“We’ll Get ‘Em Next Year”

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I seriously think that the most disappointed I ever was following the end of the season was when I was about 15 or 16.

The Sabres had lost a home playoff game against the Islanders on a Bob Nystrom game in overtime. The Islanders went on to win the cup that year.

Mom had taken me and John to the game - when we returned home, Dad was still awake. He called me in to see how I was doing.

“The Sabres are better!” I said.

“There’s always next year,” Dad said. “The Sabres will win the cup some day.”

Hasn’t happened.

Bills haven’t won either.

Yankees have done it 5 times for me since then…

…so I’m better off than a lot of Buffalo fans…

…but “We’ll get them next year!” Is something I’ll hear a lot this week.

I used to go to Bills games with my buddy Kim Patterson. He would say:

“Watch the lines. Whoever wins the line battle wins the game.”

The Bills were in trouble immediately.

They got pushed all over town. 

Both sides of the ball.

A total beat down, really, and I bust my kids balls about it, but I felt badly for them.

I couldn’t even mention that they would “get them next year.”

I’ll just hang back and let them digest it all.

Might take awhile.

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