BUFFALO -- The Buffalo Sabres held an optional skate at the First Niagara Center ice on Sunday morning after arriving in Buffalo just a handful of hours earlier after a road tilt on Long Island.
Robyn Regher and Tyler Myers were among the Buffalo skaters taking part in that skate, and it appears Ryan Miller will get the start in net as Jhonas Enroth was the goaltender on the ice for the morning walk through.
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff was in the middle of controversy in the last meeting with the Bruins in Boston after calling a timeout late in the third period while up by three goals in a contentious game. Brad Marchand called the move to put John Scott on the ice in the final seconds "disrespectful" after the game was over. Scott had already had a one-sided tilt with Shawn Thornton and thrown a few elbows at the heads of Bruins players.
With all that in mind as Buffalo and Boston ready for the divisional rematch on Sunday night, the longtime Sabres coach said he's expecting a response from a proud bunch of Bruins players.
"I think the expectation is that a storm might be coming (with the Bruins) tonight," said Ruff.
That storm might consist of more Bruins-like defense along with the kind of swaggering, physical hockey that the Black and Gold are know for. But Ruff's assumption that the 7-1-1 Bruins will have some sort of response for the upstart Sabres should be completely accurate.
The hard-nosed Regehr looks to be returning to the lineup for the Sabres in Sunday night's collision course with the Bruins, and he similarly expects an unkind game from the Black and Gold after embarrassing them on home ice in Boston.
Boston Bruins
"Being the opponent that it is tonight in Boston I'm sure it's going to be a physical and an emotional game," said Regehr. "I don't think they've played for a number of days with their game postponed, so they were sitting here waiting for us. So we need to make sure that we're ready to play the way we know we can.
"Matching their start will be very important because I'm expecting a very big start from them."
There's little doubt the start, middle and end will all be important to the Bruins entering the Sabres' barn on Sunday night.