They’re claiming it’s a “skin rejuvenation” process…

Here’s the story.

Check out the story:

Ruthless New Mexico Player, Elizabeth Lambert, expresses her anger issues.

I’m all about local sports events, and this is one that’s right up my ally. I’m going through a little bit of football withdrawal, so to fulfill my needs I’m going to check out the 41st Annual New York Rugby Conference Upstate Tournament.

Yup, RUGBY. If you’ve never seen a game of Rugby you really should. Guys AND girls beat the crap out of each other all in the name of scoring a touchdown. It’s like football without all the play calling and organization. LOVE IT.

For info and the schedule, check out:

http://nysrugby.org/default.php

The Buffalo Sabres are now 4 points out of a playoff spot and facing the reality that perhaps they will miss the post season for the 2nd year in a row.

This wasn’t supposed to be the way of things. They are a young team full of skill that has been to the post season before. Granted, some of those players have moved on, but many still remain.

When you really look at what this team is you come to two solutions as to why they are on the outside looking in for a playoff spot: they are either not a young team full of talent and skill, or they are massivley underachienving, which is what I think is the case.

Why though? Why are they udnerachieving?Is it a combination of things? Is it the coach? Is it the GM? The Owner? WHAT IS IT????

The answer: it’s the captain, Craig Rivet. Now Rivet is a solid veteran and a good guy. He speaks well, holds a level of respect with the younger players, and people like him. However, he clearly is not creating an atmosphere in the locker room which holds his teammates accountable. When was the last time someone not named Lindy Ruff called someone out for their mediocre play? You don’t have to give names to call someone out, just creative enough to make that happen. This is what Danny Briere and Chris Drury were amazing at. They not only could rally you behind the scenes and with their play, but they could also call you out without ever saying your name to the media. They knew how to push their team’s buttons and work with Lindy Ruff to put people on edge.

Until the Sabres find someone to truly be the face of this team again, like Drury and Briere were, few things are going to change. So at the end of the day, the fault doesn’t fall at the feet of Captain Craig Rivet, but on Darcy Regier. He has to bring someone in this offseason to become the rallying point of this organization. Someone who identifies Sabres Hockey not just with fans, but with the players.

Right now the identity of this team is not of Craig Rivet or Ryan Miller… it’s of Derek Roy. While Derek performs statistically, I will never forget last year when several people saw him and Jason Pomminville, two of the corner stones of this team, talking about how the season was over with when they still had a shot at making the playoffs. This is the current team identity: a bunch of young guys who had success early and were spoiled by it. They need real leadership to come from their roster, not from Lindy Ruff. Ruff can only do so much to motivate his guys. It’s ultimately their responsibility to hold eachother responsible, and they aren’t doing it.

I know a lot of people probably think this is a BAD idea, but I think the Buffao Bills should try to sign Terrell Owens.

Owens is a head case. He constantly complains about not getting the ball, says whatever he feels like saying, plays a lot of mind games, and is simply a disruption. When the Dallas Cowboys think you’re too much of a handfull then you know you have a problem.

All that being said, I think the Bills should sign him. He does one thing better then pretty much every receiver in the league: gets in the endzone. Right now the Bills are despirately searching for a Wide Reciever to take the heat off of Lee Evans, who faces double teams every time he’s on the field.  There are really only a couple of PROVEN impact receivers avaiable aside from Owens right now, which are Marrvin Harrison and Tory Holt. Harrison is in the twilight of his career.  He may or may not still ahve gas in the tank. Tory Holt is coming off a down season in which he had practically no quality Quarterback all season. I think he still has plenty in the tank, but the only way to get him is by trading for him.

T.O. is coming off a down year, but still got in the endzone 10 times and broke a 1000 yards despite also suffering from QB problems. He’s the only receiver to get over 10 TD’s in each of the last 3 seasons. With one exception (the 2003 season) anytime he has caught at least 65 passes he has gotten in the endzone 10 times or more. By comparison, the Bills’ star receiver Lee Evans has never broken 10TD’s in one season. Provided T.O. stays healthy, you have to figure he’ll still get in the endzone around 10 times and have around 65 catches based on his career stats. That alone gives the Bills reaon totake a seriously look at him.

What of his attitude though? Yes he would probably make enemies here in a hurry by running his mouth. For that reason alone, I say sign him. When was the last time the Bills had a player that not only played at the level of T.O. but also spoke his actual mind? Right now the Bills have a locker room of players playing at a mediocre level. They may or may not be more talented then they have shown thus far, and the only people making those criticisms are people in the media and occasionally Ralph Wilson, both of which are not in the locker room palying the game. This teams needs someone to light a fire under them, and what better then ahving one of their own openly take a shot at them? Dick Jauron won’t light a fire, we kinow that already. Maybe T.O. can wake him up as well.

This team is going no where fast unless they bring in players that can not only  perform but make people accountable.  Owens talk trash, but at least he keeps people thinking… something the Bills seem to never do.

I just want to take a moment to give props to my home town of East Aurora, NY.  They purchased the rink used for the Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium and set it up right in the middle of town, permanently. Now they rent it out for anyone to skate on!!! I was going to have the privilege of playing on it this past Thanksgiving, but I caught the damn flu. FAIL!

East Aurora is one of the USA’s last true towns. Some of the original stores still stand and operate, such as the world famous Vidler’s (CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT).

