Thank St. Dominik

Sorry for the delay (work and all), but I can only imagine what it's like back in Western New York, now that the Sabres sent the Islanders on summer vacation. Has fandemonium set in yet? We have to remember, though, that it's just one series. Buffalo still needs a dozen victories.

Ryan Miller 's sick, rolling Slinky-like series of saves, first denying New York's Miroslav Satan, a former Sabre, and then covering Alexei Yashin's sly bank-shot attempt, should go down in Sabres lore. The instinctual twisting and toss of Miller's arm looked familiar, didn't it? It reminded me of Detroit's Dominik Hasek, the best goalie in Sabres history.

Bottom line -- Buffalo's speed and offense, as well as Miller's series-winning save, proved to be too much for the Islanders. To be honest, I didn't expect the Sabres to win so easily.

By the way, the whiskers are getting itchy.

No place for this

Even as a Sabres Fan, I can relate to the frustration of Islanders fans when Randy Robitaille was called for tripping in the waning moments of Buffalo's 3-2 victory over New York, but it's no excuse for fans to litter the ice with garbage. Even the Islanders ice girls, or whatever they're called, were out there cleaning up.

Editor's note: This is the 400th posting of the 2006-07 season.

Nothing good comes easy

Let's be honest here. Did anyone really believe that the Sabres were going to sweep the Islanders? I didn't.

I'm still confident that Buffalo will enjoy a lengthy playoff run, but I also understand that there might be some hiccups, such as tonight's 3-2 loss to New York, along the way.

First thoughts: Sabres vs. Isles

I'm no so sure I like the Sabres meeting the Islanders in the first round. Not only is New York riding an emotional high from playing their way into the second season, but the drama of Ted Nolan, who won the Jack Adams Award in his one season as Buffalo's bench boss, only cranks up the heat.

Overcoming obstacles

Despite having the elusive Ryan Smyth catch a ride in a hotel van and security shoo us farther away from the entrance, this morning's trip to Tampa for the New York Islanders was pretty productive. I was able to add another 27 autographs, including 11 pucks, to the collection.

Aside from Smyth, most of the team's top players -- Jason Blake, Rick DiPietro, Trent Hunter, Viktor Kozlov, Mike Sillinger, Brendan Witt and Alexei Yashin -- all stopped to sign for a crowd of about 15. In fact, DiPietro signed three pucks -- Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Chicago Wolves and Boston University.

Besides Yashin, among others signing cards were Chris Campoli, Mike Dunham and Andy Hilbert.

The pucks shown above, from left: Boston University - Rick DiPietro; Regina Pats - Mike Sillinger; and Seattle Thunderbirds - Brendan Witt.

Back where he belongs

It's nice to see Ted Nolan, the head coach of the New York Islanders, back behind a bench.

The former Jack Adams Award (best coach) winner, who fell out of favor after walking away from a contract offer from the Buffalo Sabres and turning down a head-coaching opportunity in Tampa Bay, brings more than diversity (he was born into the Garden River Ojibwa First Nation tribe in Canada) to the NHL.

Through his actions, he has shown that good things happen to people who stand up for their beliefs. To me, it's no wonder that he has the Islanders within two points of making the playoffs with 11 games to go.

It's a small world

In the grand scheme of things, getting a couple cards signed by New York Islanders' defensemen Freddy Meyer isn't a really big deal. What is kinda cool, though, is the fact that we have both lived in Rochester, N.H.

Though he signed cards from his time with the Philadelphia Flyers, he said he's happy with the move to Long Island.

"I'm getting a lot more playing time," Freddy said.

Addendum: Take a closer look at the cards. The O-Pee-Chee card spells his first name as Frederick. The Upper Deck card spells it Fredrick. His profile at NHL.com offers his full name - Frederick Meyer IV.