Thursday in the Square. They opened, were really great, and Howie pretty much sucked. Plus he is a total jerk. The rest is history.

9. I’m a street team rep for a number of different bands, though mainly for, you guessed it, SK6ERS. I pass out flyers at other shows, send people emails and links with samples/info, have people sign up for the email list at their concerts, sell merchandise at shows, and things of that nature. It’s a great way to connect with other fans and the guys in the band. They remember you and appreciate all you do. (Plus, you get free shows and merch and special events!)

10. I’m not athletic at all. I played basketball and soccer in middle school, but that’s the kind when they let everyone play.

11. I love watching Jon & Kate Plus 8. Some people think it’s weird to watch other kids’ lives on tv, but there’s something about that family that is so adorable. Aaden is my favorite!

12. Every Sabres game that I've been to, we've won. My first game was when I was 5, then most have been more recent since my parents would never buy tickets/I bought my own after getting money from working.  It's 7 total.  This season was the Matt Man shutout game, and the 7-1 Hurricanes game in March.  Last season, a Panthers game, the Calgary shootout, and the awesome Staffy goal game against the Caps.

13.  I started reading at 2 1/2.  I started with Disney books on tape aka memorizing them, then I would read brand names in the car (Pepsi! JcPenney's! Hills!).  Ironically, I'm not a fan of shopping now.

14. I’m really close to my brother Joey; he’s 2 years younger than me though he looks much older than me. We both have the same sarcastic sense of humor (we loveee The Office), are into technology and the same kind of music, etc.

15. I still don’t have my driver’s license. There’s a long story behind it that I took driver’s ed, we had one car, I never practiced then went away to school where there were no freshman cars on campus. I’m working on it though!

16. My dad got me into hockey… it’s basically a pre-requisite for our family! It starts young and grows, at least for everyone except my mom (who isn’t a sports person despite having 4 brothers), and my brother Joey who’s only slightly interested.

17. I hate to talk on the phone. HATE IT. Looking for other summer jobs was awful when I had to call places. Most of the time, to talk to friends, I text. My dad hates that and “my generation” for that.

18. I have 8783 songs on my iPod. (Yes, it went up since my music post!)  Music definitely takes up almost all of my laptop space.

19. One of my favorite books is Harriet the Spy. I had a copy when I was in elementary school and would read it every week, and would always carry around a marble notebook. Then when the movie came out, I thought Michelle Trachtenberg was the coolest person ever.

20. I was almost every Disney princess for Halloween. Esmeralda, Meg from Hercules, Jasmine from Aladdin, etc. And my mom made every single one. (Along with my 3 other siblings’ costumes.)

21. Going to Mount Saint Mary’s for high school was one of the best choices I ever made. I made my closest friends there, and really became who I am today. I stepped outside of my shell and joined clubs and did a lot of things outside my comfort zone. It was the best 4 years of my life so far, and I really hope my own girls can go there.

22. I’m 1/4 Lebanese, and it’s my most celebrated background compared to my 1/2 German and other 1/4 Irish.

23. I can't do a cartwheel, and never have been able to.

24.  I honestly never want to leave Buffalo.  There's just something about this city that makes it a special place for me.

25.  I've never had a bedroom with a door, besides our old apartment.  My family moved into the house we live in now when I was 2, and my dad added on a huge addition himself.  But after having the plumbing and other things done professionally, he realized it was all screwed up, and has been fixing things ever since.  We don't even have real walls in our back room!  (My sister and I used to joke that we wanted a door for Christmas.)

Without music, life would be a mistake.

I'm a HUGE music geek. I've played the piano and the alto sax since I was in 4th grade, was in almost every band in high school (go Mount marching band/jazz ensemble!), am learning to play the guitar, and loveeee to go to concerts. I also have 8729 songs on my computer... thank you iTunes. And the title quote is from Nietzsche, also one of my senior quotes.