President Millard Filmore grew up in East Aurora and you can visit his house to this day. Also, it is the home of Fisher Price, which displays giant toys on their front lawn all year. They used to do a massive Toy Fest every year, but for some reason they haven’t been doing it lately… For more info about the town, check out EastAurora.org (CLICK HERE)

In any event, I’m proud to say that East Aurora is now the home of the Winter Classic Ice Rink!!! Check it out by CLICKING HERE!!!

If you have any pictures of your visit to the Winter Classic, be it the game itself or the rink in East Aurora, send them to me!!!  PatTheProducer at rochesterbuzz.com

Picture from the Buffalo News, http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/531876.html

My birthday is December 2nd, and I will be turning the ripe old at of 27. I know, I know… I’m getting old.

This is the first year I will be without my mother, who passed away about a year ago, and as a result I’m kind of bummed. Usually I’d plan a party for myself and then head home for a family gathering. Without mom though, there’s really no family gathering planned. Plus I’m just not motivated to throw something together this year.

I think I just need to do something different for my birthday seeing the usual traditions are, well, over with. Any thoughts?

I’m excited to say that I’m playing an outdoor hockey game for the first time in my life. My home town, East Aurora, NY, purchased the rink used for the winter classic game played at the Ralph this past January and set it up in the middle of town. You can see the rink by CLICKING HERE.

You can actually watch us in real time. I will take the ice this Sunday at 9am. I’m the goalie wearing a BLUE Jersey.

(Photo taken by JAY CAPERS, Democrat and Chronicle photographer)

5-1.

They were 5-1, remember?

The Buffalo Bills were on their way to the playoffs 4 weeks ago, having come off one of the biggest wins in recent history against the Chargers. There’s no way they could slip so badly that they would miss the playoffs, right? I mean, 5-1… a first round bye sounded like a possibility even if we had a little mini implosion.

That was the tone then. This is the tone now… do you hear it? That’s the sound of people leaping off the band wagon.

Four straight losses have the Bills at 5-5 and looking like the same average (at best) football team we’ve seen for years. We all have our theories why this has happened. Where to begin really? They can’t run consistently, Trent Edwards looks more like JP Losman, the offensive line isn’t physical, Marshawn Lyunch seems to aim for guys instead of avoid them, Lee Evans disappears too often, we have no outside pass rush, our linebackers can’t seem to read and attack properly, we have soft pass coverage, and the team itself seems to not have any real panic in them.

All of these problems go back to one main issue the Bills have not been able to come close to solving: coaching. I don’t like Dick Jauron. Not because he’s a bad guy, or shows little emotion, or because he never does anything in interviews that is remotely interesting. I don’t like Dick Jauron because in 8 NFL seasons he has had 1 (one) winning season. 13-3 with the Bears was his best campaign, and he hasn’t come close since. I don’t care what you look like, or what your methods are, or if the players like you. I care about winning, and he simply doesn’t do a lot of it.

The Bills can not get past Marv Levy, who was a similar coach to Jauron in his methods of being laid back, calm, and easy on his players. Remember what would happen then when the Bills needed to rally? You would find Coach Marv, in the middle of a circle, using words to inspire his troops. Marv Levy was a soft coach, but an awe-inspiring speaker who understood what it meant to be a general. What motivating thing has Dick Jauron said since he got here? What kind of phrases has he come up with to establish a team philosophy? We all know Marv’s: “Where else would you rather be, then right here, right now!?” Simple, true, and I always found it to be energizing. So did his players, obviously. I don’t don’t Jauron cares about winning and tries to rally his troops. I think he has a heart and a passion for the game, as well as a mind for it too. The reason he has failed though is simple: he’s boring. So boring, in fact, his team looks bored. He isn’t inspirational, he isn’t interesting; he’s rather a football dude who’s best suited as a coordinator, not a head coach. Levy liked him though because of a few similarities he had with him, so as GM he hired Jauron in an effort to hire himself. He failed in not recognizing the things he didn’t have in common with Jauron, and he failed by not recognizing that a player’s coach was one that inspires his team, not liked by it.

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There were some local sportscasters who said after 2 losses in a row to not hit the panic button too early. After all, at the time they were 5-3 and had a soft part of their schedule coming up. They said that people were foolish to think this talented team couldn’t get back on track. I really do wish that they would have been correct, but I saw this coming and how couldn’t you? They have no push from their Defensive ends, and there is no such thing as a good football team without a respectable defensive end. Aaron Shoebel has been out and wasn’t effective when he was playing. The bottom line is good teams have depth and find ways to adjust, perhaps by using their outside linebackers more in blitz schemes. Aside from Kavika Mitchel, none of our linebackers have been effective at blitzing, filling holes, reading the run or pass protecting. A lot of people ripped Marcus Stroud for our defensive problems early on, but I always thought that was rediculous. He’s a 320 pound boulder. He’s not supposed to jump over 2 offensive linemen and eat the Quarterback. He’s supposed to effectively take up two blockers and cause an immovable pile, which he has done. The problem is that when he does this, Middle Linebacker Paul Posluszny over persuits the play or fails to find the back coming through the hole. In fairness to him, this is really his first actual season after sitting out virtually all of last season with a broken arm. Still, the Bills need Poz to be dominant, and he’s not.

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I still believe in Trent Edwards and honestly blame the coaches for his bad play. He’s only in his 2nd year. I think we all know that switching QB’s at the sign of trouble is a bad idea when you have nothing to replace him with. JP isn’t bad, but he’s not the answer.