Shorthanded Sabres Must Protect Home Ice

Debate the officiating in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals all you want. But consider this: The Sabres played their worst game in weeks. Remember, too, this game wasn't as close as the 4-3 final suggests.
Yeah, the officials in this game weren't up to standard. SN community member este1518 nailed it in his comments on the game recap.
Quote: "Sabres played one of the worst games I've seen in awhile. Carolina on the other hand played great. The officiating was horrible, but that's no excuse for how poorly the Sabres played."
Thank you, estes, and well said.
Were it not for another great performance by Ryan Miller, Game 2 would have been a blowout. The Hurricanes were that much better.
But here's the big picture: The Sabres stole home-ice advantage in Game 1. It's now their duty, their obligation, their burden to win the next two games on home ice. That's the test for playoff success: win on the road and dominate at home.
Let's cut the Sabres some slack here, because they played without two key defensemen -- Dmitri Kalinin, who likely is finished for the playoffs, and Teppo Numminen, who is day-to-day. They made do without Kalinin, because seventh defenseman Rory Fitzpatrick was serviceable. They suffered without Numminen because minor-leaguer Doug Janik didn't play much, forcing the Sabres to go with five defensemen.
The Sabres didn't quit, but they had five worn-out defensemen at the final horn. They can't continue at that pace, even given their excellent team-defense concepts.
Without Numminen, the Sabres are in deep trouble.