NHL: Pominville Punch

The Sabres, despite their rash of injuries, continue to win. Call up Jason Pominville has been nothing short of spectacular since joining the Sabres, initially averaging a point a game, while assisting on three game winning goals. Derek Roy has elevated his game to ultimate proportions playing with talented players such as Maxim Afinogenov. Martin Biron recorded 14 straight victories while Dmitri Kalanin unfortunately continues to struggle on the back end and has yet to find his game.

Jason Pominville (Buf), RW

After an impressive stint with the Amerks sprinkled with an unfortunate a slew of injuries, he has finally gotten his chance and has made the most of it as he gained the confidence and trust of Lindy Ruff as was witnessed with him being on the ice in a last minute shift in a tie game .. looked tentative at first but confidence grew with increased shifts .. plays the point on the PP and is very selective with his shot decisions .. elects not to shot it at times when he should .. certainly does not look out of place and can compete at this level however his skating isn't very smooth as he looks a bit awkward .. follows the play and anticipates well, missing a one-timer on a quick release .. makes solid passes in offensive zone .. played with Connolly and Kotalik, it remains to be seen what will happen with his ice time once the Sabres get healthy, however with Dumont and Pyatt out for long periods it is safe to assume he will be a mainstay for a while.

Derek Roy (Buf), C

Emerging as one of Buffalo's top all around forwards as is able to contribute on the score sheet with better line mates and play an efficient two-way game .. integral player who makes an impact every shift .. his blazing speed and timely anticipation skills make him a threat to break up plays and charge full steam into the offensive zone as proven when he broke up a 2-1 and with a quick twist was off the other way creating a scoring chance .. strong work ethic and spirited play makes him a favourite for Lindy Ruff, logging close to 19 minutes in this game (the most for him this season).

Maxim Afinogenov (Buf), RW

Explosive player who has yet to truly live up to his offensive potential .. given his offensive tools and break away speed he should have more than nine goals .. he is a tad inconsistent and tends to hold onto the puck too long, often neglecting to use his teammates as he tries to do it all by himself .. when he gets a full head of steam it is virtually impossible to stop him .. he can stickhandle standing still and usually makes players look foolish if they play the puck against him .. takes lazy penalties if he gets beaten and must be mindful of that .. playing with Vanek and Roy and while the line has created many chances they still have yet to fully understand their potential and truly feed off one another.

Martin Biron (Buf), G

Biron set a new franchise record with 14 straight wins .. he has provided solid goaltending for the most part with the exception of a Washington game in which he surrendered five goals .. he still lets a weak goal in on occasion, as he loses focus and concentration at times .. he is a hybrid goalie .. being 6'2 he has long legs that cover the bottom portion of the net well .. he has a quick glove .. does not prefer to play the puck as his stick handling skills have gotten better however are not his strong suit .. Biron thrived knowing that he was the number one guy and it did wonders for his confidence .. it will be interesting to see what will happens as Miller regains the number one role in Buffalo.

Dmitri Kalanin (Buf), D

After finishing last season on such a high more was expected from him .. he started the season with nagging injuries however his play of late has been questionable at best .. his decision making in the defensive zone leaves much to be desired .. his inability to clear the zone or contain his man often leaves the Sabres scrambling in their zone to recover .. when he is pressured he coughs up the puck and seems to lack strength along the boards to win one-on-one battles .. offensively he averaging half a point a game however he has lost virtually all of his PP time .. hopefully he can pick up his game which would make Buffalo that much more potent on the back end.