Dramatic comebacks have been the Sabres signature this season. They have staged last second dramatics too many times to count on both hands all year. Once again, on Saturday night in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Sabres were desperately trying to avoid defeat. With just 5.8 seconds left, Daniel Briere scored to force overtime and raise the roof on HSBC Arena once more time.

Fans couldn’t believe that this could happen on more time. A week earlier, Chris Drury had scored with 7.7 seconds left in Game 5 against the Rangers to force a tie that the Sabres would win in overtime. This time, however, the fate had something different in store for them.

An unlucky bounce on a long shot by Joe Corvo 4:58 into the second overtime got past Sabres goalie Ryan Miller. The puck bounced on the chiseled ice over Miller’s glove and sent the sellout throng that had been electrified all night, home in a state of shock. Suddenly, the Sabres found themselves in a 2-0 hole in the series going back to Ottawa. The goal in the second overtime gave the Sens a 4-3 win and may have been the last straw that broke the Sabres backs this season.

A dirty puck off the slap shot, a drop-shot that catches the edge," Miller described the goal. "It's a terrible way to end a game."

This is a game that could have been much different had the Sabres continued to press after taking a quick 2-0 lead in the first period. Thomas Vanek scored his second goal in two minutes at the 3:41 mark of the first period. Vanek had scored 1:51 into the game and the goal was disallowed after it had been reviewed in Toronto.

The Sabres made it 2-0 when Jochen Hecht scored his 3^rd of the playoffs under 3 minutes after the legit Vanek goal. Then the Sabres sat back and that cost them.

The Sens made it a game again when Daniel Alfredsson scored later on in the first period. In the second period, the Sabres got into penalty trouble and once again couldn’t stop the potent Sens powerplay. Mike Fisher got the game notched at 2 when he scored 6 minutes into the second stanza, and then the refs once again gave the Sens a two man advantage, like they did in Game 1. It’s hard enough to stop the Senators one down, but when it’s a 5-on-3 advantage, it is a sure bet the Sens are going to score. With 16 seconds left in the second period, the Sens scored when Wade Redden got one past Miller.

That’s where the scored stayed until Briere bettered Drury’s last second goal by 1.9 seconds. The crowd was in euphoria and were praising the hockey gods once again for this fantastic finish. Only this time, a cruel fate awaited the Sabres and their fans.

Once again, the Sabres had a goal disallowed that should have counted. Once again, the NHL has decided in an important playoff game that may have been very costly to the Sabres. The Sabres opened the scoring when Vanek took a swing at a rebound in the air. He used his stick to hit the puck, but as luck would have it, it just so happened to graze his glove. The NHL, after ten minutes of overanalyzing the video in Toronto, deemed that Vanek directed the puck into the net with his glove.

If a player just happens to have the puck hit his glove or hit both the glove and stick, and the puck goes into the net, it should be counted as a goal. The glove should be ruled as being a part of the stick. Now if a player takes his hand off the stick and hits it into the net with a deliberate forward motion (like a glove pass), then it should be disallowed. In Vanek's case, the Sabres once again got the bad end of an NHL ruling. It resulted in the Sabres not taking an early 3-0 lead and may have cost them tying the series at one. The NHL has a "no goal" controversy once again!

The Sabres, known for their capacity to make miracle comebacks, may have bitten off more than they can chew. To comeback from being down 2 games to none, it will take a heroic effort. First, they will have to win both games in Ottawa. Even splitting the next two would be a recipe to disaster as they would be down 3-1 coming back to Buffalo. Can it be done?

"We have 24 hours to wrap our heads around it," said Miller. "If they can come in here and steal some games, we're definitely capable of it. Tonight shouldn't leave us feeling too good. We should come out hungry."

Druy, Mr. Clutch, may have to take the team on his back and pull the magic rabbit out of his helmet once again.

"We've been a good road team all year," insisted Drury. "We've always been up for a good challenge. Certainly Game Three is going to be a good challenge for us."

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