It's very clear that the Sabres have been in a serious slump as of late, a quick glance at the standings can tell you that much. Last night's game ultimately epitomized why the slump is happening though. Buffalo came out and showed a much better effort in the first 15 minutes than they have displayed in most any game as of late, but it didn't last much beyond that. After generally outskating the Hurricanes and moving the puck well in the early going, Buffalo had a 2-0 lead to show for it after Jochen Hecht scored at 14:01 in the 1st period. I was quite pleased as the team seemed determined to bust their slump before they hit the Olympic Break this weekend. Even after Carolina scored a power play goal a little over 2 minutes later, I was still alright. Then they took a third straight penalty with under 13 seconds left in the period as Toni Lydman was called for high sticking. As soon as the penalty was called, that feeling came creeping into my stomach. I said to myself, 13 seconds left in a period where we were up 2-0 and now we're shorthanded... If they give up a goal before the period ends, it's going to be disastrous. As I said that, I fully expected it to happen too. Sure enough, Ray Whitney snuck one in the back of the net with .1 second left on the clock.

It took the wind right out of the sails of all the Sabres fans who were sitting near me, and clearly it did the same to the team for the majority of what was left in the game. The effort in the 2nd period and the first half of the 3rd was nothing short of pathetic as the Hurricanes, who despite playing much better as of late remain one of the worst teams in the East, skated circles around Buffalo and actually showed some heart and determination in the process. Two things the majority of the Sabres roster wouldn't understand at all lately. The only defenseman that even looked competent for Buffalo all night long were Henrik Tallinder and Tyler Myers. In fact, Myers at several points looked like he was specifically trying to take charge of things on the ice and make something happen. It's incredibly sad when a 20 year old kid is trying harder than anybody else to be a leader on the team. Lydman made several mistakes throughout the course of the game including several key turnovers. He wasn't even the worst offender in my view though. The two veterans of the group, the guys that were supposed to bring the grit and toughness to the team, Craig Rivet and Steve Montador, were flat out terrible all night long. Rivet is the captain of the team, but you'd be puzzled trying to figure out why by watching him on the ice. He gives little effort and seems lost half the time anymore. Montador is basically a mirror image at this point, except he directly gave away the game in overtime.

Derek Roy managed to tie up the game mid way through the 3rd after the Sabres finally seemed to have a little spark and started putting in some effort. They forced the game to overtime and secured the team at least a point, which I'm somehow happy about simply because of how awful they actually were. In overtime though, Montador managed to skate behind his own net with the puck and promptly tripped over his own feet and gave it away. A quick pass and shot later, and Sergei Samsonov had scored the game winner. Again, I'm actually happy that we got a point out of this game, because quite honestly it wasn't at all deserved.

It's not just the defense that is the problem though. Despite what had been a very good record and a spot near the top of the East for most of the season, the offense has been lacking on this team all year. It's not a secret, it was just something the team was able to overcome through solid defending and stellar goaltending from Ryan Miller. With the defense faltering and Miller having too much asked of him though, the lack of scoring becomes a much more glaring issue. The guy that needs to be picked on in particular is Thomas Vanek. Vanek is making a great deal of money to be the team's top offensive player and his numbers don't match the paycheck at this point. Understandably, he can't do it alone, but last night's game is a classic example of him becoming completely invisible at times. In fact, the only combination that impressed me much at all last night was the line of Grier, Gaustad, and Ellis in the 3rd period. Every time they came on to the ice you could see the intensity pick up and momentum move towards the Sabres end of the ice. They are the only line that hit anybody at all throughout the game.

I'll give Derek Roy's line some credit as well, as they did produce 2 goals, but they were amongst those that vanished in the 2nd period. Overall, the team should be embarrassed by what they're doing on the ice right now though. The passing was sloppy almost all night long and the hitting was just non-existent. Faceoffs are another huge area of concern as Buffalo won just 21 of 60 on the night. Granted Rob Brind'Amour is one of the best in the league on the draw and went 10/11, but every single player for the Sabres that took a faceoff was under 50% on the night, including a stellar performance from Tim Kennedy who went 1 for 10. Sloppy play galore was the theme of the night and was probably never more obvious than when the Sabres got caught making a line change and gave up a 3 on 0 break. Luckily, Miller was able to shut it down, but he should have never been put in that position at all. In fact, Miller seems to have finally been pushed to the edge and his post game statements reflect as much.

It's great that Miller is saying these things, only because it's the first sign of anybody in the organization admitting publicly that there is a definite problem. All reports I've seen indicate that the front office is content with their roster and thinks they have everything they need already to be a contender. Going so far as to say that unless a perfect deal comes along, they expect to stand pat and not make any moves. This seems to be the theme every year near the deadline and it's yet to pay off. The only thing the Sabres have done in recent memory is some very minor deals to pick up a player that doesn't end up contributing much along the way. At the very least, a legit backup goalie needs to be brought in. Miller has played in 50 of 58 games so far this year and is about to take on the task of being the starting keeper for Team USA in the Olympics. He's going to need rest down the stretch if he is going to be playing in top form come playoff time. Quite honestly, the only way this team goes anywhere once the playoffs start is if Miller is playing out of his mind, and that's not going to happen if he's dead tired. It wouldn't hurt to bring in somebody that can actually put the puck in the net as well, because that is yet another glaring issue.

Sabres GM Darcy Regier has a reputation of falling in love with his own players far too often and it's hindering the Sabres yet again this season. He thinks the talent is already here to get the job done, and it seems to create a sense of complacency amongst the roster. That's the only excuse I can think of for watching the team fall into another late season slump and showing such little effort after looking so good early on. If nothing else, this team could simply use a shake up to change the chemistry and prove that nobody is untouchable. Other than Miller, Tyler Myers, and maybe Tim Connolly, everybody should be considered tradable on this team. I know it's not always as easy as just saying that, because contracts and what not have to allow for deals to make sense, but theoretically speaking, everybody else should be on notice.

Ultimately, this team needs some sort of change, whether it's a trade or some magical spark igniting during the long layoff for the Olympics, it doesn't matter how it happens to me. It's pretty obvious though that if they continue to play like they have been for the past few weeks, they are going nowhere and fast. This team displayed for better than half the season that they are capable of being a top tier team and making some serious noise in the playoffs, and they better find a way to get back to that point quickly, because as of right now teams such as Washington, Pittsburgh, and Ottawa have no reason to fear us.