When the end of the season came about, I made this little playlist for my Sabres believing hopes, etc. Because my friends and I are pretty much dorks, we would play the songs before games to get all pumped up and the like. Corny, but it was fun.

I decided that I was going to post it, and after editing it a little so it's not so playoff-y, it's finally here... my Sabres and also Buffalo playlist!

"Buffalo is a big city and a small town at the same time. There are neighborhoods and families, that kind of thing. There's always a bit of optimism in Buffalo. It's a city of survivors."

1. I Love This Town - Bon Jovi
I always knew, that I'd like this place/You don't have to look too far, to find a friendly face
I feel alive when I'm walkin' on the street/I feel the heart of the city poundin' underneath my feet

2. Sabre Dance
self explanatory.

3. I Feel Home - O.A.R.
We got nothing to do, and I look at you/I see something that I know and love.
and with the crack of a smile we all stay a while/we know from home there ain't nothing above.

4. My Town - Michael Stanley Band
This town--is my town/She's got her ups and downs
But love or hate it--it don't matter/'cause this is my town

5. Better Days - Goo Goo Dolls
also self explanatory.

6. Don't Stop Believin' - Journey
everyone knows these lyrics!

7. Beautiful - Flickerstick
the goal song towards the end of the season, and I fell in love with it.

8. Sabres Song - Picture This
this was in the 97 Rock Sabres song contest, and it was done by some former members of my favorite local band (which is now back together again I guess...)
it's 4 below in Buffalo and we're at the game tonight/our jersey's on, we're screaming loud
the red light's on with every goal we score/we'll scream yeah, we want more

9. City Of Blinding Lights - U2
just a favorite, when the Sabres would skate onto the ice to this great song :)

10. This Is Our Town - We The Kings
Cause this is our town/This is who we're meant to be/This is our town
We're our roots have grown so deep/All I ask is that you'll be here when I return

11. Hurricane 2000 - Scorpions
you know it's game time with this song.

12. "Sabres Delight" Rap - WGR
if you haven't heard it before, you need to. it's a much quoted production from Nick Mendola!

13. Days (live at High Fidelity: Rochester, NY) - Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers
a live one from my favorite band...it's a great upbeat song about believing and when things are good (though it has some extras and is 12 minutes long oops!)

You relieve the clouds of rain/You remind me that they'll be other days
And it goes without saying, if you should catch me praying/it's for days just like this one today

So I hope you enjoy them! I think soon, I'm going to make a post of my favorite music. Because if there are two loves in my life, it's hockey and music.

Cameras are the best invention ever.

Lists seems like they are "in" right now. And to present my feelings on how excited I am about Millsy's new contract and feelings about Buffalo, a list.

1. 
   
   I personally love T-Vans' face.
   
2. 
   
   
3. 
   
   
4. 
   
   
5. 
   

Well, maybe not my exact feelings, but... These pictures are pure GOLD. It's like Millsy's alter ego or something. I felt too creepy posting the crooked pinky/rockstar picture with the girl in the picture, hence the bar, haha. But you have to get the full effect, the face isn't enough!
So hopefully he's as happy about the contract and the whole situation as he is in these pictures. Either way, they're never going to get old. (There you go, Anne!)

Anywayyy. Since it's hockey offseason, that means football training camp is in full swing. While I'm a football fan, it's not as strong of a love as I have for hockey.
For the Bills, the training camp is and has been held at St. John Fisher aka my lovely little school. I remember when moving in last year, all the trainers and other high up officials stayed in the main freshman dorm where I was. (They got screwed!) My internet didn't work for a week because whoever was in my room messed up the settings. Thanks, Bills trainer!

But looking at the pictures, it seems like the players stay in the 2nd best dorm on campus, Keough. It kind of boggles my mind, since there is a building called Founders that is closer to the field and much nicer, yet they aren't there. Founders is apartment style, with bigger rooms and a common area, not to mention that the floor kitchens and lounges are pretty awesome if I do say so myself. (You basically only get in there when your a senior/have a certain amount of credits, and that is my goal.)

