Sabres' Miller Makes Good
First Impression on Wilson

Northeast

Written by Justin Rice
Friday, October 30, 2009 23:18

Northeast Division notebook:

At the helm of the worst team in the NHL, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Ron Wilson not only got an up-close look Friday night at one of the best teams in the league, the Buffalo Sabres. He also got a glimpse of his new netminder.

Well, his goalkeeper for the Olympics, that is.

Wilson, the head coach of the U.S. Olympic team, watched his Toronto team (1-8-2) fall 3-2 on Friday night after Tim Connolly netted a power-play goal 1:04 into overtime.

On the bright side, Wilson watched Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller make 33 saves. Taking a 1.60 goals-against average and .944 save percentage into Friday night, Miller (8-0-1) has led his squad to a surprising 8-1-1 start.

“I’m well aware of how well he’s played this year,” Wilson told reporters before the game. “We expect him to be one of our goalies, if not the starting goalie. “I just hope Buffalo doesn’t wear him out.”

The Maple Leafs, who came in with the best power-play unit in the league, finished 0 for 4 with the man advantage on Friday night. Toronto completes a five-game road trip against Montreal on Saturday.

BUFFALO

Buffalo Sabres general manager Darcy Regier announced that rookie defenseman Tyler Myers will stay with the Sabres indefinitely. Regier said on Thursday that Myers, who still has junior eligibility remaining, will “remain with the team for the foreseeable future.” Myers’ three-year, entry-level contract officially began against Toronto on Saturday night. He had two goals and three assists through nine games. … The Sabres are 9-2 in their last 11 games against Toronto, including six straight wins. ... Buffalo defender Toni Lydman missed his third consecutive game on Friday with a groin injury. ... Before returning home to take on the Leafs, the Sabres swept a three-game road trip, including a 4-1 victory against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night.

BOSTON

Despite a 2-1 loss to New Jersey on Thursday night that dropped the B’s record to 5-5, the underperforming team was pleased to come 86 seconds away from playing a complete game. “I can’t say I’m disappointed with the way we played but [I’m] definitely disappointed with the outcome, Bruins coach Claude Julien said told the media after his team gave up the game winner to Dainius Zubrus with 1:26 to play. … The first meeting between two original-six teams will be on Sunday, when the Bruins travel to New York for a 1 p.m. showdown with the Rangers. It is the second in a stretch of three games in four nights for Boston.

MONTREAL

After having a four-game win streak broken by a 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night, Montreal looked to get back on its feet with a win against Chicago on Friday. After coming back from a 2-0 deficit, the Habs fell 3-2. Before its win streak, Montreal (6-7-0) had lost five straight. ... Monday marks the 50th anniversary of the date former Montreal goaltender Jacques Plante altered hockey forever. On Nov. 1, 1959, after taking a shot to the nose off the stick of New York Ranger Andy Bathgate, Plante became the first goalie in pro hockey history to wear a mask.

OTTAWA

The Ottawa Senators fell victim to their own success on Thursday night, losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2 just two weeks after beating Tampa by a count of 7-1. “We definitely used that as motivation,” Lightning center Steven Stamkos told reporters after scoring two goals and three points.