Counting Down...Hours...Minutes...Seconds

So there are under 6 hours left until the start of real hockey's return to Buffalo. So it only made the day about 100 times better when I opened my mailbox this afternoon to find the newest issue of The Hockey News waiting for me.

As usual THN has ranked the top twenty players in terms of position based on their projected performance in the coming season and I have to say it's about time that Buffalo players made the grade. Yay Sabres someone finally appreciates you, not that I don't but oh you know what I mean...no it's okay Danny sorry I made you cry I know how sensitive you are...

None of our defensemen made the list but Ryan Miller was ranked number 8 in goalies, so some good news there. It should come as no surprise as to who was ranked first in left wingers, Alex Ovechkin, but the real surprise came futher down at number 8 who is this? Thomas Vanek? okay so here I am thinking this is good news at least two of our players made the list. Number 1 in centers was none other than Sidney Crosby (seriously I was stunned), but much to my apparently unending surpise Derek Roy was number 16th on that list. Could my eyes be deceiving me THREE of our players? It couldn't be four could it? But there it was in black and white Jason Pominville ranked 8th in right wingers. FOUR PLAYERS finally getting the respect they deserve, hell the SABRES getting the respect they deserve.

I thought my happiness was never ending but there THN goes ruining it. They didn't even predict us to make the playoffs giving us the 11th position in the East, they rank 4 of our players in the top twenty in their positions and they don't even have the decency to give us a playoff spot. What kind of messed up crap is that? I don't know but they are going to get a strongly worded letter detailing my displeasure with them, or I'm just going to think very hard about how much I loathe and despise them (I'm not good with confrontation).

In a special section key departures were listed which included, for Buffalo, DMITRI KALININ, seriously, someone actually misses him, I didn't even realize he was gone. If you miss Kalinin raise your hand, anyone, anyone, Bueller, Bueller, yeah that's what I thought. Please, if you miss him let me know so that Cari and I can point and laugh at you, you'll be our entertainment for the week. I admit I'll miss Steve Bernier but Kalinin now there was a one man train wreck.

And this line in the team report sums up the game of hockey:

Ryan Miller realizes in the grand scheme of things, he and his teammates are just a bunch of big kids playing a little kid's game.

Or in the case of some of our players (Tim Kennedy anyone) little kid's playing a little kids game.

The report included more of the same old same old on Miller, the whole team rests on his shoulders, he has to do better if the team hopes to make the playoffs this year, he played too many games last season, yada, yada, yada, blah, blah, blah. Thank you Hockey News for telling us here in Buffalo what we already know.

Also in the team report:

...bounce back seasons by Tim Connolly and Maxim Afinogenov will have the Sabres in the hunt for a playoff spot.

Okay first off this was written before Timmy went MIA so this just made me giggle a little because as Cari has previously reported Timmy is either dead or buried under some blond he's screwing and can't seem to manage getting out from under her in time to go to practice. As for Max as much as I love the man, I can't see this being a bounce back season for him, we've heard for so long that he hasn't reached his potential I'm starting to wonder if he even had it to begin with. I think we should finally realize that the guy is a one trick pony who should be taken out behind the barn and shot or in the best case scenario traded.

I guess we'll see what this season has to offer and it all begins tonight.