Lightning's NHL draft strategy leaked on Twitter by Sabres fan

A sneaky Buffalo Sabres fan got his/her hands on a piece of Tampa Bay’s draft playbook Thursday afternoon and the slick Twitter user decided to put images of the Lightning’s purloined trade strategy online.

The piece of computer paper, titled “Trade Ideas - 2016”, lists potential Lightning trading partners based on draft picks.

The user said that his friend found the paper in a hotel lobby. The conversation between the two was later obtained by @TheDailyHockey twitter account and posted again.

I wonder what Tampa Bay is going to do? pic.twitter.com/kDi2bogrpM

— The Daily Hockey (@TheDailyHockey_) June 24, 2016

No players are listed on the posts — only picks. But it listed past trades involving the franchise’s draft picks, and teams’ tendencies when it comes to trading up and down in the draft.

The original tweet was taken down but not before a screen-shot of it was posted by @kikkerlaika, who sent it to her almost-2,000 followers and turned the incident into a sort of Draftgate.

“We’d like to ask you to please take the tweets down and ask that your friend not share it either,” the Lightning pleaded via Twitter after the images were posted.

The leaker had a snarky suggestion in his reply.

“Sure as long as (Lightning star Steven) Stamkos signs with the Sabres.”

Stamkos is expected to become one of the most coveted free agents in league when he hits the market on July 1. Buffalo is one of the front-runners to land the former 60-goal scorer and have the salary cap to do it.

Whether or not the Lightning ended up sticking to their script is unknown but the team did take Brett Howden, a center out of Manitoba, with the 27th pick.

Sabres fans take being '7th Player' to another level (VIDEO)

They might not actually know the pain of an NHL cross-check, but a couple of of Buffalo Sabres fans looked like they were part of the team when turned their seats along the Bell Centre glass into their own extension of the hockey bench.

The two Sabres "players" sat there in full team regalia — home white jerseys with white helmets complete with all the appropriate decals —  and even had their own towels and water bottles as props.

And if you didn't know the creative pair was sitting on the wrong side of the glass, the imposters' mannerisms and anxious looks at the coach and scoreboard — not to mention the scraggy facial hair — would have you think they were really part of the team.

But maybe those funny looks and head shakes from the real players is what gave them away.

Rex Ryan attends Sabres game alongside former Jets assistants (PHOTO)

Rex Ryan, the Buffalo Bills' new coach, attended Tuesday night's Red Wings-Sabres game at First Niagara Center, alongside four Jets assistant coaches who are likely to join him with the Bills.

There's secondary coach Tim McDonald, defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman, linebackers coach Bobby April III and offensive assistant Tony Sparano Jr., the son of former Jets offensive coordinator Tony Sparano all taking in the game from a luxury suite.

Bills coach Rex Ryan watches the 3rd period of the Sabres & Wings game from a suite. @TheBuffaloNews @BNHarrington pic.twitter.com/cwjVfcGG7m
— Harry Scull Jr (@hsjrphoto) January 14, 2015

You can bet the Bills' owner, Terry Pegula, who also owns the Sabres, hooked old Rex up with those fancy seats. And the Sabres gear was nice welcoming gift. Too bad it won't make up for this nasty-looking pizza the team greeted Ryan with.

We'll have one cheese pizza with extra Rex, please. #WelcomeRex Huge thanks to our friends at La Nova! pic.twitter.com/K1XAdEVZ6Q
— Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) January 13, 2015

It's hard to know probably upset Rex more, the Sabres losing to the Red Wings 3-1 or that disgusting pizza covered with frosting.

But, before the lap-band surgery, I would bet on the food.

Sabres' Patrick Kaleta punches own face during fight (VIDEO)

Buffalo Sabres right winger Patrick Kaleta got into a punching match with Ottawa Senators defenseman Jared Cowen. In the heat of the Monday night tussle, it looks like Kaleta gave himself a left cross to his own face before landing one on Cowen.

Sometimes you just gotta hit something.

 [CBSSports.com]

Sabres' Tyler Ennis looking at suspension for tapping ref with stick (VIDEO)

The final buzzer had already sounded when Buffalo Sabres forward Tyler Ennis gave an innocuous tap with his stick towards linesman Derek Nansen Friday night. The move ended up getting Ennis a game misconduct.

It's kind of bizarre getting the penalty considering that there was already no time remaining on the clock after the Sabres 3-2 loss to the Oilers.

