HockeyRhetoric

I believe in the talent on the Sabres. I don’t have very many concerns when it comes to the present construction of the roster. I think Ville Leino will become a dependable scorer and that Nate Gerbe, Tyler Ennis, and Luke Adam can be relied upon to provide the secondary scoring this team needs in order to be successful. I think players like Christian Ehrhoff and MA Gragnani will score enough to justify the occasional mistake that leads to a goal against. I think Myers will be a difference maker, long term, and that Andrej Sekera will continue to quietly play very good hockey. I think Ryan Miller is a great goaltender and I think Jhonas Enroth is a very good goaltender. » Read the rest of this entry «

I can’t remember there ever being this much tension in the sports world as there has been in the last couple of years. There’s an incredible amount of strain on the relationship teams and schools have with their loyalists. What is the source of all this stress? What is the cause of all this restlessness?

First and foremost, representatives of sports organizations and academic institutions are regularly challenging the ethical tolerance of their audience. The defining question of the present day sports culture is how one resolves a situation in which their loyalty is betrayed by a condemnable action. Any experience an individual or group has answering this specific question is secondary to the pronounced effect it has on the general sports world and how it is being followed by people like you and I. » Read the rest of this entry «

By now, everyone has surely read about the Penn State scandal involving long time football defensive coordinator, Jerry Sandusky. If not, cautiously familiarize yourself through the lens of Yahoo! Sports’ Dan Wetzel. I should warn — the details are chilling.

Joe Posnanski, a sports writer for SI who frankly requires no introduction, has also released a commentary piece of his own that addresses the story. Posnanski’s reputation certainly precedes him. When Posnanski gives his opinion on a developing sports story, I’ve learned to pay close attention. In this particular case, his perspective is even more valuable as he’s presently in the middle of writing a book on the coaching career of Penn State’s Joe Paterno.

The fallout from Penn State should be, and I expect will be, quite extensive. Everyone even remotely connected to Jerry Sandusky should be removed from their position and that includes Paterno. Sandusky was part of Paterno’s staff for over thirty years! The allegations against Sandusky are severe enough to indict Paterno in the court of public opinion. Shouldn’t Paterno be a better judge of character than what the allegations suggest? Shouldn’t Paterno be the driving force behind exposing a violation or crime committed by someone associated with his program? » Read the rest of this entry «

How many times were we told over the summer and in the weeks leading up to the regular season that Ville Leino would play center full-time? Weren’t you always a little skeptical? Every Sabres fan is familiar with Lindy Ruff’s tendency to shuffle his forward lines at the first sign of trouble.

Over the course of these past few weeks, it’s become unclear to me what the long term plan is for Leino. Are the Sabres committed to making him into a reliable center or is the priority instead to make him into a productive scorer, regardless of position? » Read the rest of this entry «