Buffalo Sabres Daily Press Clips January 9, 2014 Panthers-Sabres Preview Associated Press January 8, 2014 The Buffalo Sabres may own the fewest points and victories in the NHL, but they've played extremely well at home over the last month. A matchup Thursday night with a Florida Panthers team against which they've had success recently could give the Sabres a solid chance of winning six in a row on their own ice for the first time in nearly seven years. Buffalo (12-26-4) lost its first nine home games and had three wins in 16 such contests over the first two months. The Sabres, though, are 6-0-1 in the last seven at First Niagara Center, beating New Jersey 2-1 on Saturday for their fifth consecutive home win. Their first chance at winning six straight in Buffalo since Jan. 17-Feb. 15, 2007, was scheduled for Tuesday night against Carolina, but the game was postponed because of a snowstorm. Goaltender Ryan Miller has been a big part of the turnaround. He's 6-0-0 with a 1.29 goals-against average in his last six home starts and has a 1.73 GAA in his past nine overall. "The guys definitely feel the energy," Miller said of playing at home. "It's important to hear that the crowd's behind you." Miller, though, has struggled in Buffalo against Florida (16-21-6). He's alternated wins and losses in his last eight starts while posting a 3.00 GAA, and will give way to backup Jhonas Enroth on Thursday. Enroth's only win this season was a 3-1 victory at Florida on Oct. 25. That result improved the Sabres to 6-2-2 in the last 10 meetings. Enroth won't have towering defenseman Tyler Myers in front of him. The 6-foot- 8 Meyers will be serving the first of a three-game suspension for unnecessarily extending and launching himself into the head of New Jersey's Dainius Zubrus on Saturday. "That's just one of the disadvantages of being as tall as I am. It just comes with the territory," Myers, who leads Buffalo defensemen with four goals, told reporters Monday before the suspension was announced. "I don't want to change anything just because of that. If things come out of it because of my height then I'll deal with it." Buffalo, trying to win two in a row for just the third time in 2013-14, will also be without defenseman Henrik Tallinder because of an upper-body injury. "Those are two guys that play a lot of minutes so guys are going to have to step up and play those minutes," defenseman Mike Weber told the Sabres' official website. "I think with that, stepping up in the right situation, you're not going to replace a (Myers) with the offensive abilities that he has. Someone's got to step up and just play solid minutes." The Sabres may be able to get by without Meyers and Tallinder against Florida, which is tied for 26th in the NHL with 46 road goals. The Panthers opened a three-game trip Monday with a 2-1 loss to Montreal. Florida managed 11 total shots in the first two periods before putting 16 on net in the third en route to its fifth loss in seven games. "The third period was better from us," left wing Sean Bergenheim, who scored for the sixth time in six games, told the Panthers' official website. "We showed that we have that push. We know that we have that push but we don't want to have to put ourselves in that situation." Colleagues call Sabres GM candidate Murray a hockey man By John Vogl Buffalo News January 8, 2014 When Cory Clouston interviewed to become coach of the Binghamton Senators, he knew General Manager Tim Murray only in passing. It didn’t take long for Clouston to see how much Murray knew about hockey and its players. “He’s a very, very smart hockey man,” Clouston said by phone Wednesday. “There’s no one I’ve ever met that knows players as well as Tim and can analyze their strengths and weaknesses. He’s very good at projecting players.” The rebuilding Sabres have plenty of young players who need to be analyzed. Murray’s skill at doing it is why he’s favored to become Buffalo’s next general manager. Murray, according to a source, was in town Wednesday night to meet again with the Sabres’ brass. He’s one of two finalists for the vacant GM job, and it’s possible his hiring could come before the Sabres host Florida tonight in First Niagara Center. Managing a team is the next logical step for Murray, who’s been in the NHL since joining Detroit as a scout in 1993. He went to Florida in 1994 and ascended to director of amateur scouting before being hired as director of player personnel for Anaheim in 2002. His three-year stay with the Ducks included a Stanley Cup finals appearance. Murray served as the assistant director of player personnel for the New York Rangers for two seasons. He joined Ottawa in 2007, serving as assistant general manager for the NHL club and GM of its minor-league affiliate. One of Murray’s first acts was to hire Clouston, who spent two seasons as Binghamton’s coach and another three as the bench boss in Ottawa. “Tim, from the management side of it, worked his way up,” said Clouston, who coaches Prince Albert of the Western Hockey League. “He knows that game very well. The fact that he has paid his dues and he has worked in many different areas is going to bode very well for his success.” The 50-year-old Murray helped Ottawa reach the playoffs in four of his first six seasons, and the Senators are in the postseason race this year. Binghamton was champion of the American Hockey League in 2011 and leads its division this year. “He treated me with a lot of class,” said Don Nachbaur, who coached one season in Binghamton and is now with Spokane of the WHL. “Highly organized, really understood the players. You couldn’t bring up the name of a player, whether it was in the American League or the National Hockey League, that Tim didn’t have a book on. I think he’s a tremendous judge of talent, and that goes back to his scouting days.” Praise for Murray’s evaluating skills has been universal. The Sabres are rebuilding through the draft, so getting picks right is crucial. Players drafted under Murray’s watch include All-Star defenseman Erik Karlsson and Ottawa regulars Mika Zibanejad, Zack Smith and Robin Lehner. More importantly for Sabres fans, Murray and the Senators haven’t been wed to their youngsters. Ottawa sent Stefan Noesen, a first-round pick in 2011, and Jakob Silfverberg, a second-round selection in 2009, to Anaheim as part of a deal for high-scoring forward Bobby Ryan. Darcy Regier’s hesitance to move the players he drafted helped contribute to his downfall and November firing as Buffalo’s general manager. Murray has spent much of his career alongside his uncle, Bryan, who is Ottawa’s GM. They also worked together in Detroit, Florida and Anaheim. “Bryan is such a hockey guy that’s been all around it, and now Tim has been around Bryan for so many years,” Kurt Kleinendorst, who coached Binghamton to its 2011 Calder Cup, said by phone. “If he gets this opportunity, he’ll do a nice job because he’s a hockey guy.” The Murrays are from Shawville, Quebec, an English-speaking town in the French province. Tim is known as an edgy guy who isn’t afraid to challenge the opinions of others. “He’ll smile a little bit. He’ll be grumpy often,” said Kleinendorst, coach of the Minnesota Wild’s AHL affiliate in Iowa. “He’s a very quiet person, but then again he can be very intense.” Folks in Buffalo could soon see for themselves. It’s all about trust for LaFontaine By Bucky Gleason Buffalo News January 8, 2014 The word on the street in recent days suggested Tim Murray was making his way to Buffalo to become general manager of the Sabres. It was certainly plausible with rumors flying, anticipation growing over a possible announcement and Pat LaFontaine holed up in meetings for two days. LaFontaine has been looking for a GM for nearly two months since he arrived with Ted Nolan with the idea they could bring the organization back from the dead. They’re older and wiser men now than they were 16 years ago, but age and time has not changed the principles of either man. Nolan, for example, still believes in instilling confidence and getting more from his players through a stronger work ethic over Xs and Os. For all the qualities people see from a mile away in LaFontaine – his infectious personality, selfless attitude and charm – he has an insatiable need to trust people around him. LaFontaine has been that way for decades. He talked incessantly about the importance of trust during his Hall of Fame career. His trust in Alexander Mogilny was vital to their magical 1992-93 season. A lack of trust between him and the Sabres led to his departure four years later. He left the Islanders in 2006 as an adviser because trust broke down. He used the word “trust” dozens of times in interviews after taking over as Sabres president of hockey operations.