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Briere, Sabres look to start second half on winning note

Jan 26, 2007 - 2:50 PM Buffalo (33-12-4) at Columbus (18-25-5) 7:00 pm EST

COLUMBUS, Ohio (Ticker) -- All-Star Daniel Briere and the Buffalo Sabres finished their outstanding first half on a sour note. They hope to open the second half in better fashion.

The Sabres begin their march toward the top playoff seed in the Eastern Conference when they visit the lowly Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday.

The top club in the East with 70 points, Buffalo owns a comfortable 11-point cushion over second-place Montreal (27-17-5) in the Northeast Division and is seven points ahead of New Jersey (29-14-5) for the top mark in the conference.

But the Sabres stumbled prior to the All-Star break, losing four of their last six contests.

Despite the slide, Buffalo was well represented at Wednesday's All-Star Game, placing Briere, defenseman Brian Campbell and goaltender Ryan Miller in the starting lineup.

Buffalo's leading scorer with 57 points, Briere had the best showing of the trio, scoring a goal and registering four assists en route to earning MVP honors.

While the Sabres enjoyed a memorable first half to the season, the Blue Jackets probably wish they could forget their's.

Columbus has dropped five of its last seven contests and enters the second half tied with Chicago for the third-worst record in the entire league.

One of the few bright spots this season for the Blue Jackets has been All-Star left wing Rick Nash, who tallied twice and also had a pair of assists in Wednesday's midseason showcase.