Miller’s time with Sabres is near the end

[BOSSMANPC]

According to the Buffalo News it looks that way. Here are some hi lites from the story then the complete story......

Sometimes, you just know. If you’ve seen enough hockey stars reach the end of the line in Buffalo, you can feel it coming.

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Now, the time has come for Ryan Miller to move on. In fact, if the Sabres were a forward-thinking organization, Miller would have been gone by now. But after Friday night’s debacle at First Niagara Center, it’s hard to imagine Miller coming back to Buffalo next season.

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When Miller waved sarcastically to the jeering crowd, he might as well have been waving farewell to Buffalo. It was a sad moment, the ugly culmination of a hockey season that began with high promise but quickly collapsed into public disappointment and disgust.

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To an extent, I can sympathize with Miller. The Rangers’ first two goals bounced in off skates. The fans treated him harshly, just the same. But Miller let the crowd get in his head. He seemed distracted when he flubbed the puck and handed the Rangers a third goal with 3.2 seconds left in the first period.

Miller should have left his rage in the locker room between periods. But the crowd was still on his mind in the second period. Early in the period, he fielded a harmless dump-in and fired the puck angrily into the boards as the crowd hooted at him. Then, as play resumed, he gave a mock wave to the crowd.

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He admitted as much after Friday’s debacle, when he was reminded that Patrick Roy had a similar experience at the end in Montreal.

“Well, I would love to have what happened after that,” Miller said. “Just saying. It doesn’t mean I want to leave, but if that’s what you’re getting at. [Roy] won two Stanley Cups after that so, hey, why not?”

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I like Miller but it looks like the time has come.....Miller’s time with Sabres is near the end - Sports - The Buffalo News

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Comments left by fans at the bottom, at the end of the article seem to be mixed.

 

[Eddie_Shack]

Damn Boss... Miller has the skills to be the best in the game, and the mental toughness to win it all. It's not really his fault he hasn't had a supporting cast, I'm sure he's very frustrated by now. It sucks to see another goalie of that caliber leave town, but that's probably what's best for both parties right now. I'll never forget Miller's play leading the US to the silver in 2010, the guy really is awesome. I hope he wins multiple Cups before he hangs 'em up.

 

[mall3013]

Comments left by fans at the bottom, at the end of the article seem to be mixed.

I had a feeling Miller was done in Buffalo. I just thought it would happen last season. It's time to cash in and get some solid prospects in return. I know that the Flyers will be looking for another goaltender to challenge Mason. Bryzy will be bought out more than likely. I'd love to have Miller.

 

[dash]

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Damn Boss... Miller has the skills to be the best in the game, and the mental toughness to win it all. It's not really his fault he hasn't had a supporting cast, I'm sure he's very frustrated by now. It sucks to see another goalie of that caliber leave town, but that's probably what's best for both parties right now. I'll never forget Miller's play leading the US to the silver in 2010, the guy really is awesome. I hope he wins multiple Cups before he hangs 'em up.

Yeah, I don't know if you read the whole article but the writer had some good things to say as well. IPW posted some stats on him in the fancy stats thread and his number 5 on 5 are as good as his best years. He has been left out to dry way too often this year. Like the story said two of the goals were not even his fault and that has happened NUMEROUS times this year. I get so pissed when I see "Here we go again Miller lets in X number of goals" It's not just the numbers that always tell the story.

I had a feeling Miller was done in Buffalo. I just thought it would happen last season. It's time to cash in and get some solid prospects in return. I know that the Flyers will be looking for another goaltender to challenge Mason. Bryzy will be bought out more than likely. I'd love to have Miller.

mall, as much as I wouldn't like to see him go I think the Flyers would be a good fit for him. Hell, you live in the area and know what he is capable of. Get him in a new situation and a fresh start and he will be fine. I bet there are a few GM's that wouldn't mind seeing him between the pipes on their teams.

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Don't make me cry dash.

 

[BOSSMANPC]

The last paragraph is pretty good......

Miller deserves better than being humiliated on his home ice. After Friday, there’s a belief that the Sabres won’t put him back out there this season, that he has played his final home game in Buffalo.

I hope that’s not the case. Miller wanted desperately to win here. His heart was in the right place. I can’t imagine he wants it to end this way. If his time really is short, Miller ought go out there for one more home game, so he and the fans can say a proper goodbye.

 

[IPostedWhat]

The writing was on the wall with this one considering the team is "rebuilding".

You also have to take into consideration that the Sabres have a plethora of goalies at their disposal, and it's now time to see what they can do.

I have a feeling that Enroth and Leggio will be the starting goalies for the Sabres next year, and they will both split time instead of having one goalie start 85% of the games. Now that Lindy Ruff isn't around, the Sabres will have a better rotation schedule.

