Uniondale, NY (WGR 550) - Saturday was just another game in a string of many where the Sabres weren't the least bit interested and got run over in the process. The Islanders came out flying and hit every Sabres player at every turn. The Sabres had no fight at all and spent the better part of the first 40 minutes in their own zone.
The Sabres were looking over their shoulder to see which Islander was going to hit them and they usually did get hit.
On New York's first goal, Lawrence Pilut turned the puck over and then lost track of Jordan Eberle, who scored on a rebound. Nothing at all Carter Hutton could do about it.
I'm going to stop there. There's no point going over every goal and telling this team has quit. You watch the games, you can decide for yourself.
As far as after the game? Jack Eichel was emphatic in defending Phil Housley, "This isn't on Phil. It's on us, not Phil. It's not his job, it's our job. He's not out there playing the game, is he?"
Housley was asked if his team has quit. He said, "No. Again, it came down to 1-on-1 battles."
Hutton was hung out to dry again and he doesn't know what to say about these non-efforts, "Personally I'm embarrassed, they pounded us right from the opening faceoff.
"I don't know how it explain it anymore, teams just bury us and then just sit back."
Before one of the Islander goals, the Sabres got hemmed into their zone. They finally got the puck out and only Casey Mittelstadt went for a change. He had been on the ice for 1:42. Jeff Skinner was the left winger and was the closest to the bench, but he went cross-ice to the right wing side because he saw a possible offensive opportunity. There is no way the left wing and the left defenseman Lawrence Pilut shouldn't get off the ice, yet Skinner wasn't happy when I questioned him about it. Jason Pominville was on the right wing and he's the furthest away from the bench along with Brandon Montour.
Skinner tried to make the case that it was a long change for him. Skinner and Pominville were on the ice 1:47 while Pilut was on for 2:05 and Montour for 2:20.
The one positive from this game is Victor Olofsson scored his first NHL goal from the right wing circle on a late power play. I can't honestly sit here and tell you Olofsson, Alex Nylander or Will Borgen played well. Everybody struggled.
