HFTV
Senior Writer
Photo credits: Joshua Bessex / Buffalo News
To the Buffalo Sabres fanbase, First and foremost - congratulations on the Game 1 victory. It was a hard-fought win and your fans are extremely passionate.
I want to address something that happened last night, and I want to do so with as much grace as I can.
As many of you know, we’ve been going to NHL rinks in our team’s colors for over five years now, celebrating the love of the game and capturing the spirit of both fanbases - win or lose. We’ve visited more than ten arenas across North America, and in all that time, we have never experienced what happened last night: a fan assaulted me from behind during our post-game coverage, and spat at our cameraman.
I’m sharing this not to fuel any anger or division, but because I believe that all of us are against violence - and because the response from the Sabres community itself was overwhelmingly good. Many of your fans stepped in immediately to pull him off me, and I am genuinely grateful for that. It speaks to the character of your fanbase far more than the actions of one individual ever could.
While this situation happened on video and our evidence is strong, I have chosen not to press charges. Buffalo PD handled the situation, he has been trespassed, and I believe this was an isolated incident. I don’t want this to define what is going to be a wonderful series.
What I do hope for - from both sides - is that we hold each other to a higher standard. When Sabres fans have visited the Bell Centre, we have always gone out of our way to welcome them, protect them, and celebrate the shared love of hockey with them. That’s the culture we’re proud of, and it’s the culture we’d love to experience in return.
Disagreeing about who will win a series - or showing up on rollerblades in the opposing team’s colors - is not grounds for violence. Ever. We are all here because we love this game.
I look forward to a spirited, passionate, and peaceful series. God bless both our cities, both our teams, and every fan who makes this sport worth playing and worth watching.
Let’s make it a good one.
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