The tap did appear to be on purpose and maybe of the mocking kind but there didn't seem to be anything leading up to the poke. Whether or not the two shared some words probably won't be known until the NHL investigates — since Ennis could be looking at a suspension for abuse of officials — if that is the case, according to CBS Sports.

Nansen, a 12-year veteran, looked like he got hit on his hand, which may not have been Ennis' intent, but probably hurt. No matter how hard it was, it rose to the level of a game misconduct. If the referees deemed it an abuse of officials misconduct, they would have to submit a report to the NHL detailing the incident and decide the category of the offense. 

Ennis could be looking at a suspension of three games or more here as the league probably won't allow physical contact with a referee go without at least some form of punishment. It will be interesting to see what kind of decision gets made, but a lot of that depends on what kind of report the referees filed Friday night.

Monica Seles set to marry 72-year-old boyfriend: Report

It’s 72-Love for tennis hall of famer Monica Seles and Paychex payroll founder Tom Golisano.

The 72-year-old Golisano announced he and 40-year-old Seles were getting married during an appearance at an upstate high school Thursday, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. The billionaire and former tennis prodigy have been dating since 2009.

Golisano retired from Paychex in 2004 and has dedicated his time since then to philanthropy through the Golisano Foundation. He has also been active in state politics and owned the Buffalo Sabres for several years. Golisano has also thrown his hat into the ring as a buyer of the Buffalo Bills.

Seles played professional tennis from 1989 to 2003. In 1990, at age 16, she became the youngest French Open champion ever. From 1990 to 1993, she won eight Grand Slam titles and was consistently ranked No. 1 in the world.

In 1993, she was stabbed in an on-court attack and didn't play for two years.

Both Seles and Golisano now live in Florida.

Justin Johnson wins 'David & Goliath' match-up against John Scott (VIDEO)

Not even three minutes into the Islanders-Sabres game Sunday, Justin Johnson took on the hockey giant John Scott. It appeared to be a mismatch — as Johnson's listed at 6-foot-1, and Scott's listed at 6-foot-8 — unless you know what a tough guy Johnson really is.

Johnson, a 32-year-old rookie playing only the second NHL game of his career, just might have had something to prove. And, judging from the warmups, this bout (described as a "David & Goliath" by the announcer) was in the cards.

Johnson finally flattened his opponent with a hard left to Scott's chin— and because the Islander can take a punch. 

Sabres' Ehrhoff tweets photos of his ear after a puck splits it open (GRAPHIC PHOTO)

Christian Ehrhoff of the Buffalo Sabres tweeted three images showing his ear after a puck sliced it open during Sunday night's game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

The 31-year-old German-born Ehrhoff (pronounced ear off?) needed 40 stitches to repair his butchered ear and proudly shared the before, during and after images with his 28,000 Twitter followers.

"WARNING, graphic images! #pucktoear #about40stitches #toughdayattheoffice #greatjobdoc," he wrote above the pictures.

WARNING, graphic images! #pucktoear #about40stitches #toughdayattheoffice #greatjobdoc pic.twitter.com/lnroJFY8EG
— Christian Ehrhoff (@TheRealHoff10) April 7, 2014

Buffalo lost again, 5-2, and the injury must be better than the ear-splitting boos of Sabres fans this season.

Buffalo Sabres broadcaster forced to call game from the bench (VIDEO)

Legendary Rick Jeanneret has been calling play-by-play for the Buffalo Sabres for over 40 years, but never has he been on top of the action like he was Tuesday night.

The 71-year-old broadcaster called Buffalo's 3-2 shootout win over the Kings from between the benches, a move that was made necessary due to a faulty elevator at First Niagara Center.

"This all started out as a lark,” Jeanneret said during the MSG broadcast. “The elevator that services the press box was broken down when I arrived at the building this afternoon, around 2:30. So I said, ‘Well OK, we’ll just do it between the benches with Rob Ray.’ At the moment that I said it, I was kidding. Well, not anymore.”

See, this is really happening. RT @dan_dunleavy #RJ between the benches @BuffaloSabres vs Kings. pic.twitter.com/1TagQg1dXa
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) November 13, 2013

So Jeanneret took his microphone, donned a helmet — with a facemask and marked "RJ" by the equipment staff — and stood next to his broadcast partner and did what he's does best.

Buffalo Sabres end practice with on-ice dance-off (VIDEO)

No, that's not a clip from a Will Ferrell movie in the Instagram you see below.

