You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Teppo Numminen’ category.
Seriously. Maria Genero has totally won my heart over…
…for Henrik Tallinder. (Don’t even get me started on Genero. I’ve said it before, I want her job, and I’d stop at nothing short of lumping her up to get it. That is, if I weren’t afraid of the ensuing arrest.)
Really, though, I’ve always liked Hank and thought he was a decent enough defenseman. And it didn’t hurt that during practices or whatever he always, always is smiling, and you can often her him shouting in celebration or just because they’re having fun. And that’s what I want from the Sabres. I want them to play well, but I want them to have fun.
Everyone knows that when you’re having fun and you’re getting satisfaction from your job or task at hand, than you’ll perform better while doing it. So if the Sabres are having fun, then they’ll most likely be playing a hell of a lot better than we’ve seen out of them this season.
Anyways, I just thought it was adorable during the Sabres Show, when Henrik was talking about sledding with this wife Ann(e) and their children Nathan and Amelie. He smiled and went all cute and sentimental on us when he said he loves to hear the kids giggle.
Come on, now. Big collective AWWW. =]
But that’s only the first part of my conviction.
The rest has to do with the long-term injuries suffered by Teppo Numminen (fractured jaw) and Andrej Sekera (ankle).
I’ve been saying it for weeks: The Sabres somehow needed to devise a defensemen rotation of sorts. Yes, before you even say it, I know it would screw up the pairings and the chemistry, blah blah blah, but we all know that our defense corps tend to break down and fall apart (i.e. every single one gets hurt) from the middle of the season, down through the stretch, and into the playoffs.
(I honestly believe that, had Jay McKee not contracted a ridiculous staph infection in his leg, due to a laceration from his pads, we would have a Stanley Cup banner in the rafters at the HSBC Arena.)
But now Chris Butler is really going to know what it’s like to be a regular NHL player. Teppo Numminen is not going to be there to show him the ropes now, and he’s going to have to step up even more than he has already to carry this team. Yes, I said carry this team. Out of the six defensemen that are going to be dressing now, I believe that Butler is the most consistent and most reliable. At least he has been since he was called up before Christmas.
And Nathan Paetsch?
I’ve been saying all along that Lindy Ruff needs to change the ways he deals with his seventh defenseman and his back-up goalies. If they have one bad game, they never again see playing time. You can’t expect a guy who sits about 10 games or more to come back to the lineup and play better than your starter(s). It just won’t happen. They either have to be played more often, or given a string of two, maybe three, games, depending on who it is (i.e. position).
Lindy did it last year with Thibault, and he’s doing it this year with Lalime.
The sad thing is, this thinking and method has seeped it’s way up to the press box, which has become much like a prison for Paetsch, I’m sure.
No matter how many bag skates this guy does, no matter how many extra minutes he logs with James Patrick, no matter how many times he hits the stationary bikes, he is not going to be used to game-play. It just won’t happen.
I can only hope that Nathan has a good game tonight. Well, actually, whether he does or not is slightly irrelevant, because no one is going to be getting a flight from Portland to Buffalo any time soon. Not a defenseman, at least. Mike Weber has been injured for some time now, and Mike Funk is recuperating in his hometown of Abbotsford, BC while he recovers from his second concussion since training camp of this year. (The first was suffered during camp, I believe the opening day. He returned from that on November 7, 2008, which just so happened to be the night I was there. The second concussion was suffered from a vicious hit from behind into the boards (which I still can’t find video of), mid-December. Funk has only played in 13 of Portland’s 37 games.) Out of the other d-men there, only two have seen any time up in Buffalo (Mike Card and Marc-Andre Gragnani, the latter used to play as a winger).
So like I said, hopefully Paetsch will have been worked in practice hard enough to be near game speed. I really hope he does well, because I’d hate to see him go. And the likely scenario is that he will if he doesn’t play well.
Die By The Blade has already furthered the trade rumor that could be bringing in veteran Mathieu Schneider to bolster the blue line in exchange for the mostly unwanted Maxim Afinogenov.
Could something along these lines happen? It will be interesting to see which rumors turn out to be actual moves once the trade deadline passes. But if this one does go through, the Sabres will be in a rut as far as bodies go. We’ve got too many defensemen, but most of them are very young. I’m anxious to see what Darcy and the management will do, come February and March.
