Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Jack Eichel has this misguided impression that the fans of Buffalo love him, but 12,437 people rocked the house on Thursday, booing him loudly all night long as hockey returned for one glorious night in Buffalo.
Eichel tried to make us believe on Wednesday that he has no hard feelings towards the Sabres or ownership, but he was back to good ol' Jack in his postgame remarks.
“That’s about the loudest I’ve heard this place ever. Really," the former Sabres captain said after his Vegas Golden Knights team took a 3-1 loss. "It only took seven years and me leaving for them to get into the game. But it was mixed and a nice tribute. There was plenty of people here that were supporting me, and there were plenty of people here that were booing me. They must just be booing me because they wish I was still here. I don’t know,”
So much for how much he loved and respected the fans of Buffalo.
Enough of him. He couldn’t have been more ineffective for his team on Thursday, anyway.
It was such a special night, as the fans were so into the game. Not only were they booing Eichel very loudly all night long, but they hung on every missed call by the referee, and delighted in former Vegas Golden Knights forwards Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch scoring to secure Craig Anderson’s 300th career win.
As the team celebrated Anderson after the game, a video congratulating his accomplishment was on the scoreboard. The goalie was emotional as he watched, and the fans were right there enjoying it too.
It was more than Anderson making 30 saves, including 15 in the second period. It was the response from every player on the team after embarrassing themselves Monday against the Florida Panthers.
This was a game where each and every guy played for the guy next to him. They fought together, Anderson helped them endure a surge by Vegas and propelled them into a third period where they got the game to the garage.
Buffalo nursed a 1-0 lead, thanks to a goal by Krebs, all the way into the third. It was a fluky flip to the net that got through to tie the game at 1-1 with 7:59 remaining.
Many times this year, the Sabres would’ve tightened up and lost, but not on this night. They fought even harder, and with 3:44 left in the game, Victor Olofsson ripped an absolute laser on the power play past Laurent Brossoit to give the Sabres the 2-1 lead. Tuch then added the empty netter to seal the win.
It topped off the fans' night that Tuch stripped Eichel of the puck to get free down the wing.
I spoke with Krebs after the first period, and he, of course, was excited he scored against Vegas. His comment to me was, “I want another one.” Head coach Don Granato grinned from ear-to-ear when he heard that.
It’s interesting the Sabres have won three of five games, beating three good teams the Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs and Minnesota Wild.
I can’t begin to tell you how much fun it was to have the fans so engaged in a hockey game. It might have been a good thing that the refs were awful, because with every blown call, the fans got louder and louder.
The next night I sincerely hope is filled to the ceiling is April 1 when the Sabres put Rick Jeanneret’s name into the rafter alongside the greats like Gil Perreault, Dominik Hasek, Rene Robert, Rick Martin, Danny Gare and Pat LaFontaine.
I’m really not trying to tell people how to spend their money, but Rick deserves a full building to honor him.
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