Briere’s OT winner forces Game 7 in Carolina
Does it seem like 18 years ago that the Buffalo Sabres advanced to within one game of the Stanley Cup Final? After getting past Philadelphia and Ottawa in the first two rounds, the Sabres extended the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes to a seventh and deciding game with a 2-1 overtime victory in Game 6 on a Daniel Briere goal.
Fast forward to this summer, as Lindy Ruff is back behind the Sabres bench, Briere is the GM of the Philadelphia Flyers, Rod Brind'Amour is the head coach of the Canes and Carolina forward Kevyn Adams is the Sabres GM.
From the June 1, 2006 edition of the Hockey News
In a very short time, Buffalo Sabres owner Tom Golisano has turned a floundering embarrassment of a franchise into one of the NHL’s elite contenders.
The Sabres have done an outstanding job of building from within and things came together nicely in 2005-06. Buffalo challenged Ottawa for Northeast Division bragging rights all season and then knocked out their divisional foes in the second round of the playoffs. This right after the Sabres took out the Philadelphia Flyers.
Buffalo’s outstanding run ended in a seven-game classic against Carolina, but not before the hockey world took notice of the team’s excellent depth at forward. Up front, the Sabres are loaded with talent. They have players ready to step into larger roles this season and enough to cover up for the rash of injuries that occur every year – save for on defense.
They now also boast one of the NHL’s best goalies in Ryan Miller. Defensively, the team makes do with an average group of rearguards who thrive under the NHL’s new set of rules catering to speed and puck movement.
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