Anyways, Go Sabres! (And Derek? Remember what I said about no friends on the ice. You shouldn’t even be friends with Greg Campbell off the ice, so definitely no niceties on the ice.)
Oh, and I just feel the need to tell you that Thomas Vanek giggles like a girl, and he and Drew Stafford stuck Butler with the bill at Chef’s on Saturday. He laughed it off when asked about it, but still. Way to treat the rookies like that.
Okay, so I began writing this entry Friday morning. Some time management, eh? Well, I’ll tell you, though… I was in the middle of writing Friday when Kim called me up and asked if I wanted to go to the mall. DUH. So we went, and then I went to work. Usually I can post at work, but not that night. Whatever. So then I was going to post it yesterday. But, we ended up at the mall, again.
So here I am this afternoon.
Great game last night, right??? Tommy is the equivalent of God in my books right now, and Derek would probably be Jesus. Stafford, Lydman, Gerbe, Miller, and the likes could be apostles, or whatever.
Basically, though, I’m in love. And this week is going to be the best and the worst ever. The Bills are most certainly going to lose today, and tomorrow I’ve got to work, but the first high point comes Tuesday evening with the Derek Roy signing. Wednesday is going to be absolutely brutal, with my last Anatomy lab practical and Nutrition exams for the semester. Yikes. Hopefully the boys will pull off that game against the Devils. Thursday won’t be much better with my actual Anatomy exam. Friday will be awesome though because my dear Jennifer comes home from school in New Mexico (at least I think it’s Friday; she won’t tell Kim or I), and Saturday Karina comes home. I’m working the weekend, which is alright, because Monday the girls and I are going to the Pittsburgh game for my birthday!! Not that you really care, or anything, but I just wanted to share.
So Friday morning I was rummaging around the internet, trying to find something about the Sabres that was obscure enough for me to have fun with.
Do you think I found anything?
No. Not really.
But what I did find, on Facebook, of course, were a bunch of fun pictures. What prompted me to search for pictures, you might (not) ask? Well, I was over at Meet Me At Chef’s, reading Rachel’s post, and saw this wonderful picture of Ryan Miller.
MIND YOU, I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR THIS EXACT PICTURE FOR FOREVER. This was in the First Sunday insert of the TBN a while back. My interest in this picture? RYAN IS IN TIM CONNOLLY’S HOUSE. Yeah, that’s right. He was living with Timmy while his house was being built.
BUT NOTICE TIMMAAAAY’S MARBLE FLOORS. Pretentious, much? Oh, wait… It’s Tim we’re talking about. Of course he’s pretentious. This is the guy that wants to dine with Hugh Hefner and own vineyards. And listen to G-Unit while doing that.
Yikes.
Okay, moving on.
The rest of these beauties were found on Fb or Getty, so I am not responsible for whatever may come from them. =]
Ummm… WHAT??
Jaro, I love you, but are you trying to get Janice Dickinson to recruit you? I mean, I could totally see you doing a spread for Dolce and Gabbana in the next issue of Elle magazine.
I’m just saying…
And this gem?? Ohhhh man…
Teppo, your wife is a MILF. Most definitely. And you’re little girls? Gorgeous. I want to see your son. They’ll be heartbreakers in 15 years.
But no matter how beautiful your family is, it still doesn’t make this one right:
Okay, well the picture is alright, but it’s the context of the picture, I suppose. So you’re out with Mrs. Teppo, and Dmitri Kalinin, and Maxim Afinogenov. You’re enjoying a few beers. That’s fine. But what’s your entertainment for the night?? JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE. Now I just think that’s adorable.
And while we’re on the topic of gorgeous families and Justin Timberlake…
Jason Pominville’s girlfriend fiancee lady friend is probably the most adorable girl ever, which makes them the world’s most adorable couple. I’m in love with both of them.
Haha, Jason’s Dave and Adam’s commercial just came on. The one with Petey and Nathan… Awww, they’re so cute!
Oh man… I think that’s enough excitement. Plus I have to prepare for the probably terrible hopefully decent Bills game. So… Bye.
A. Blue Jackets at Sabres
Soooo excited about this game. Probably, mostly, because Staffy and Patty K will be back in the lineup, I think, at least. They should be, anyways. Timmykins can sit this one out; we’ll need him more tomorrow. Max will probably sit, as well, because Lindy was no more happy with him than I was with Derek yesterday morning.
