Un4444gettable!

My Saturday Sabres opener on MSG-TV went like this:
THE SABRES HIT A SPEED BUMP WEDNESDAY NIGHT
AS ST LOUIS HIT A HIGH NOTE IN BUFFALO.
(They won 4-3 getting the winner with 58 seconds left)
WITH NOVEMBER NOW IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR...
BUFFALO LOOKS TO GET BACK ABOVE .500 BEFORE HEADING WEST.
TONIGHT...CAROLINA COMES CALLING.
CANES...SABRES...NEXT IN MSG!

Well, the script to Saturday's game couldn't have gone any better as Buffalo had a gre8888t night winning 8-1! It was a balanced attack (our strength) but it was disappointing to see Ryan Miller lose his shutout with 2 minutes remaining. The Sabres will hopefully conquer California this week. Thursday, they play LA and Saturday they find their way to San Jose. Tomorrow night Ryan faces his brother, Drew Miller, and the Anaheim Ducks. #44 is assistant captain Rob Niedermayer. A former #44 with the Vancouver Canucks is now #4 there: Todd Bertuzzi. Another former #44 on Anaheim is their captain, Chris Pronger. He now wears #25. Hockey fans in my neck of the woods like to boo both Bertuzzi and Pronger for acting like butchers on the ice!

The most famous #4 of all-time in the NHL is defenseman Bobby Orr. The Sabres have a recent addition on the blueline who wears #4 too. Nolan Pratt was the Hartford Whalers 4th pick (115th overall) in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. That same year the Whalers drafted Chris Pronger 2nd overall. The General Manager of Hartford then, Brian Burke, is now his boss again in Anaheim. The #1 overall pick in 1993 was Alexandre Daigle of Ottawa. Anaheim grabbed Paul Kariya 4th overall while Florida got Rob Niedermayer 5th overall. Quebec took current Sabre backup goalie, Jocelyn Thibault, 10th overall while the NY Islanders took Todd Bertuzzi in the first round at #23. Boo!

The Hartford Whalers were known for "going green" before it was environmentally friendly. Check out their uniforms here. Finally, two football teams that are lean, mean green machines this year - and both have quarterbacks wearing #4. The 10-2 Green Bay Packers and Brett Favre and the Grey Cup champions here in Canada: the Saskatchewan Roughriders with MVP Kerry Joseph. He actually played a few games on defense as a safety over 4 years for the Seattle Seahawks between
1998-2001. And yes, he was born on the 4th - in October 1973. I know July 4th would have been so cool but...it does get VERY cool in the winter in Saskatchewan. Here is the current forecast. Boo again...or bbbbbrrrrrr....