1) Faith in ownership, not so much with management/coach
I wrote last year that the circle of excuses were coming to end with the Sabres. If you told me in July of 2011 that the Sabres would keep Ruff/Regier after not qualifying for the playoffs, I'd say you were crazy. Of course, this season represented the ultimate mulligan for the Teflon doms.
Injuries, injuries, injuries.
You couldn't write it any better if you were Larry Quinn. Yes, Mulligan: The Sequel.
Here's the deal. I have a ton of faith in Black/Pegula (unless they start their year-end presser by giving history lessons on injuries and killing the media/fans for negative perception). I didn't think they should have fired Lindy/Darcy when they took over because my hatred towards Golisano made me want to give them a clean slate. I know they want to win and will put their money where their mouth is. I know the Sabres must be in the red for this year with all the money they spent on arena improvements and salaries. They will do everything in their power to provide the tools to win a championship.
The problem is, do we have Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor or Bob Villa using the tools?
If they keep making mistakes, it won't matter how much money T-Pegs gives to them.
