Since anyone and everyone can get up-to-date interviews and news online about our games I am going to shy away from commenting too much on specific games and try to group stretches of games together. Besides, I am a pretty honest interview...If you are on Sabres.com or NHL.com you have access to my thoughts and the other players interviews. I am very impressed with the new features on both sites.

I will start by saying I was happy to get the season underway and am pleased with our team's commitment to playing good two-way hockey. I think with the amount of talent that we have on offense we can become a dangerous team by playing very tight defense. What I am implying doesn't mean that we become a boring team to watch....What I mean is that by playing well without the puck we increase our chances of getting the puck back quickly and without time wasted allowing the opponent to have time in our zone. Good defense with our talented stick-handling and playmaking means a lot more time spent working towards offense.

By watching the past few Stanley Cup finals from an outside perspective the common theme was the willingness of the teams to get the puck back, to have possession....Last year I watch Pavel Datsyuk try risky plays or a fancy move on many of his shifts. He made a lot happen, but what made him great in the playoffs was that when things didn't work he wanted the puck back and used his skills and great eye-hand coordination to fore check and back check so that he could go right back on offense. The league may have tightened up when it comes to the systems used to prevent scoring chances but attitude can still beat it...I thought that Datsyuk personified what it takes to stand out in the league.

Since it has been just over a year since my cousin Matt passed on I thought I would share some thoughts...I do this because maybe it will help "you, the reader" or at least allow me to vent.

I went to so many hospitals and visited many young people before Matt got sick and thought I had been exposed to the emotion that is felt when a loved one is diagnosed with a disease. I had empathy for the families and the people I met but I could walk out of the hospital and in a few days the experience would fade to where I could just look back at those visits feeling as though I gained perspective on life and maybe a reminder that there are bigger things than day-to-day worries. I though I knew....I thought I was affected.

I know now that I was not capable of knowing how much it hurt or how scared everyone is when cancer is involved. It is a reality check that doesn't just slap you in the face....It runs you over. There is confusion about what to feel...What to say to that loved one...How do you help? The basic human instinct, right? "How can I help?" The best way to help became inspiring Matt. He was such a caring person that is seemed easy to tell him about your life and he was genuinely interested and excited about what you were doing. But I and we needed to do more and that is how Steadfast took shape. My family wanted to show Matt that people were behind him and I wanted to use my minor celebrity to gain some support for all the people I had met and show them that they did in fact inspire me just the way my cousing inspired me...They were and are very brave. I think that Matt would have been a worthy ambassador for Steadfast because he had great compassion. He made friends so easily because of that; like people could sense that about him...He would never even think about what he could gain. He would always give.

Matt was a beautiful person...Everyone says that about a loved one, right? I don't think you can. No matter how Matt's life had played out I think we all would have recognized this about him. I can honestly say that he was growing into a man that I was proud to know and proud to call a friend. I am the oldest sibling and cousing on both sides of my family so I have slowly enjoyed watching my generation grow up. There is always that transition from annoying little siblings or cousins into a genuine friend....Someone that you can associate with and relate to because they've finally reached an age of experience. I am lucky to have that with my siblings and cousins and Matt had reached the age where it was difficult to wrestle with him because he was a big boy! He had reached the age where we would tease him a little about girls because he attracted many with his gentle persona. He was finally reaching an age where was becoming the person we had envisioned....And then he was gone. I miss him.

I have found my charity work to be rewarding and although it reminds me constantly of losing my cousin it has helped to shape the impact of that loss into something good. i wrote about Matt because I felt like it would be nice to remember him and I wanted people to relate to our family's experience so that it may inspire action. I feel strongly that members of a community should act to aid their community, no matter the cause. My cause is Matt's legacy....He inspired me to give back to the communities I live in with Steadfast in hope of helping other families cope with battling cancer. I hope that as you finish reading this you can feel some small part of what I have felt and apply it to a cause, whether an effort such as Steadfast touches your heart or if you have something else in mind. The important thing is taking action. If you need ideas I hope to have a new section online at the Steadfast Foundation site (www.thesteadfastfoundation.com) that will highlight causes and ways you act to make a difference...In the meantime there are many things to do and all it takes is some time. So...skip the sitcoms and reality shows (or DVR them for later) and become a part of your community.