Buffalo Sabres fans attend first-ever watch party at Keybank Center
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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- Hundreds of Buffalo Sabres fans gathered at the Keybank Center Saturday morning for its first-ever watch party as the Sabres faced off against the New Jersey Devils in Prague.
Despite the Sabres' 3-1 loss, fans watched all of the action from the big screen right at home.
"We've never done anything like this," said Sabres fans Ginene and Bob Heberger. "We're season ticket holders, but we've never come to something like this. We're very excited for the season."
Sabres fan Melissa Filipski said she's never seen something like this being done for a Sabres game.
"I know the Bills do a lot of it so I'm glad that the Sabres are starting to jump on board," she said. "We're a big hockey family, so that actually comes first over the Bills, but being able to take the kids out more, especially in the arena, I thought that was pretty cool."
Fans at the watch party were excited to watch all of the action on the arena's new state-of-the-art videoboard, which is roughly twice the size of the previous one.
"Yeah, that's beautiful. We saw that when we were here for the fan fest," Ginene said. "It's gorgeous. It's going to be really good."
Before the puck drop, fans had the opportunity to get Sabres alumni autographs, practice their hockey skills and play video games.
Longtime Sabres fan Greg Lucky said he always comes out to watch them play, adding that they're a great team with a great coach.
"It [the watch party] shows a lot of appreciation for the Sabres and enthusiasm," Lucky said. "A lot of times you never even see that in any other city, but I mean, it's great. Buffalo is a city of love anyway, so everyone comes out and supports their sports team."
Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work.