Sorry, if you're looking for optimism and glimmers of hope and predictions about the Sabres

charging toward the postseason, you came to the wrong place. The only thing their comeback

victory over the Florida Panthers confirmed was that they haven't, in fact, tuned out coach

Lindy Ruff.

The Sabres are still in 10th place in the Eastern Conference with nine games remaining, five

points behind eighth-place Montreal. They're closer to 12th place than they are to the

playoffs. I'm not sure whether they deserve credit for coming back and beating Florida or

criticism for allowing the Panthers to trample over them in the first place.

So let's not get too excited, OK?

Buffalo might as well have been making plans for locker-cleanout day before scoring three

goals in a 2:07 span in the third period Wednesday night. For some reason, the Sabres needed a

two-goal deficit to awaken them in the biggest game of the season, against a team they're

chasing, at home.

The same fans who were ready to boo the Sabres off the ice were giddy while hitting the exits

after Buffalo's 5-3 victory. Once the euphoria wears off, they'll understand that there is

much work ahead, that the Sabres are now 2-5-1 in their last eight games, that they're still

five points out of the final postseason spot, that they're quite capable of stumbling backward

once again.

Buffalo has been a tease all season, which brings me to Tim Connolly. He was invisible for

nearly 2 periods before finally poking his head from the ruins and scoring his third goal in

20 games. Where has he been all month, when the Sabres needed him most? My guess is laughing

over a $1 million raise that kicks in next season.

The same goes for winger Jason Pominville, whose deflection sparked the four-goal outburst in

the third period. Give him his due for realizing that goals these days are scored around the

net, not bombing away off the wing. After all, we're only 73 games into the regular season.

Now, he has four goals in 35 games.

How fitting it was that Maxim Afinogenov, the $3.5 million winger who wasn't worth 35 cents

for two seasons, put the game away when he found an empty net in the final minute. He has five

goals this year. He spent a chunk of the first period getting bawled out by Ruff for the same

ol', same ol' we've witnessed for most of his career.

It was a good win, but it doesn't change the fact that the Sabres were scared for most of the

game before the score scared them straight.

You want to celebrate? By all means, have a ball.

Nobody would be surprised if the Sabres beat the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night and won

on consecutive nights for the first time all season with another victory in Montreal on

Saturday night. You can darned near bet the house that they'll draw within two or three points

of eighth place in the conference before breaking your heart again.

Just know that changes are in order no matter what happens between now and the end of the

season. Fans were elated over the chase for eighth, as if that's an acceptable standard among

15 teams, less than two years after Buffalo reached the conference finals for two straight

seasons.

The Sabres' win Wednesday should strengthen their backbone. Perhaps it will invigorate a

competitive spirit that had been dormant for far too long this season. But they still have

fundamental flaws. They're still fragile, a soft team that easily could have been history.

They have one more victory. Otherwise, not much has changed.