Ryan Kennedy, a fellow THN staffer and generally good guy, and I make a trip (or two) to Buffalo every year to take in a Sabres game and collect quotes and info for various stories.
During our last trip – as Kennedy detailed in his roundup column – the energy in HSBC Arena, which was so rampant and almost palatable in seasons past and made taking in a Sabres game such a special experience, had dropped like Max Afinogenov’s 2008-09 production.
It wasn’t just a one-game anomaly, either. THN correspondent John Vogl suggested in his Jan. 11 issue team report that a distance has been created between the team and the fans as a result of free agents leaving town coupled with disappointing on-ice results.
“The arena, though near capacity, is often lifeless,” Vogl wrote. “There are just as many doubters as diehards. The Sabres must inspire their fans again.”
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During our last trip – as Kennedy detailed in his roundup column – the energy in HSBC Arena, which was so rampant and almost palatable in seasons past and made taking in a Sabres game such a special experience, had dropped like Max Afinogenov’s 2008-09 production.
It wasn’t just a one-game anomaly, either. THN correspondent John Vogl suggested in his Jan. 11 issue team report that a distance has been created between the team and the fans as a result of free agents leaving town coupled with disappointing on-ice results.
“The arena, though near capacity, is often lifeless,” Vogl wrote. “There are just as many doubters as diehards. The Sabres must inspire their fans again.”
link
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