Buffalo Sabres

I introduce myself to the Inside Out family by telling a little story, with visuals.

The Canadiens will play their second pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres Tuesday night at Centre Benoît-Levesque in picturesque Roberval.

Yes, Roberval. The city that won the CBC's Hockeyville contest going away (by a huge margin) gets to host the Habs.

This edition of ALN will be terse and pithy.

What is there to say? Your Montreal Canadiens played pithy ... yeth, they did.

Seeing their heroes for the first time in a week, 21.273 fans filled the expensive seats of the Bell Centre. They drank overpriced beer, gobbled overpriced hot dogs, bought REALLY overpriced souvenirs and yelled themselves hoarse – at least until the third period, when the inevitability of the outcome became obvious and the giant arena turned into a sold-out Urgel Bourgie (although booing is considered bad form at a visitation.)

Joceleyn Thibault – who had spent 18 of the previous games 20 at the end of the Buffalo bench, watching Ryan Miller – made 24 fairly easy saves. I can't remember who was prime minister the last time Thibault posted a shutout.

Here's the game in a shots-on-goal nutshell:

Christopher Higgins: 1

Saku Koivu: 0

Michael Ryder: 0

Jochen Hecht: 7

And what's that noxious pall hanging over Montreal this morning? It
smells like .... last season. People who have respiratory problems or hopes of this team making the playoffs are advised to stay indoors.

On to Toronto, where – should the Canadiens lay another ACC egg – the panic will officially begin.

Jocelyn Thibault returns to blank the Canadiens at the Bell Centre, mqaking 24 saves as the Buffalo Sabres win the two-game, two-night, too-depressing total-goal series 7-2.

"It was a bad effort all around," said Christopher Higgins, reflecting on the 3-0 loss in a subdued Canadiens dressing room. "We made bad decisions, a lot of turnovers, not working the puck deep.

"We were losing a lot of battles."

And the war. Buffalo is still six points behind Canadiens in the Eastern Conference standings, but the Sabres have two games in hand and are showing signs of regaining their 2006-'07 form.

The scary thing is the Canadiens are starting to evoke disquieting memories of last season.

No flu bug, no serious injuries like the one that sidelined Higggins. But there are troubling signs – an impotent power play, futile line juggling – that the team has systemic problems.

"We don't have a 50-goal scorer," Higgins said. "We don't have a Hart or Norris Trophy winner. For us to win we all have to work hard."

Higggins' Long Island pal Mike Komisarek said the Canadiens "can't continue playing like this."

"We have to do something about it. It's the responsibility of each and every one of us – forwards, D, young guys, older guys.

"We have to play smart," Komisarek added. "We have to play with passion and show pride when we go out there."

Canadiens have Sunday off and will return to the practice ice on Monday, preparing for a rare Tuesday date with the Leafs at the Air Canada Centre.

Let's be clear about something on this crisp, sunny Saturday morning in Montreal: the penalty call was brutal, but your Montreal Canadiens did not deserve to win the game.

For the second straight Friday in Buffalo, the home team outhustled and – gasp! – outskated the visitors, with the predictable result that the Sabres bagged two points to continue their climb back into playoff contention.

Once again, the Canadiens gave up the first goal ... and it would have been more were it not for some good Carey Price stops in the first period.

They wasted a four-minute power-play.

Their PK gave up two goals in three Buffalo opportunities.

With the exception of some flurries of activity by Tomas Plekanec's line in the third period, the Canadiens generated no sustained offence.

The NHL does not offer stats on intercepted passes or first-on-the-puck. If it did, the Sabres were in triple figures.

The Ol' EEEEE-mailer, who has never played ice hockey in his long life, offers this one word of advice for tonight's rematch at the Bell Centre: Hit.

The Sabres are one of the few teams in the NHL that are less physically imposing than the Canadiens. It's imperative that the guys in red sweaters lay a bit of smack-down on the visitors tonight to take them off their skating, slick-passing game.

In particular, the Canadiens have to target Brian Campbell. They can't let the Sabres' superb defenceman dance out of his zone and cruise up the ice to QB the offence. Make Campbell and the other Buffalo defencemen work to clear their zone. Puck cough-ups will ensue, as will scoring opportunities.

Intensity and hard-work just might salvage a split of this home-and-home. An effort like last night's will hand the Sabres a sweep.

After Tomas Plekanec scored a spectacular goal to complete the Canadiens comeback from a 2-0 deficit, Mike Komisarek was called for a trip that wasn't.

Thomas Vanek then scored Buffalo's second power-play goal and Daniel Paillé added an empty-netter in a 4-2 win that will stick in Guy Carbonneau's craw for a while ... or at least until Saturday night, when Buffalo is at the Bell Centre.

Wuz we robbed?

Yes ... but the Canadiens played a poor game, on balance, and probably didn't deserve two points.

But one would have been nice. 

The Gazette's Pat Hickey writes that Canadiens rookie goaltender Carey Price will make his eighth start of the season tonight, but it will be his sixth on the road. Price is 4-1 when playing away from the Bell Centre, but he doesn't really care where he plays.

"I treat every game the same way," Price said when asked whether he would rather start on the road or at home. "I've been saying that a lot this year, but it's true. Playing at home is nice, but if the opposition fans are booing me, it doesn't matter."

Head coach Guy Carbonneau says he is impressed by how far Price has come in such a short time.

"I don't see too many flaws in his game," the coach said.

Read Hickey's full article from today's Montreal Gazette here.

The Buffalo Sabres were desperate for a win and played like it.

The Canadiens confronted desperation with disinterest, and the result was a 4-1 pasting.

A forgettable game, best consigned to memory because the Canadiens have to focus on two Bell Centre games, tomorrow night against Boston and a Monday date with the mighty Senators.