The Test

In case you missed it, Tyler Myers was suspended 3 games yesterday for his hit from behind on Scott Gomez.

While much of Sabres Nation is complaining of the continuation of the Wheel of Justice under Brendan Shanahan where similar looking plays get very different punishments, I'm past that. I'm on to wondering what effect the suspension will have as the Sabres enter their last 12 games of the regular season 4 points behind the Washington Capitals for the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Tonight the Sabres host the Colorado Avalanche that are currently in a four-way tie for 8th in the Western Conference with San Jose, Calgary, and LA. Colorado is currently listed in 11th place as they have the fewest games remaining among the four teams.

So, you know that the Avs are viewing this as a "must win" game, just like the Sabres are.

The Test is what will the Sabres' response be to missing Tyler Myers? Will they respond in the lackluster fashion that they did when the injury bug hit earlier in the year? Or, will it be a similar response as Ryan Miller had after his post-trade deadline rant against the deal that sent Paul Gaustad to Nashville?

If this team doesn't respond to the loss of Myers with inspired play and they go into a fetal position and see their chance at making the playoffs fade away, it should be another signal to management that the core of the team needs to be reshaped.

If they view this as just another bump in the road and they push through to make the playoffs, then maybe they'll remain committed to this core.

I can never root against the Sabres winning games and making the playoffs. But, this season has been an unusual one where losing has had the potential of being a cloud with a silver lining.

Two teams to watch out West


San Jose and LA are in a dog fight for a playoff spot. Both teams are deep at the center position. The same can be said of Colorado, as well.

If Calgary is the team that makes the playoffs out of that group, it will be interesting to see what changes the Sharks and Kings, and to a lesser extent the Avalanche, make this off season.

There have been rumors that LA GM Dean Lombardi could be let go if the Kings fail to make the playoffs. If a new GM comes in, you could see major changes on the roster.

The Sharks jettisoned Dany Heatley last summer after flaming out early in the playoffs. Could they move Patrick Marleau or Joe Thornton if they miss the playoffs entirely this year?

Colorado's issues will likely be about the salary cap as they have a ton of free agents this summer with 8 pending RFAs and 6 pending UFAs on their roster. 4th line center Cody McLeod (UFA) is a guy that might interest the Sabres, as would RFA centers Ryan O'Reilly and Matt Duchene. Although, it's doubtful that Darcy Regier would sign either of those two to a RFA Offer Sheet, nor is Colorado likely to shop either guy right now.

But, if players like Erik Johnson and O'Reilly get larger raises than the Avalanche expect, it will be interesting to see if they shop Paul Stastny to save money. There are a lot of questions of how close to the cap the Avs will get next year as they were around $15 million under the cap this year. Nobody seems to know what the Avs budget will be next year. That could really be a game changer.