Detroit - Former MSU goaltender Ryan Miller returned to his home state Thursday night as a member of the Buffalo Sabres. But the homecoming wasn’t the only thing he was smiling about.
Not only did he play the entire third period of a game against the Red Wings - stopping 14 of 15 shots - his Sabres beat the Stanley Cup champions, 4-2, in a preseason game at Joe Louis Arena.
“It was amazing,” Miller said. “I was definitely familiar with the rink, but having (Brett) Hull, (Sergei) Fedorov and those boys shooting at you is a little different.”
Buffalo entered the third period up 2-1, but the Red Wings evened the score just 1:24 into Miller’s tenure in net. Sabre center Curtis Brown sticked down a long shot from the point, but the puck went right to Hull at the side of the crease. From there, Hull easily backhanded a shot under Miller.
“It doesn’t feel as good as I thought it would feel,” Miller said about getting scored on by a future hall of famer. “But it was just a great experience.”
Just two minutes after Hull’s goal, Miller was tested again. But this time, he stopped a 50-foot slap shot from Brendan Shanahan and smothered the rebound.
His best save of the night came about seven minutes into the third when he got his right pad on a slap shot by Fedorov, who was alone in the slot. He also had a bit of luck on his side. Shortly after Buffalo took a 3-2 lead, a loose puck slid through Miller’s legs, but barely went wide. He also benefited from Hull missing an open net on a point-blank one-timer late in the game.
“I felt better as the period went on,” Miller said. “That’s been the case all of camp, as it has gone on, I’ve felt better and better and better. Tonight was just continuing that progression.”
Miller, who wears No. 30 on Buffalo, wore his green Sparty mask in Thursday’s game. He played three years for MSU, ending last season, before forfeiting his senior year to sign a two-year, $2.2 million contract with the Sabres in August.