I'm also wondering what happened food wise. We had BIG drama over the food service changing for next year. Our old service had been there for 10 years and the students were never informed that everything could be switching. Not to mention that our food was locally famous. Soooo good. The Bills players, though, are the first to try the new food service. I hope they're enjoying the cookie baskets or food delivery to your room that we're supposed to get this year!

I think it's pretty cool that my school is the place for all this attention. Yeah, there's not much when the Bills are gone, but it's fun nonetheless.

have fun at Fishy, guys!

Oh, and while I'm really behind on this, The Dark Knight? AWESOME. I saw it at the midnight IMAX screening (my friends are borderline obsessive in the craziest way, and not just for Christian Bale either), and it was really great. There were times where you didn't even remember that Heath Ledger was playing the Joker, he was just that good. I would definitely see it again.

And eventually I'm posting my music playlist. I have the files all zipped and ready for download, but I've been too lazy busy to set it all up. Summer really drains you, you know.

Millsy, a guy you can trust.

Well, I guess Ryan Miller is a man of his word. All he wanted to do was have a drunken-birthday-celebration-extravaganza! yesterday, and then he'd get down and dirty with signing an extension.

So after this:


he'll be back to this for 5 more years.


Quick, but very effective. Good job management and Millsy. Since I know you're probably celebrating even more, let me reiterate everyone's sentiments. WOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Time flies when you're doing nothing.

I've been MIA for a while, mainly because of being away and working and then losing track of time and all those other commonly used excuses. I care about everyone, I really do!
So my trip to New Jersey/Philly/NY was wicked awesome.

I encountered real life non-Buffalo traffic (like a 30+ mile long line of cars),

went to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty,

Where's Soupy and Veins Veins Veins when you need them?

and saw my favorite band play on the 4th of July in the pouring rain.




Yes, there were tubas, keytars played with teeth, stuffed peppers, makeshift tents and tarps and one small light, and all that other stuff.

We were wet, Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers were wet, the stage was wet, but it didn't matter. Even though everyone was dripping from the rain at the end, they still played and we still watched. And everyone had a blast.

- Sportsy related, we had to travel back and forth to all the places we were going to see. Driving on the Walt Whitman Bridge into New Jersey, you would always see the sports complex... the Wachovia Center - home of the Flyers/76ers/etc, Citizens Bank Park - home of the Phillies, and the Lincoln Financial Field - the home of the Eagles. It was kind of cool to see with everything in that one location, unlike ours with the Ralph out in Orchard Park and then HSBC and Dunn Tire downtown.

NOW. Clarkie, Pumpkin Pie-eh, and Mancari have all been resigned! I had no doubt in Paille, and maybe a little in Clarkie and Mancari's case. What can I say, I get sucked into the rumors sometimes. Don't judge! But this is obviously another great step forward.

And the schedule is up! Is it me, or does it seem that the season is starting later this year? I think last year started October 5th, and this year the 10th. Not a huge difference, but whatever.

I'm not sure if I like the new schedule format completely, but I do know that I like that Vancouver and LA come to HSBC throughout the season. Playing each Western Conference team once, with exception to our "at large" opponents (Anaheim, Detroit, Phoenix), is great so we can see other teams that didn't we see much of before. No seeing Pat Kane or Soupy at home though. Darn. I wanted to hear the booing.
Scanning through, there are no more back-to-back, home and home series with any teams. There are still back-to-back games, but none with the same team both times. If there are, they are more spaced out.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with the schedule, I think. Besides the only 3 home games in January.

Oh, and in closing random news, Stephen Page was arrested on drug charges. That makes me a little sad. I love the crazy Canadian fools otherwise known as the Barenaked Ladies, and this happening when they're on a children's tour no less. Sad!