NHL
Sabres light lamp in dark Buffalo
by MATT KRUEGER Reporter

Sabres assistant captain Chris Drury scored his first career hat trick Saturday in Buffalo's 7-4 win over the New York Rangers in front of a crowd of 18,690. Photo by Mike Lynaugh

It may be cold down by the ice in HSBC Arena, but at least the lights work and you can get something hot to eat.

And watching the Buffalo Sabres win subdues the frustration of not having heat and electricity at home. That's exactly what a sold-out crowd did Saturday night as the Sabres handed the New York Rangers a 7-4 loss.

As the undefeated Sabres toasted the Rangers and picked up their fifth win of the season, the fans got to put behind them the agony of dealing with failing sump pumps and fallen power lines back at home. It was a few hours of escape that they needed after two days of hardship.

And don't think for a second that didn't rub off on the players on the ice.

"It's huge," said assistant captain Chris Drury, who recorded his first career hat trick in the game. "It's a thrill any night to be playing in front of a packed house, especially on a night when people could easily be tending to other things. It goes a long way. It doesn't go unnoticed by us."

Even before the game started, the crowd got raucous, pounding their feet against the floor and screaming a release of the pent-up frustration that had inhabited them for the past 48 hours. And when the Sabres took the ice, all of the emotion poured out onto the ice. It lifted the players to overcome a 2-0 deficit in the first period and pull off the blowout victory.

"We've always said that our fans are absolutely the best, and tonight proved it," coach Lindy Ruff said. "I looked around, and I don't know if I saw an empty seat. If there was, there weren't many. You go outside and look around and in some places it's absolute devastation. You come to the rink and you see the number of people that showed up, know that there are a good number at home with the garage door open and the generator running, that's a big enough lift for our team."

The crowd may have been a little quiet when the Rangers out-shot the Sabres, 11-1, and took a 2-0 lead with seven minutes to go in the first period. But the fans felt that electricity surge through the stands when winger Ales Kotalik banged in a rebound past goalie Kevin Weekes for Buffalo's first goal with five minutes remaining. Add two more goals by Drury and Daniel Briere and the crowd went absolutely nuts.

By the time Drury picked up his hat trick, Afinogenov scored his second goal of the season and Andrew Peters flattened Colton Orr with two uppercuts, the crowd was going ballistic.

"They came down to celebrate, have some fun and, luckily enough, we put on a good show

and a win for them," defenseman Brian Campbell said. "It's just the character of the people in this city, I think. They battle through anything. It's pretty nice. We didn't know what to expect (Saturday). And then you walk out there and the building is full. They've supported us for a long time and it shows a lot about this city."

There had been a concern that the game would be cancelled, but after Sabres staffers conferred with local officials and the league, the decision to play won out.

"The Rangers got in (Saturday) afternoon and we flew back (Friday) night," Sabres Director of Public Relations Mike Gilbert said. "The arena never lost power, so that wasn't an issue. We had to make sure of the safety of the fans. But once they lifted the driving bans, and it looked like people were able to move around, we just thought a lot of the fans would want to come down here and see a game being played and get out of the house when they don't have any power. There weren't any real logistical problems."

And to thank them for their support, the Sabres dedicated the game to the "toughest fans in the National Hockey League."

e-mail: mkrueger@beenews.com