Yep, I watched it. It was very enjoyable to see the Leafs lose.

I noticed that Raycroft wasn't bad though. If I remember correctly, two of the goals were Hal Gill's fault because he's a useless pylon out there. Raycroft should have had the fourth goal. It was really a Theodore goal to let in where he went down and they beat him over his shoulder.

Also as a side note, having seen those new Sabres jerseys in a full game now, they're still very ugly!

Leafs drop pre-season opener to Sabres

Canadian Press

9/18/2006 11:24:50 PM

TORONTO (CP) - It was only an exhibition game but, whew, what a terrible way for the Toronto Maple Leafs to return to home ice five months after missing the NHL playoffs.

The Buffalo Sabres, whose 6-0 home win over the Leafs in the second-last game last April mathematically eliminated them, scored all of their goals on power plays to take the pre-season opener for both teams 4-0 on Monday night.

The Sabres finished 20 points ahead of Toronto last season, and first impressions suggest little has changed.

"I'm sure that some of the guys (in camp) who watched this game will  be excited about the opportunity they'll get now," said new head coach Paul Maurice.  

The only job candidate Maurice had on the ice who showed much zip was 18-year-old prospect Jiri Tlusty, who'll probably start his season with either the AHL Marlies or the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.

"No other young players stood out," said Maurice.

One thing surprised him most.

"I thought we were really soft on the puck," he said.

Jiri Novotny, Derek Roy and Daniel Paille scored on power plays in the second period, and Michael Ryan added another power-play goal in the third. Fans booed the Leafs as the Sabres pulled away.

Marty Biron got the shutout. Buffalo outshot Toronto 32-23.

"We really skated well and played the puck well," said Biron. "I didn't have to do a whole lot. There were a few breakdowns, but we recovered."

Daniel Briere sat out the last 30 minutes because of a mild hip flexor.

The Sabres wore new road uniforms - white with dark blue and bright gold trim - that had a stylized bison head and small numbers on the front.

"I like them," said coach Lindy Ruff. "I like them even more when we win."

The Leafs were 0-for-7 and the Sabres were 4-for-11 on power plays.

"It was our first exhibition game with a lot of new faces," Toronto captain Mats Sundin offered in his analysis. "We were squeezing the sticks a little too tight.

"We've still got a lot of work to do, obviously, but we'll be better. Buffalo has a lot of skilled players. There was nothing wrong with the effort but we made a lot of mistakes and took a lot of penalties. It's tough to win hockey games in this league when you play as much short-handed as we did."

Andrew Raycroft, Toronto's new No. 1 goaltender, wasn't to blame for the loss.

"I thought our goaltender was very good," said Maurice.

Ben Ondrus got the best of Chris Thorburn in a second-period fight. Ondrus got into 22 NHL games with the Leafs last season and is determined to show he can make a permanent move from the AHL Marlies by supplying some of the toughness that was lost when Tie Domi was bought out. Ondrus can play, too.

Notes: Raycroft is the first regular in the blue and white to wear No. 1 since Damian Rhodes 10 years ago. ...  Sabres defenceman Dmitri Kalinin was cut around the left eye by the stick blade of teammate Toni Lydman early in the game and returned after getting stitched. ... Ticket sales totalled 18,851 for the Leafs' first Air Canada Centre appearance since April 18. ... Maurice hadn't coached in an NHL game since being fired by the Carolina Hurricanes in December 2003. .. . Toronto begins the regular season at home Oct. 4 against Ottawa. ... The first regular-season Toronto-Buffalo game is Nov. 4 in Buffalo. The Sabres won the season series 5-2-1 last season.

-- Edited by MC Girl at 23:54, 2006-09-18