And I’m thinking Patty L will get the nod tonight??? That’s just my guess, because I’d rather have Miller in against Pitt.
Needless to say, since I’m going to be at the becking call of the elderly this evening, they’ll be in bed by 7 pm, except for the ones who know anything; they can stay up later and wait for intermission. I’m so nice. They love me though. Especially Mrs. Miller. I really wish she were related…
Oh, and did anyone else see that, since Columbus became a team, we’ve played them 8 times, and have only won twice?! That’s a bit upsetting, since Columbus is probably the next stop on mine and Kim’s Sabres Roadtripping Excursions. Although, that’s going to be next year, so we can bring a whole bunch more people with us, along with Boston, Round Two (btw, the invitation to join us on that one is still open, and always will be).
B. Catwalk For Charity III
Okay, some background information is needed before I address B. But anyways, my friend Michelle, who is six years my senior, but grew up next door to me, so basically she’s the closest thing I have to an older sister, is getting married in June. She and her fiance moved to Phoenix last summer, and last time my girl was up to Buffalo for a visit, we grabbed our usual lunch at Duff’s. She mentioned the date for her bachelorette party. Problem is, as you know, I’m not quite 20 yet, so a party with a minimum age of 21 wouldn’t quite work for me. So, in a couple weeks, when I head up to Toronto for a friend’s birthday party, you might have an idea of what I might be picking up while I’m there.
That being said, the date for THE THIRD CATWALK FOR CHARITY HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED!!!!!!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
MARK IT DOWN, LADIES. (Thank you, Jill!)
Because you know that if I can find someone willing to go and fork over the money (coughcoughNOTkim), you know I’m there. I think it’d be fun to make a blogess-es night out of it, don’t you???
Because we all know that I want to see this:
And you want to see this:
But, who’s that bald guy in the middle?? I don’t believe I’ve ever seen him before…
C. Voting
Um…. HELLLLLLOOOOOO??!!
What the HELL is going on with this voting process? I honestly believe that it’s stacked.
THE GAME IN IN MONTREAL.
IT’S MONTREAL’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY.
THE CANADIENS HAVE 6 PLAYERS ON THE BALLOT (AKA, THAT’S ENOUGH TO FILL A STARTING LINEUP).
AND, AT THE MOMENT, THIS IS HOW WE STAND:
COUGHBULLSHITCOUGH
It’s a conspiracy. Really.
The Sabres, you ask? Where are they currently? Well… Derek and Tommy aren’t on the visible horizon, and I can barely see Tepp in the distance; he’s currently in 9th place with 12,119 votes. Ryan is faring slightly better; he’s in 5th with 13,708.
GO VOTE. NOW. TEPPO FOR PRESIDENT. RYAN FOR VP. DEREK AND TOMMY FOR THE CABINET. Yeah, I know… Whatever.
Alright. I’m done. I’m working all night (literally, all night), so I won’t be posting until tomorrow afternoon, or maybe right before the game, continuing throughout. I haven’t decided. We’ll see how long I stay in bed, since I won’t be getting home until 7:30 tomorrow morning. Yuck. Why do I do this to myself? Oh, yeah… So I can afford more Sabres tickets. It’s a win/lose situation, but I’ll take it.
Enjoy the game, and your Friday night, kiddos. Don’t do anything I would do, and Go Sabres!!
This morning, when I woke up, I expected to be able to vote my lovely Sabres into the All-Star Game.
HOWEVER,
instead of the NHL being normal and putting links or whatever up on nhl.com, the homepage, to allow people to vote, I had to be all sneaky-like and find the address in old articles. I DO NOT HAVE TIME FOR THAT THIS MORNING. Well, obviously I made the time, but at the moment it is 8:05 am and I have to leave no later than 8:45, and as Kim nows, it takes me a ridiculously long time to get ready this early in the morning. I move about as slow as molasses.
So since there is no interesting hockey news, go vote your cute little butts off for Derek, Tommy, Teppo, and Ryan!!
Oh, wait, I lied. BRIERE IS HURT AGAIN!!!! Why am I excited, you might ask? Well, I’m only hoping that his injury lasts him about two weeks, because I’m going to the Sabres/Flyers game next Friday, and I am not the biggest Briere fan.
And there’s a slight possibility I might be going to the Blues game tonight. If not, I’ll probably post during intermissions. If so, then I’ll post when I return home. But PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE let Jay McKee play. It’s not right to deprive Buffalo’s fans of him. We still love him. At least Anne and I do.
