The Buffalo Sports Jinx?

Don't get me wrong. I love the Buffalo Bison, the sports team and the delectible dish. But the city's two professional sports teams, NFL's Buffalo Bills and NHL's Buffalo Sabres are the bottom dwellers of their respective leagues. No one should be surprised of course that both teams are struggling financially. The city of Buffalo, located just past the Canadian-U.S. border, barely passes a population of 250,000. I think some high schools in California have more people. In fact, Buffalo is the 69th largest city in the United States meaning that Anchorage, Alaska is probably better suited for a professional sports team. Anything to see more of Sarah Palin. Of course, smaller markets have survived like Green Bay but the Packers have a history and culture of success behind them. What does Buffalo have?

For those too young to remember, the Buffalo Bill have had the unfortunate distinction of appearing in four straight Super Bowls without winning a single one. In 1971, the Bills had the league's worst record (1-13), fewest points scored (184), and most points scored against (394) a record that still stands today. To make matters worse, their star player was O.J Simpson. The only Bill more cursed than Simpson would probably be Scott Norwood.

The Sabres of the NHL haven't quite had the same ineptitude at the Bills. It is, after all, a tough act to follow. But the Sabres can be the proud owners of the "Bat Curse". Back in 1975, extreme heat in Buffalo caused much of the arena to fog up. Amidst the fog, Sabres player Jim Lorentz swung and killed a bat with his stick. Firstly, why is there a bat in a hockey arena. Secondly, this evil omen led to Buffalo losing the series and can be the reason why they have never won a championship in Buffalo since. Want another evil omen? The Sabre's 1999 cup run feature their leading scorer named Satan. That run ended when Brett Hull famously scored a triple-OT goal with his foot in the crease, which was illegal back then.

Sure Buffalo hasn't had a presence in the NBA since way back to the Buffalo Braves but that team eventually moved to Los Angeles to become the worst franchise in sports, The Los Angeles Clippers.

With the rumoured move of the Bills to Toronto when owner Ralph Wilson dies (quite a morbid rumour I must say), Buffalo fans will be getting screwed once again. Add on to the fact that the Sabres have never really been financially stable and 15% of their season revenues come from Canada when the Leafs come to town. The prospective move of the Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton will only steal almost all of those ticket sales spelling impending doom for the city of Buffalo. Did I say "impending"? I meant continuing doom.