WINFO Magazine

NHL GAME PICKS AND ANALYSIS
SABRES TWEAKS
PAY DIVIDENDS
Friday, December 16th
NY Islanders at Buffalo
Interesting fact - Theodore Roosevelt
was sworn in as president in
Buffalo, NY back in 1901. That has
to make him one of only two or three
(I can only think of one other) not to
take the oath of office in Washington
D.C. This is apropos to nothing,
just an interesting fact about Buffalo
I stumbled on recently…anyway,
turning our attention to the Buffalo
professional hockey team, they
seem to have a little extra jump after
Coach Bylsma did some tinkering
with the top two lines.
The new combos produced five
goals and eleven points in the first
game out vs. the LA Kings. The
second line of Jack Eichel, Evander
Kane and Kyle Okposo could round
into a dangerous unit if Kane can
start showing up on a consistent basis
(in that Kings win Matt Moulson
recorded a couple of points when he
was slotted in after Bylsma relegated
Kane to a stint on the fourth
line). But there were several shifts
that saw this new line dominate and
be rewarded. And back on defense,
Rasmus Ristolainen just keeps on
impressing.
We like the looks of the new tweaks
and think it will serve the home team
well vs. this Islander team
Take Buffalo
Florida at Colorado
The Avalanche are snuggled in
tightly with that group of teams at the
bottom of the league standings, but
this matchup provides them with a
favorable set-up on home ice.
Colorado lost to another Eastern Conference
opponent on Wednesday, as
the hot Philadelphia Flyers left town
with two points. The Avs played them
tough, but couldn’t get it done. Tonight
they face a struggling Panthers team
they can handle. Colorado doesn’t
have a lot of depth throughout their
lineup, but with Nathan McKinnon
and Matt Duchesne down the middle,
with last change on home ice, this is a
game they can win.
Take the Avalanche
THE BLUE JACKETS HAVEN’T HAD ANY SUCCESS. THEY HAD
NOTHING TO POINT TO PRIOR TO TORTS ARRIVING, SO
WHEN HE STROLLED IN, WITH A STANLEY CUP RING TO
HIS NAME AND TOLD THEM THE WAY IT WAS GOING
TO BE, THEY ALL JUMPED ON BOARD.
15