Man did he look good tonight. I thought he had played pretty well before the game tonight, and I was optimistic that with some time, he'd be able to adjust and start performing.

If tonight is a sign of things to come for the kid, we're extremely fortunate.

Lets hope he can keep this level of play up.

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Wheelhouse

hopefully he won't choose now to hold out...

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"Call a cop he robbed Delmore blind!!!"
Rick Jeanerette after Marty Biron's diving save back in 2000.

"I'm going to go to the spa and have a hot tub and massage and relax," Miller said. "That's it, and it's back to work tomorrow." Ryan Miller after clinching the North East division.

Best part about Mancari tonight? Instant chemistry with Roy and Vanek that Stafford never seemed to develop.

Let's see if he can hold this pace and steal a roster spot.

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mechaphil

it was one game. his history has not proved that he's anything special. one night, if he can put a few games together then i think we can all go banana's.

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"Tis The Season, Fa la la la la LaFontaine" - Rick Jeanneret

Just commenting on how well he played tonight, and how I hope he can continue it.

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Wheelhouse

just don't want people to get too overly excited. i know some buffalo fans grab at straws, this town is up and down with their teams sometimes. especially with the state of the politics, and economy. it's nice to have an escape, but to fall out of reality is somewhere no one wants to go.

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"Tis The Season, Fa la la la la LaFontaine" - Rick Jeanneret

We have to keep that Mancari-Roy-Vanek line together. They looked great together.

Dallas has been struggling, so tonight's offensive showing is not worth a whole lot more than a confidence builder. I do still think Mancari can produce, and he doesn't actually have to be all that special to push Stafford out of the way.

It would do Stafford some good to have competition and possibly sit out after he gets healthy. I expect Stafford to miss a about 5-8 more games, and if (if) Mancari does well, I see the lines as...

Hecht - Connolly - Pominville
Vanek - Roy - Mancari
Torres - Kennedy - Grier
Mair - Gaustad - Kaleta
Ellis - Stafford

Going into the playoffs I'll be worried about Kennedy. He might have to sit and move Gaustad up to 3rd line, while moving Mair to 4th line C and Ellis to 4th line LW. If Mancari isn't working then Stafford will have to step up, or vice versa.

He is trying the hardest he can right now.. To me, it's only downhill from here from him..

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Miller, Myers and Greir are sick, but not Jesus Christ..

KILL OTTAWA

I like the look of the VROOOOOM line .... Vanek- Roy - Mancari looked good... that line looked impressive tonight... I hope they can string a few games together... then what do you do with Stafford?

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Stafford can sit...no problem there.

I forgot to add about Mancari's great stick check when Ott had a great chance circling in front of Miller in the 2nd period. That saved a goal. He was a +3 on the night...not bad. Of course it's only one game...against Dallas, so whatever. He's not a bust yet though, and he's got a perfect chance to prove himself while Stafford is out, and maybe longer.

Still beat Turco tonight for 4 goals.

Turco stopped 49 the game before, so it's not like we were going up against a bad goalie at all.

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Not only that, but this was kind of a must win game for Dallas, and they didn't make it easy on Buffalo. I think they just did a lot of things right tonight.

Sometimes, it's not a bad thing to give the team a little bit of credit. It doesn't mean we're all gung-ho about winning the Stanley Cup.

Lighten up.

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Wheelhouse

You have to love how Mancari has looked so far this time around.

It will be interesting to see if his strong play continues and if so how that affects Lindy's decision making with regards to Stafford in the short term and Darcy's approach to Stafford and Mancari this off season.

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Sabres Hockey: Commitment to Mediocrity

My take on Mancari is only for 2 games, the Rangers and Stars, but in both games I've noticed one thing about Mancari. His puck control behind the net and along the boards has me pleasantly surprised. On the Vanek goal especially. He forced the Dallas dman covering Vanek to move towards him while the other dman hadn't taken position yet after Mancari maintained puck control behind the net. If you watch the vidoe, he looked up as he was going behind the net and actually saw Vanek in front. Vanek even pointed to him for the great pass after the goal. That showed me atleast, he is ready and there is going to be chemistry there.

The second improvement I noticed on Mancari was his back checking, it was there and it showed. Only once did I notice him coasting, and even then it was towards the bench for a change. In the Rangers game I noticed the same thing, Mancari skated hard to get back even if it was to cover the point, he read the play and blocked a couple of shots.

Excellent 2 games for this kid and I am optimistic the chemistry on the Vanek-Roy-Mancari line can grow even more if these 3 continue to work hard together. Much promise here, keep it up Mark, and excellent game last night. Oh, and Phil, see, I told you Mancari was going to be Vanek and Roy's love child

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Lord Stanley's Cup is what its all about.
Mr. Pegula, your destiny awaits you sir.

buzzkill...lol

In all seriousness, it wasn't just one game--its been both since he's been up. Yes it is only 2 games but he is clearly a player on a different level than he was any of the other times he's been called up. A lot of people had written Mancari off because he was too lazy and never seemed dedicated enough to take his game to the next level. His current trip to Buffalo is showing he is ready and that's what people are excited about.

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"Every time I think you say the dumbest thing ever...you keep on talkin' " - Hank Hill
"Starting today, the Buffalo Sabres' reason for existence will be to win a Stanley Cup" - Terry Pegula

Sky, that's right, Turco had to face 49 shots against Detroit the game before. What's that tell you? Their defense is playing crappy right now, and it has been for about the last 5-6 games.

PSP..."lighten up"? We've had this discussion before. I'm not puking rainbows, but I'm just fine. I'm here playing up Mancari when 90% of posters here have given up on him (before last night anyway). Five goals is nice, but Myers was a lucky bounce and Roy's an empty netter against a team struggling defensively. That's not a knock, I'm just stating the obvious. If it is nothing more than a confidence builder it's still a good thing, because the fragile mind-sets of some of these players need it. Whatever can get the team going - I don't care. I want them to be playing right, paying attention to detail and sticking with it, when they face tough Eastern teams down the stretch (the last 5 of six on the road).

Myers did what he was supposed to do, and the forwards drove to the net to make sure defensemen were there.

It's not a lucky goal. It's a hockey goal. Traffic and a shot from the point.

You make your own luck. The Sabres earned that win last night, and it was an impressive one, no matter how you swing it.

3 in a row. Lets go for 4.

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Wheelhouse

Lets get one thing straight the guy is pretty decent offensively but how is anyone going to be a factor if he's only up a handful of games. I like Mancari very smart with the puck and has a cannon of a shot. The only thing I see is he needs to hustle more and use that big body of his every game. He can afford to take no games off if he wants to stay with the Sabres. But what I have seen out of him in the last two games is a smart player that can move the puck and set up other players. It's funny but I see no one jumping out at Tim Kennedy that much and he hasn't done shit. Rookies need time to develop and giving a guy less than 10 games ain't cutting it.

I agree