Author: bluedevil

After 5,692 days as head coach, the Buffalo Sabres have fired Lindy Ruff.The Sabres announced the news on Twitter.The Sabres have made no announcement as to who the next head coach will be. Ruff was the longest-tenured coach in the National Hockey League and the second longest-tenured coach in professional sports. He became head coach of the Sabres in 1997. Ruff’s career record as Sabres head coach was 571-432-78 and earned 56% of possible points. In the postseason, Ruff’s Sabres were 57-44. He took the Sabres to one Stanley Cup championship, losing to the Dallas Stars in 6 games. Photo: Joe Cascio

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The term fair-weather fan is typically reserved for those moments when Buffalo sports fans need something to rebut fans of opposing franchises that have more storied championship resumes and over inflated egos that need checking.We have seen it all, every form of record setting failure the sports gods can conjure up, yet we have always endured, until now.Don’t get me wrong, it is much easier to get fired up for a team with a winning record, on a hot streak, playing its best games in front of the faithful folks who spend their hard earned dollars to see a winning…

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After interviewing Ken Whisenhunt, Lovie Smith, Ray Horton and Chip Kelly, the Bills have reportedly hired Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone. This is the first time in franchise history that the Bills have hired a head coach directly from college. Based on press reports, Whisenhunt appeared to be the favorite to land the Bills job. And while fans were clamoring for Chip Kelly (or bust), Marrone was the quiet, intriguing choice that didn’t get a tremendous amount of attention. Marrone took over a struggling Syracuse program that had won just 5 games in the previous two years and proceeded to win 25…

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The first week of October will be a busy one at Lafayette Church.On, October 2, the church will screen, along with organizations, across the nation, in the premier of “The Line” a documentary about life below the poverty line, followed by a simulcast round table discussion with leading scholars, policy advisers, and religious experts.On Friday, October 5, we continue our new “Lunar Cinema” series, screening Silent Films outdoors, with live music. Lunar Cinema II features “The General,” and music from Saxophonist Nelson Rivera. If it rains, the event will move indoors.The next day, Saturday October 6, is our annual blessing of the animals. Bring your pet by at…

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This weekend, Franklin Graham will come to Coca-cola field with a roster of musicians to “Rock the Lakes.” Many of my friends and colleagues are promoting the event and attending. I wish them well, but I will not be there. The first reason I will not attend is the things Mr. Graham has said away from events like this. At the event, Graham will tell people about Jesus, and invite people to consider turning their lives over to him. I’ve got no problem at all with that. In fact, I like it.However, he simultaneously continues to stand by his statement calling Islam…

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In case you haven’t heard, Trader Joe’s is coming to Kenmore in 2013. Or that’s what WKBW claimed earlier today. And then The Buffalo News picked up the story and reported the same thing. But a Trader Joe’s spokesperson told WGRZ that “At this time Kenmore is not in Trader Joe’s two-year plan.” So now every media outlet has reversed course. Trader Joe’s is not coming to Kenmore. But, it appears, Trader Joe’s is coming to Western New York – just not Kenmore. See, this all started with a press release from the Kenmore Village Improvement Society (KVIS). Here’s what KVIS announced: The Kenmore…

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What are the odds the Bills have success this season? Well, the cynical answer is: not very likely at all. It’s been 12 years since the Bills made the playoffs so it’s hard to blame a fan for becoming jaded. But cynicism isn’t the mood of the the Bills fan base right now. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. If you listen to WGR or read the forums, Bills fans are nearly giddy about the upcoming season. Of course, it’s because the Bills actually had a productive off-season. They re-signed Stevie Johnson. They re-signed Fred Jackson. And they signed the biggest free…

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In a delightful example of urban/suburban and even Democrat/Republican cooperation almost tailor-made to say “We are one western New York,” residents of the Potomac 400 Block Club gathered yesterday with some suburban heroes who came to their rescue after their buffalo sculpture and welcome sign was stolen earlier this year.You may recall that back in February, members of the Potomac 400 Block Club discovered that the buffalo sculpture they had installed as a welcome sign to their block off Richmond had been stolen. The block club was unable to recover the sculpture despite media attention and a reward offered by…

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St. Bonaventure played Florida State tough all game. They jumped out to an early lead. They held the lead at halftime. They held the lead until just over 5 minutes left in the game when, after a 16-2 run, Florida State finally found a way to lead. The Bonnies, a #14 seed, were trying to win their first NCAA tournament game since 1970. But it didn’t happen. While trailing by 3 points with 10 seconds left, Da’Quan Cook made a strange – and fateful – decision to drive the lane and take a 2 point shot. It missed. He got the ball…

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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman isn’t very popular in Buffalo. He presided over the “No Goal’ travesty that cost the Sabres a chance at the Stanley Cup. And he wasn’t just the league commissioner when this went down. He was in the building. Bettman was sitting in a box in the former HSBC Arena when Brett Hull scored an overtime goal to win Game 6 – and the Stanley Cup – for the Dallas Stars in the 1999 Finals. Of course, 1999 was the year the NHL routinely called back goals for the newly enforced “skate in the crease” rule. Until the…

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