It's the Buffalo Sabres — who haven't exactly been rocking the ice with a 1-7-1 record this season. But it's a young team, with a lot of rookies and perhaps too much youthful exuberance to spare.

Here are the Sabres players showing some nifty moves in an on-ice dance off after Friday morning's practice.

It's not Blades of Glory. But I see some familiar moves from Risky Business, Electric Boogaloo, Pulp Fiction and even a little Slapshot.

Tortorella calls Kaleta's hit from behind on Richards 'disgusting'

Patrick Kaleta's hit from behind on Brad Richards is sure to draw some attention from NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan this week but, as the New York Rangers forward lay still on the ice, Richards' team and head coach took notice and responded.

After Richards was crashed into the boards by the Buffalo Sabres forward with his stick at 3:28 of the third period, the Rangers scored twice on the ensuing five-minute power play before winning the game 3-2 in a shootout.

Rangers coach John Tortorella was aware that Kaleta's cheap shot changed the complexion of the game but had some stern words for Kaleta after the culprit was tossed.

"I'm glad we made them pay," Tortorella told reporters after the game. "It's disgusting. It's a lack of respect. Each team wants to beat the other team, but you have to respect what's going on, on the ice."

Richards went into the boards head first and was on the ice for a few minutes holding what appeared to be his left shoulder.  He got up on his own power and slowly skated off the ice before returning to help his team score on the power play.

Torts had some more choice words for Kaleta — who was suspended for four games last season for head-butting the Flyers' Jakub Voracek — and his reputation.

"It's probably one of the most dangerous hits I've seen," said the irate coach. " Same guys...it's ridiculous," he said, pausing and trying to compose himself. "That's what I thought."

Richards — who claims he was only catching his breath while he lay on the ice — jumped all over Kaleta's nasty cheap shot after the win.

"That's not a hit ever that was in the game, I don't think," Richards said. "It's a little different than a head shot. That's just stupidity. If we're all going to look at each other's numbers and ram each other from behind head first into the boards, it's going to be a tough game to play. It's not hockey, I don't know what game he plays. He doesn't play hockey to begin with. It's the same guy all the time.

"At least we got something out of it," Richards said of the Rangers' rally.

Islanders TV Slug-Fest Cancelled: Fans Could Have Gone To Mets Hug-Fest Instead

Pressure from the NHL and a backlash from "purist" hockey fans has caused the MSG Network to scrap plans for the rebroadcast of a brawl-filled New York Islanders-Pittsburgh Penguins game at a "viewing party."  The infamous Feb. 11 contest was filled with fight after fight after fight.  Both teams combined for 65 penalties, 346 penalty minutes and 10 ejections in the 9-3 Isles victory.

Critics claimed this particular game shed a bad light on the sport.

Is it so bad that a hockey game actually had 12 goals, had more punches than a Wladimir Klitschko heavyweight fight and filled a normally boring arena with excitement?  The NHL thought so.  Anyway, here's a sample of what fans will be missing.

The Islanders/Penguins cage-match had 15 fighting majors and 20 misconducts.  It set records for both teams for most combined penalty minutes and almost left both teams with barely enough players to finish the game.

The NHL suspended Islanders Trevor Gillies for nine games, Mark Martin for four and handed the club a whopping $100,000 fine.

It's not every night-- actually it's not any night-- the Islanders can fill an arena-- never mind a bar.  The last time the team won a championship "Tron" was boring people at the theaters-- the original  Tron.

Tonight's viewing party is at a Champions in Long Island and was part of an eight-game series to promote the team and relive last season's few highlights.  MSG-Plus will now air a rebroadcast of an Islanders game against the Buffalo Sabres.  You remember that game...yawn.

It's just foreplay before the team joins the Nets at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn in a couple of years anyway.

Tonight, if fans wanted less thugs and more hugs, they could have headed over to Citi Field instead.

The first 100 fans who arrive at Friday's Mets game against the Milwaukee Brewers get free admission, if they take part in celebrity Nick Cannon's "Hug It Out," in an attempt to set a Guinness world record for most hugs in an hour.  I guess Johan Santana was considered too brittle.

Cannon, singer Mariah Carey's husband, should get home more often.  How else can you explain why the host of America's Got Talent and a NYC morning radio show would want to touch over 1,800 desperate Mets fans.  He'll be covered in tears.

So head out to Citi Field and hug the new Ryan  Seacrest and get a free T-shirt to prove it.