Sabres vs. Capitals Gameday Preview

Michal Neuvirth will start for in goal the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon against the Buffalo Sabres. Coach Adam Oates confirmed Saturday that Neuvirth will make his third straight start.
It would have been stunning had Braden Holtby gotten the nod, given Neuvirth's brilliant performance in Friday night's overtime loss at the New Jersey Devils. Neuvirth played both sides of the back-to-backs.
"Actually I felt pretty good," Neuvirth said. "I didn't have a lot of work [Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens] in the third period. I didn't skate [Friday] morning and I feel good the whole game."
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John Carlson could again play with John Erskine as the 22-year-old defenseman tries to shake out of a rough stretch. Carlson has been on the ice for the past seven goals against and 12 of 17 that the Caps have allowed.
"He plays a lot of minutes so he’s going to have more goals against," Oates explained. "He plays a lot of vulnerable minutes in terms of PK, etc. and that happens. That number doesn’t bother me at all."
Assistant coach Calle Johansson said last week that Carlson perhaps lacked "focus" because his talent made so much of the game come so easy.
"Maybe it’s a little fatigue sometimes," Oates said. "Maybe it’s just a little bit of the system, a little bit of responsibilities that we ask versus last year. All in all I think he’s playing very great hockey for us."
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It remains to be seen whether defenseman Tom Poti will be back in the lineup against the Sabres. Poti played in each of the first three games after a remarkable comeback from a groin injury and fractured pelvis.
Poti sat out Friday night's game at the Devils, but the 35-year-old said nothing was wrong.
"I'm doing OK," Poti said. "Had a little talk with the guys [Friday] and a little bit of a lot of games in a lot of nights and a little bit of that, a little bit of timing stuff. Nothing too crazy."
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Oates didn't have much of an update Saturday on forward Brooks Laich, who's on the non-roster list with a groin injury.
“He’s here. Just still going through the process of we don’t want to rush him, we don’t want to set him back," Oates said. "He took a day off but he has been skating, very lightly, very gingerly."
There is no timetable for Laich to return to practice, let alone game action.

Sabres-Flyers Gameday Preview

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

After dropping the season opener to the Pittsburgh Penguins at home, the Philadelphia Flyers travel to upstate New York to take on the Buffalo Sabres.
Philadelphia played well in the final two periods of their contest versus Pittsburgh, but a slow start doomed them. An empty net goal finished off Philadelphia, and a 3-1 final started the Flyers season on a sour note. Newly crowned captain Claude Giroux picked up right where he left off in May, and netted his first goal of the season on a beautiful saucer pass from linemate Scott Hartnell. Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov started off his season on a good note, saving 24 of 26 shots in an attempt to prove he deserved the massive contract Philadelphia gave him two summers ago. Despite concerns that his Achilles was not fully healed, Andrej Meszaros played an incredibly solid game, and was second among defenseman in most minutes played. His health, as well as that of fellow blueliner Kimmo Timonen will affect the success of this team.
In hopes of getting their first win, the Flyers travel to Buffalo for their first of six back-to-back games of the season. Unlike most teams, Buffalo’s season opener is on Sunday in a 12:30 matinee on NBC. They’ll look to get off to a hot start at the First Niagara Center, a place they were 21-12-8 at last year.
The Sabres offense is led by Jason Pomenville, who was tops on the team in goals, assists, and points. Steve Ott, acquired in July from the Dallas Stars, provides Buffalo with depth at the center position, as well as a good offensive contributor. And of course, the Sabres have top goalie Ryan Miller between the pipes, who is entering his 10th year with the club. Last year the netminder for the US National team was 31-21-7 with a GAA of 2.54, and posted six shutouts. Philadelphia will certainly have a tough time jump-starting an offense that was 0-5 on the power play versus Pittsburgh, but will look to Giroux to lead the team once again.
Expect another game to come down to the wire tomorrow.

Read more at http://www.rantsports.com/nhl/2013/01/19/buffalo-sabres-philadelphia-flyers-preview/#U5y1CjqZEbOLE2gd.99

Buffalo Bills Hire Doug Marrone "Bills Are A Joke"

Doug Marrone has agreed to leave Syracuse and become the coach of the Buffalo Bills, league sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter on Sunday morning.
Marrone replaces Chan Gailey, who was fired after going 16-32 over three seasons. Marrone has yet to sign a deal.
The Bills also interviewed Oregon's Chip Kelly on Friday and former Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith on Saturday.
Marrone has been credited for turning around the Orange in four seasons. Syracuse rolled to an 8-5 finish by winning six of its last seven games this season, including a 38-14 win over West Virginia in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.

Lovie Smith Interest In Buffalo Bills Coaching Job

Dan Hanzus - Lovie Smith never managed to get the Chicago Bears over the hump in his nine seasons with the team, but it's not often that a coach loses his job following a double-digit win season.

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It stands to reason that Smith's résumé will make him an attractive candidate on the open market.
NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported Monday on NFL Network's "NFL Total Access" that Smith plans to coach in 2013 and is very interested in the Arizona Cardinals and Buffalo Bills' head-coaching vacancies. Both teams have legitimate defensive talent already in place, making them a natural fit for Smith's sensibilities.
It's a match on paper, though it remains to be seen if the teams have a mutual interest