Brad Boyes Begins to Feel a Bogus Burn

One playoff loss and folks are already looking for a scapegoat.

Coming soon to the Red Light District of Philadelphia.

Ok, it’s not a lot of us, but there are more than just a few Sabres fans out there tweeting unhappiness online and venting frustration on the radio over the play of Brad Boyes – whether it’s warranted or not.

There’s simply no warrant for a warrant for arrest-and-bench on this guy yet.  But, in order to ease those few tormented souls out there who are beginning to question his place on this team, here’s a quick bullet-point presentation to ease those nerves.

• “Is Boyes this year’s Raffi Torres?” I was taken aback when I saw this online today.  Torres purportedly reported to the Sabres with an undisclosed injury before toppling out of the lineup and finding the bench for the playoffs.  Boyes stepped in and scored 14 points in 21 games, becoming an important part of the strong scoring depth in Buffalo.
• “Boyes is a no-show for these playoffs.”  This is a true attention deficit remark. Sure, Boyes had just over 12 scant minutes of ice time in Game Two. In the same regard, Gerbe had just over 6, Ennis 10, heck, even stalwarts Vanek and Stafford struggled to net over 16 measly minutes.  Why?  The bulk of minutes went to the penalty kill.
• For his time on the ice in Game Two, Boyes had a shot, 2 hits, and was a respectable .400 on the faceoff dot.

It’s a short list, because it’s been a short series.  Instead of spelunking through dozens of articles and message boards to dig up enough random theories about who to start blaming for a tied series, here is a different approach I hope those few that are prepping pitchforks and torches might instead consider:

Some signage suggestions:

Boyes-in-Buries the Puck!   Mmm, boysenberries.

Let’s hear it for the Boyes!  A classic saying.

Yea, Booooooyes!  Wearing a giant clock around your neck is essential with this sign.  A Sabres clock – of course.

Boyes oh Boyes!  Another classic saying.

The Boyes are Back in Town!  Great for our first home game of the series.

A Boyes is: trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.

Ok, that last one, a take on the “Boy Scout Law,” might be a bit long for one sign, but could make for a fun series of signs along a row of seats.

The point is, relax – have fun with this ride.  The Sabres are really pushing the Flyers in one of the most entertaining series of this year’s first round.  And remember – snipers like Boyes are pretty dang important when the other team has questions in net.

One more before we close out this post, for music fans a-ga-ga out there:

That Boyes is a Monster, m-m-m-monster!

Go Sabres.