Oh, and this is just too funny: AHAHHAHHAHHHA Gloria Gaynor is going to be on the Today Show this morning. Oh, how I wish I could stay home from lab to sing hear her sing “I Will Survive.” Only the best karaoke song… EVER!!
So today as I was driving home from school, I got a speeding ticket, granted I was going 67 in a 55 but still come on after the day that I had?? That was the icing on the cake. First off there was no Sabres game tonight , so sadness with that, they are playing tomorrow however and I am going but I’m going through withdrawl seriously, I’m starting to sweat and feel shaky and that’s not just from being scared crapless of the cop that pulled me over. Why may you ask was my day also horrible? I had 3 hours of sleep last night because my knee, old dancing injury, was aching so bad that 800 milligrams of ibuprofen wasn’t dulling the pain. So not only was I tired and cranky this morning I was also in pain, and the lab quiz that I was studying for last night…yeah didn’t get any studying done this morning at school because I kept falling asleep on the couch in the lounge.
Also, HOT BOY ALERT, there’s this guy in my microbiology lab who looks like he could be the younger brother of Paul, so obviously I spend more time staring at him then concentrating on my work. Hence why today I almost lit my arm hair on fire while trying to sterilize a innoculating loop. Then there was that time today when I ran into a waist high garbage can right in the middle of class, knocking it over, luckily it was empty, but nevertheless still embarassing. He caught my eye as I walked sheepishly back to my work station and smiled almost causing me to drop the test tubes that I was holding, because HOLY CRAP that smile. After the teacher left us to our work, gorgeous comes over to me leans in real close and says, “Just letting you know there’s a garbage can there.” Then he laughs of course I swoon, then we start talking about the labs we were doing what I like to affectionately call ‘nerd flirting’ because that’s essentially what it is, flirting while talking about intelligent stuff. This is all my estrogen talking just FYI.
But anyway, the whole reason for this blog is not to talk about my great nonexistant love life. It’s to talk about the Sabres, but the information is sorely lacking because they haven’t played in 3 days, another reason I’m going through withdrawal, no hockey news, no Sabres game, what’s a girl to do…well maybe I should try finishing my research paper, but where’s the fun in that?
Well there is one pretty ray of new Sabres news on Sabres.com about Teppo and the All-Star game and about how the first time he played in it Steve Yzerman and Wayne Gretzky were the top two centers, so pretty much forever and a half ago was the first time he played in the game. But anyway it sounds like the whole team is pushing for him. The article literally makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside because Teppo seems like such a good guy, and I personally, everytime I go on the internet, am going to vote for him and Ryan, Derek and Tommy and of course every write-in from the Sabres on the ballot, I hope you will all join me and I will leave you with this my fine blogging friends:
Lydman said of Numminen. “I just want to tell everybody to vote for him and get him into that starting lineup.”
So let’s do it for him, let’s give him the recognition he deserves, voting opens tomorrow and I hope you will all take the opportunity to vote often and hopefully we can get him into the starting lineup.
I’ll admit that while I was bubbling over with joy and excitement and anticipation in the moments leading up to 7:30 last night, I was extremely skeptical as well.
Montreal, as a team, scares me. We never seem to beat them when we need to, and there was always the chance of the inevitable overtime and shootout, in which, last season, we never seemed to come out on top. But hey!! I can be wrong sometimes. And I’ll be the first to admit that when it comes to the Sabres. And I could not be happier that I was wrong yesterday.
That being said, this post is by no means whatsoever a serious post about last night’s game. If you want that, read this. This is just my normal ramblings about Sabres life in general, everything I’m used to. Let us begin:
Player Tunes : Jason Pominville
Jason, like Anne said, I’m a bit disappointed that Les Cowboys Fringants didn’t make the cut this time around. And you do seem to have a love affair with Kanye West this fall, but there’s nothing wrong with that. I do, however, have a problem with your lack of Jonas Brothers, because like I said before, I can see you driving around in your Expedition, rocking the aviators, breaking it down to “Burnin’ Up,” and crooning your passengers when “Love Bug” plays. Sad. Overall, good playlist, though.
