"Less than 20 minutes into the Wednesday morning skate, Devils coach John MacLean blew his stack and threw his players off the ice. MacLean didn't feel his guys were working with the purpose and desire of a team searching for its first win of the year. Maybe Lindy Ruff should consider a similar tactic. The Sabres came into the night on a two-game losing streak, both at home. They had given up 10 goals in that two-game stretch, the first time that had happened since 2008-09. The Devils were desperate and undermanned, struggling to field a full squad like some bar-league outfit. There was every reason to expect an inspired, winning effort from the Sabres. Instead, they lost in overtime, 1-0. They buckled down defensively and got a point. Still, they wasted a terrific performance by goalie Ryan Miller and opened a season with three straight home losses -- albeit one in OT -- for the first time since 1993-94. Two days of incessant chatter about Niklas Hjalmarsson's hit on Jason Pominville had obscured a more pressing reality, that the Sabres were in dire need of a victory. They were so inspired, they went more than 16 minutes without recording a shot against the Devils. For an instant, I thought I was back covering the Bills -- the other local team that's winless at home this season. It's a humbling beginning for a Sabres team that hoisted the Northeast Division banner last Saturday night. "When there's adversity, you realize you've got to dig in, grit your teeth a little and battle a little harder," Ruff said. "Get a little dirtier. Block a few more shots." Ruff said his team got a little full of itself after a strong preseason and an opening win at Ottawa. But when did the Sabres earn the right to be cocky? They've won two playoff games in three years. The core forwards (Tim Connolly, Thomas Vanek, for two) have accomplished little since taking on primary roles. The lingering memory is a first-round loss to an underdog Bruins team last April. The division title means very little now. It's a new season. Management made no big changes, and little seems to have changed in the essential makeup of the Sabres." Read more: http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/columns/jerry-sullivan/article219246.ece
