At least the Buffalo Sabres can say they went out on a winning note.

After getting over the losses of Michael Peca and Dominik Hasek -- and the 15-21-4-1 start that came with it -- the Sabres finished 20-14-7-0 in the second half.

	2001-02 by the numbers
	Record: 35-35-11-1, 82 points (20th overall, 10th East, 5th Northeast) Goals for: 213/2.60 (14th overall) Goals against: 200/2.44 (10th overall) Differential: 13 (15th overall) 20-goal scorers: Miroslav Satan (37), J.P. Dumont (23), Maxim Afinogenov (21), Curtis Brown (20) 50-point scorers: Satan (73)

A big reason for the team's finish was the surprising consistency from Martin Biron. Three of his four shutouts came after the All-Star break and he finished with a 31-28-10 record, 2.22 goals-against average and .915 save percentage.

Miroslav Satan also had a stellar season, leading the team in goals (37) and posting career bests in assists (36) and points (73).

That's the good news. The bad news? The Sabres' early hole kept them out of the playoffs for the first time in four seasons, which included a trip to the Stanley Cup finals in 1999.

Looking at next season
It gets worse. The 2002-03 season might be the Sabres' last in Buffalo.

Instead of concentrating on how this young crop of players will respond to the usual pressures of rebounding from a non-playoff year, Buffalo hockey fans will have to worry about whether the organization has to money to keep those players in town. And, in turn, they'll have to concern themselves with whether they will even have a team in town beyond 2004.

The NHL currently handles the day-to-day operations for the Sabres, who have been in trouble in recent months with Adelphia Communications, owned by Sabres owner John Rigas. The team reportedly owes the cable company $157 million, and the debt exposes Buffalo to a possible bankruptcy sale and relocation.

But the league has stood by the club, saying over the last few months that it is committed to keeping the Sabres in Buffalo no matter who owns the team.

So, that leaves the question: Will the Sabres still be able to keep their core? General manager Darcy Regier is trying.

The defensive unit took a hit when unrestricted free agent Richard Smehlik signed with the Thrashers after 10 seasons in Buffalo. That leaves restricted free agents Brian Campbell and Rhett Warrener and unrestricted free agent James Patrick all unsigned.

The Sabres did sign backup goaltender Mika Noronen to a two-year deal, and they will put a lot of faith in the 23-year-old, especially if talks don't go well with starter Biron, who is a restricted free agent. Biron set a club record with 72 appearances last season, and despite having the choice to exercise the option of arbitration, there are no guarantees he will be around in September for the start of training camp.

Then, there's the offense. Wingers Maxim Afinogenov and Vaclav Varada, and centers Tim Connolly and Chris Gratton are all unsigned, restricted free agents and all were top 10 scorers among the Sabres last season. Buffalo did acquire Jochen Hecht from the Oilers for a pair of second-round picks, and re-signed staple Rob Ray to a one-year deal.

Satan and gritty forward Stu Barnes, Buffalo's top two scorers last season, are still intact, but what will they have around them once the new season starts?

With the Sabres, every dollar counts.