Derek Roy

With the first two weeks of free agency over and the focus moving towards that of the new CBA agreement, let’s take a look at what the Sabres have done during the offseason so far.

A veteran of five seasons and one of the biggest wingers in the NHL, John Scott comes in at 6-feet, 8 inches and 270 pounds. Although he’s only averaged a point per season in his career, his role will be to bring size, toughness, and experience to the roster.

He may not be in the lineup every night, but Scott will be invaluable against division rivals who have used size to their advantage in seasons past.

Longtime Dallas Star, Steve Ott, and teammate Adam Pardy came ov...

Every fan hopes their team lands an eye-popping free agent that will bring their city a Stanley Cup.

How can a team attract those types of players? Better yet, what makes a team an attractive destination?

Here are a couple of things players may take into consideration.

Location: Is it a hockey city? How much media attention does the team get? Will players be noticed on the street?

In Buffalo, you better believe that the fans know their team.

No, it’s not Detroit, Montreal, New York City, or Toronto, but plenty of people in the area will recognize you. New York State is slowly becoming a hotbed for hockey talent, so Buffalo might be on a few...

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a state of flux.

The Leafs, losing eight of its last nine games, appear to have little left in the tank and have been cutting its odds of a post-season berth (down to 30 per cent, according to sportsclubstats.com) with each passing game.

It’s easy to forget, however, that the general consensus in the off-season was that the Leafs would likely miss the playoffs for a seventh-straight season. Despite the panic spreading throughout the fan base, the Leafs are three points removed from the playoffs, with two games in hand over the eight-place Winnipeg Jets. Yes, the stats indicate that the Leafs’ chances are below 50 per cent...

(Photo Credit: cincyhockey11/Flickr)

The New York Islanders went into last night's game looking to pull themselves to a .500 record but failed to do so, squandering a 3-1 first period lead to the Buffalo Sabres and losing by a score of 4-3 in the shootout.

Frans Nielsen would have a three point first period, scoring two goals and adding an assist to help get the Islanders to an early lead despite starting off slow. The Isles were out shot 17-9 in the first period and Al Montoya seemed a little shakey in net. It was only his second start after missing about a month's worth of playing time due to a concussion. His first start was before the All Star break, so it wasn't a surprise that he looked like he needed to shake the rust off. But he would respond well in the second and third periods, continuing to give his team a chance to win the whole night.

“We knew it was going to be a tough weekend,” said Montoya after the game. “[There were] huge points on the line. It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t come out with two points.”