Derek Roy

Having lost 13 of their past 16 games, the Buffalo Sabres are in need of change. Trading center Derek Roy is one possible solution, but it shouldn't be done simply for the sake of making a trade.

Last season, it wasn't until March 6th that the Buffalo Sabres jumped into the Eastern Conference's playoff picture for good. For the first 150 days of the 2010-2011 NHL season before March 6th, the Sabres were outside of the top eight for all but three of them—the first three days of the year.

The NHL is so full of young talent, it is ridiculous. There are stars such as Crosby, Ovechkin and Richards that fill the NHL with some intense excitement. Then there are the players that do the same, but seem to be passed along with no recognition or praise from the fans or critics. Here are five underrated NHL players.

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As the season moves along, many factors will start to affect the judgment of front office officials in the NHL.

Injuries, standings and pressure from every direction will start to wear on people and a move will have to be made.

Many of these defenders are getting older and are becoming unrestricted free agents at the conclusion of the season, so teams may be looking to get whatever they can in return so that the player doesn’t walk without the team getting compensation.

It’s official: The Sabres' most consistent player and top point producer will watch the rest of the season from the press box, as center Derek Roy has been diagnosed with a torn quad tendon. He will undergo surgery and will miss four to six months.

Roy suffered the injury seven minutes into Thursday night’s game against the Florida Panthers. Roy was hit along the boards by Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov and did not return to the game.

If the season ended today, the greatest fear of any Buffalo Sabres fan holds true: the Sabres would be out of the playoffs. They currently sit in third place in the Northeast Division and ninth place in the Eastern Conference, five points behind the Atlanta Thrashers for eighth. Obviously, this is a problem that isn't going to fix itself.

So, in order to make the playoffs, what needs to happen?

The 2011 NHL All-Star Game is just over three months away, and as the young 2010-'11 NHL season ages by the minute, the All-Star Game grows closer and closer.

This past week, the NHL opened up the balloting on their website, nhl.com, for all fans to vote for their favorite players. The ballot includes 100 players to chose from (53 forwards, 29 defensemen, and 18 goalies) but the ballot also includes a write-in vote.

The expectations were high for the reigning Northeast division champion Buffalo Sabres entering this season. The playoffs seemed like a no brainer, with many analysts and fans picking them to also repeat as division champs. Lindy Ruff, Darcy Regier and the players all talked about how they believed the Sabres were legitimate Stanley Cup contenders.

If the NHL season ended today the Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy and the Art Ross Trophy would not be awarded to Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby or even the Sedin twins, it would be handed to Buffalo's Derek Roy.

The Buffalo Sabres have been an up-and-down team for a few years, but whenever they're down, they always seem to recover.

Of course everyone remembers those dynamic Chris Drury and Daniel Briere years, but when those two were signed away many wondered how Buffalo would recover. Could they get the team back to a competitive level? What would the response from the fans be to the losses of those two stars?