Leggio is 28 years old now, a local boy from Williamsville, and he just signed a 1 year deal last year to stay in Rochester that is up at the end of this year. With the Season he's been having in the AHL, I really think now is the time to see what he can do in the NHL. Besides, why else did the Sabres acquire Hackett from the Wild for?

As I posted in the other thread about Miller,

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Ryan Miller’s 41 saves Wednesday gave him an NHL-high four wins this season when facing 40-plus shots. Miller entered Thursday’s game leading the NHL in shots against (1,183) and saves (1,082). He has faced 66 more shots and made 48 more saves than any other NHL goalie.

Miller’s .928 save percentage in five-on-five play is equal to what he had in his Vezina Trophy year of 2009-10. Where his overall numbers have suffered are on opponents’ power plays (.860) and opponents’ short-handed situations (.875).


Clearly defense is going to be the main focus for the Sabres as they rebuild, or else any goalie in net is going to have a hard time going forward.

 

[BOSSMANPC]

The writing was on the wall with this one considering the team is "rebuilding".

You also have to take into consideration that the Sabres have a plethora of goalies at their disposal, and it's now time to see what they can do.

I have a feeling that Enroth and Leggio will be the starting goalies for the Sabres next year, and they will both split time instead of having one goalie start 85% of the games. Now that Lindy Ruff isn't around, the Sabres will have a better rotation schedule.

Leggio is 28 years old now, a local boy from Williamsville, and he just signed a 1 year deal last year to stay in Rochester that is up at the end of this year. With the Season he's been having in the AHL, I really think now is the time to see what he can do in the NHL. Besides, why else did the Sabres acquire Hackett from the Wild for?

As I posted in the other thread about Miller,

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Ryan Miller’s 41 saves Wednesday gave him an NHL-high four wins this season when facing 40-plus shots. Miller entered Thursday’s game leading the NHL in shots against (1,183) and saves (1,082). He has faced 66 more shots and made 48 more saves than any other NHL goalie.

Miller’s .928 save percentage in five-on-five play is equal to what he had in his Vezina Trophy year of 2009-10. Where his overall numbers have suffered are on opponents’ power plays (.860) and opponents’ short-handed situations (.875).


Clearly defense is going to be the main focus for the Sabres as they rebuild, or else any goalie in net is going to have a hard time going forward.

Good points IPW. We said a few times over the years that at times he was getting worked to death. He's not a big man, yeah he's 6'3" but what does he weigh something like 170 lbs?

The sad thing is at times Ruff had no options so I don't completely blame him, shit for a long time we would have been better off with the zamboni driver as a back up.

Oh well, we all move on I guess.

Edit: I just looked at his profile he's 6'2" 175. That's not a lot of weigh to have on that frame for a goalie playing that many games.

 

[flyersfan4706]

I can already hear Holmgren kicking Miller's tires

 

[IPostedWhat]

The sad thing is at times Ruff had no options.

He had no options because most of the time he put himself in that position in the first place.

 

[IPostedWhat]

I'm also interested in what the Sabres are going to do about Myers?

In only 4 games so far, Chad Ruhwedel is making Myers look bad with the way he's been playing since being acquired by the Sabres.

He was also one of the only players on the Sabres who was a +1 after that ass kicking by the Rags on Friday.

The kid looks like he's going to be a starter on the defense next Season, so someone is going to be expendable.

 

[dash]

Sabres need to clean house, Pegula needs to fire Regier, and yes Miller needs to move on as well. The team needs a fresh start with a new GM and Miller time is over in Buffalo.

 

[BOSSMANPC]

He had no options because most of the time he put himself in that position in the first place.

You may be right. I think what you're saying is when he had the chance to use the back up goalie he still went with Miller until he was exhausted then expected the back up to come in after not playing for a month and do a job.

Is that your point?

 

[The Q stache]

I can already hear Holmgren kicking Miller's tires

Yea and he is checking to see if he can get him on the team too.

 

[IPostedWhat]

You may be right. I think what you're saying is when he had the chance to use the back up goalie he still went with Miller until he was exhausted then expected the back up to come in after not playing for a month and do a job.

Is that your point?

Pretty much. Paul Hamilton for years criticized the way Ruff would handle the goalies on the team.

 

[BOSSMANPC]

Sabres need to clean house, Pegula needs to fire Regier, and yes Miller needs to move on as well. The team needs a fresh start with a new GM and Miller time is over in Buffalo.

They should get rid of James Patrick too. He was in charge of the defense and there is no way in hell they should have been as bad as they were. I'm not saying they were the most talented group in the league but certainly better than their dismal numbers were.

Their defense play on the PK was absolutely horrendous! I've never seen players out of position as often as this group and they obviously had no direction. It wasn't individual break downs (because they were all guilty of it) it was a lack of a system that was very obvious.

 

[IPostedWhat]

I remember a time when I thought this was going to happen:

 

[BOSSMANPC]

I remember a time when I thought this was going to happen:

Would be easy to do. Just change the "H" to a "M" on the jersey.