Buffalo Sabres Make A Run At The NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs

Seven games left in the National Hockey League season for the Buffalo Sabres and they have a five point lead on the Carolina Hurricanes for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Carolina also has seven games left. The Hurricanes have a two point lead on the Toronto Maple Leafs and a four point lead on the Atlanta Thrashers. Both Toronto and Atlanta have played one more game than the Hurricanes.

Buffalo is in the position to leapfrog into sixth place in the Eastern Conference as they are only two points behind both the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens. Buffalo has the advantage over both these team, having played one less game that both of those teams.

Last season, the Sabres lost in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs to the Boston Bruins. The two years previous to that, Buffalo did not qualify for the playoffs. This is definitely a team on the rise.

This is Buffalo's 40th year in the NHL, having entered in 1970-71 along with the Vancouver Canucks. Twice in the lifetime of the Sabres, the team has made it to the Stanley Cup finals but have yet to win the Cup. The first loss came in 1974-75 to the Philadelphia Flyers. In 1998-99 led by the goaltending of Dominik Hasek, they lost to the Dallas Stars.

Forks of the Credit Provincial Park

Where is Forks of the Credit Provincial Park? Forks of the Credit is located approximately an hour northwest of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Forks of the Credit is a day-use only Provincial Park with minimal facilities. The park is mainly used for hiking. Located on the Bruce Trail, a popular trail that runs from Niagara-On-The-Lake to Tobermory, the park has a decent number of in-house trails as well.

Forks of the Credit is also the eastern terminus of the Elora-Cataract rail trail which is great for biking. The closest town is Cataract, a small berg with just one restaurant.

The park, of course, is located along the Credit River. One of the main features is an abandoned mill surrounded by a series of waterfalls. A train track runs along side the river and is home to a tourist train based in nearby Orangeville.

Forks of the Credit also features the ruins of a farm. Most of the upper section of the park was originally farmland and even includes what is left of an original county road.

Forks of the Credit is located directly on the Niagara Escarpment and therefore is home to some dramatic cliffs. Understand this before you begin a hike of the park - some of the trails included very steep sections.

There are parking facilities available for a fee. The renegade way to get into the park for free is to park on Mississauga Road at the junction of the Elora-Cataract rail trail. Hike the trail about a kilometer east and you will enter the park. DO NOT park at the entrance to Forks of the Credit in the town of Cataract! You will be towed.

The Ontario Hockey League's London Knights

The Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights began life in 1965 as the London Nationals. The team was originally affiliated with the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs.

For the 1968-69 season, the Nationals became the Knights and the colours were changed from blue and white to the current green, gold and white.

The team owns the Ontario Hockey League’s records for both most points in a season, 110 in 2004-05 and the least points in a season, 9 in 1994-95. The 2004-05 season brought the team a Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL’s top regular season team, a Robertson Cup as the OHL’s playoff champion and a Memorial Cup as the CHL’s champion.

The Knights have developed five first overall picks in the NHL Entry Draft. The first was Rick Green in 1976, going to the lowly Washington Capitals. Rob Ramage was the first overall pick in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, going to the Colorado Rockies. Rick Nash went first overall in 2002 to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Patrick Kane first the first overall pick by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2007. John Tavares was the first overall pick in 2009, going to the New York Islanders.

The Knights originally played out of the London Gardens. The Gardens became the London Ice House. In 2002, the team moved into their new digs in downtown London, the John Labatt Centre.

Great ownership in the form of the Hunter Brothers and the high seating capacity John Labatt Centre have combined to provide the brains, connections, skill and money to ensure that the Knights finish near the top of the league annually, despite it being historically a cyclic league.

Other than the great first overall picks mentioned above, other greats have worn the Knights jersey before going on to wonderful NHL careers. Darryl Sittler, Dino Ciccarelli, Brad Marsh, Pat Riggin, Steve Mason, John Erskine, Tom Kostopoulos and Sam Gagner are just some of these players.

The Knights have been to the OHL finals on four occasions, winning the Robertson Cup just once. They lost to the Ottawa 67’s in 1977; They lost to the Belleville Bulls in 1999; They won over Ottawa in 2005; They lost to the Peterborough Petes in 2006.