In the dressing room afterward, they proudly donned caps commemorating the Northeast

Division title and enjoyed the moment if only for a short time. At 9:47 p.m., Ryan Miller

glanced at the clock and announced he had 2 hours and 13 minutes, until midnight, to celebrate

before getting back to work.

The Sabres all season have emphasized the need to temper their emotions in good times and

bad. Miller, their franchise goaltender and primary source of hope, wasn't about to go

overboard Tuesday night after they clinched the division with a convincing 5-2 victory over

the New York Rangers.

"It's a stop along the way," he said. "In baseball, they win the pennant and everybody goes

crazy with champagne at the end. I never understood it. We have our hats and T-shirts, smile

and have a little fun, crank a little music. You have to take time to say it feels good, but

we're not going to be satisfied."

It explains why the Sabres weren't overly jubilant after the game, but they understood this

season has been nothing to sneer at, either. Division titles don't come around often in this

town. The Sabres won their division just six times in 40 years since joining the NHL. Overall,

it has been a pretty good season.

Funny, but the Sabres' rise in the division and flirtation with the top of the conference

has been met mostly with disenchantment or guarded optimism. HSBC Arena often felt like a

morgue before coming to life Tuesday night. The irrepressible buzz that comes with a playoff

team has been mysteriously absent.

My sense is that this isn't a Buffalo sports thing, where fans are reluctant to climb

aboard because they fear getting their hearts broken. They simply haven't been able to trust

the Sabres' success, haven't been overly impressed and aren't about to shower the organization

with praise until it's worthy.

The Sabres released 2,000 playoff tickets for sale on Monday. In the first season after the

lockout, when they showed more promise despite finishing second in the division, the tickets

would have been gone in about 15 minutes. There were still a few available Tuesday.

See, you can't fool Buffalo fans. The Sabres have a 16-14-6 record since Jan. 9. They have

seven wins in 20 games over teams that were still in the playoffs Tuesday night. We're not

talking about a little hiccup here. Thirty-six games is a large enough sample size, especially

in the second half of the season, to create doubt.

Just know they have the X factor in Miller, who had fans on their feet in the second period

Tuesday when he robbed Marian Gaborik with a ridiculous blocker save that warranted time in

the state pen. It was the kind of stop that reassured people that anything can happen if he

gets on a roll in the postseason.

Remember, too, that winning in the playoffs is a learning process. It often takes a few

years before players understand how to play under pressure. They need to regain that

experience, from their veterans down to their good young players, knowing they're onto

something special in the coming years.

Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn said a few years ago that the master plan called for

winning the Cup and giving Buffalo its first major sports championship. He didn't have a

specific timetable, which always makes you curious, but common sense suggested it would take

four or five years. This is the third season.

The buzz should return in the first round. Perhaps they can gain some momentum if they

reach the second round. You would certainly like their chances with Miller if they somehow

played in the conference finals. There's also the likelihood, after watching them for the past

three months, of them being eliminated in the first round.

For now, tip your cap to them and enjoy the moment while you can.