Dear Tim Connolly,
A hairline fracture? Really? I should’ve known something would keep you out of the game. I should have known. At first, I thought that maybe I jinxed you when I got home and put your jersey on. But then I realized that putting faith in you, and hoping against hope that you’d have a decent, injury-free year is a lot to ask. And Tim, as much as I’ve loved you since the day your curly-haired, polo-shirt-wearing, nervous self had your introductory Sabres press conference with Taylor Pyatt way back in the day, AND THAT’S A LOT, trust me, I just can’t bring myself to get past the idea that you truly are injured. Now, I’m not saying that you’re faking, I just find it a little hard to believe that after a week, you’re not absolutely 100% like you said, but instead, you’re on the shelf, for possibly a week. What gives, Tim? What gives? Please explain this to me, because I’ll be the first to jump back on the Tim Connolly bandwagon. In fact, I’m only one foot off right now, because when I fall for a player, I fall hard. Take that from Brian Holzinger, Jay McKee, Marty Biron, and Brian Campbell, all of whom I still love and hold dear in my heart. So you’ll always be there with them. It’s just a question of how I remember you. So, please, Tim, I’m begging you: Prove me wrong. Love, Cari.
Home is Where Al’s Heart Is
Now, I’m not saying that Al doesn’t love being in Buffalo, because he does. But honestly, how can you not go “awwww” when a grown man, let alone one of Ales Kotalik’s size, stature, and talent, says he gets homesick? That’s just adorable. On the Sabres Show yesterday, Maria Genero did a spot with Al, interviewing him over a game of pool at the Pearl Street Grille and Brewery. He admitted that he fits the European stereotype of liking fashion, and it was made known that he has his own line of hats and headwear. I want to see these hats. He also revealed that his mother is a school teacher, his father is a dentist, and his older brother Adam is a TV analyst (I believe that’s what they said). And while he loves the steakhouses here, but hates eggs. He never eats them in any way, shape, or form. His favorite movie is “Pulp Fiction,” and the person he most wants to meet is Quentin Tarantino. Oh, and Derek was wrong; Al does have a special lady friend. “But she’s not a Buffalo girl; she’s Czech.” They’ve been dating for three years. Cute.
Teppo’s Heart Surgery
I still can honestly say that I think Teppo Numminen is the most adorable and the most awe-worthy guy on the roster whenever I hear him say that he thinks it’s funny that he’s 40 and teams are still calling him. And he always says it with that adorable, sheepish smile he always has on his face. And what makes me like him and Craig even more is what Craig said about him: “Teppo’s my biggest surprise, coming out of camp.” Okay, Craig, I love you too.
Okay, I lied. One thing I have to say about the game last night was in response to Derek’s hooking penalty. Now, Kim and I–I don’t know where we got this, but it’s now our saying–whenever a player we really like gets a hooking penalty, say this, so I have to share it with you. Derek Roy is a hooker, right? Well, he can stand on my corner anytime he wants. =]
And I was in heaven this morning because there were four, COUNT ‘EM: 4, articles about the Sabres in the Buffalo News this morning. I love hockey season! And Bucky Gleason’s article was happy, and cheerful, and positive! What is this world coming to?
More tomorrow.
INTRODUCING THE NEW CAPTAIN OF THE BUFFALO SABRES:
CRAIG RIVET
This is quite the surprising choice, I don’t think anyone expected him, a newcomer, to be named captain. But actually in my opinion I think it is a good choice, he’s got a lot of experience, he’s one of the older guys on the team and he was an alternate captain in San Jose. I know most people will probably be unhappy with the choice and probably would have preferred the captaincy to go to someone who had been with the team longer but hey at least it’s not rotating captaincy. I think I speak for Cari and I that nothing drove us crazier than trying to remember who was captain in a certain month. Read all about Lindy’s choice here.
The alternatives and these come as no surprise are Jochen Hecht, Jaroslav Spacek, Jason Pominville and Teppo Numminen, according to Lindy Ruff two will wear the A’s on the road and two will wear the A’s at home. Sort of like the cocaptaincy with Drury and Briere one was captain at home and one was captain on the road.
I think having one captain is the best for everyone they now can look to one person for guidance and will be able to focus more on the game than worrying about who was going to wear the C the next month. I’m happy for Craig Rivet and I’m sure he will bring some much needed wisdom and experience to a relatively young team.
Well now we can get back to worrying about the season opener which by the way is in approximately 48 HOURS!!!!!
Sabre Chaser 