Miraculously, the Sabres beat one of the best teams in the NHL.
Score: Buffalo Sabres 5 | Winnipeg Jets 3
Shots: BUF 17 | WPG 36
Buffalo Sabres Goals: JJ Peterka, Rasmus Dahlin, Tyson Kozak, Alex Tuch, Ryan McLeod
Winnipeg Jets Goals: Nino Niederreiter, Colin Miller, Nikolaj Ehlers
Plus 1: Goals! Goals! Goals!
Sunday’s game was truly a back-and-forth effort, but it all started with JJ Peterka midway through the first period. As I said in today’s game preview, Peterka has been one of Buffalo’s hotest players as of late, and he continued that streak with the opening goal of the game – his 22nd of the season. Peterka is third on the team in goals sthis season.
Rasmus Dahlin scored in the second period to regain the lead for the Sabres, but Tyson Kozak’s third period tally was the highlight of the game for me. What a moment for the Souris, Manitoba native, who said after the game that he had about 150 people in attendance. Kozak’s been earning his keep in Rochester and it’s nice to see him get rewarded like this – in the starting lineup, with the goal, and on the ice at the final buzzer for the win.
Not to be ignored, though, is Alex Tuch’s shorthanded break later in the third period that would end up being the game-winning goal. A great effort by Connor Clifton, who dove to poke the puck away from a Jets player, then by Ryan McLeod on the pass to Tuch. You just knew Tuch wasn’t going to miss that.
Plus 2: McLeod Magic
Ryan McLeod scored the last goal of the game, a loooong stretch as he flipped the puck down nearly the length of the ice and into the empty net with under a minute to play in regulation. But it’s not just the goal that McLeod deserves recognition for; that was just the icing on the cake, if you will.
McLeod ended the game with points on four of Buffalo’s five goals, registering the primary assist on Tuch’s shorty and the secondary assists on Dahlin’s and Peterka’s goals. He’s been an excellent pickup for the Sabres this season, with 17 goals and 25 assists for 42 points in just 66 games.
McLeod is earning $2.1 million this season and is set to become a restricted free agent this summer.
Plus 3: Reimer Was Excellent
I’ll be honest, I’m not exactly the #1 fan of James Reimer, but he truly was excellent in Sunday’s game and was a huge part of why the Sabres managed to pull out a win. In a very back-and-forth game, against one of the toughest opponents in the NHL – one of the best teams – and in a road rink where the home team has had immense success – Reimer gave Buffalo all the opportunities to win.
Over the course of the game, he made several spectacular saves, some positively mind-blowing. He finished the game with 33 saves and was named first star.
Final Thoughts
Go figure. The Sabres come into a tough barn to face an incredibly skilled team, and manage to come out with a victory. Go figure! Honestly, lots to like from this one. Reimer was standing on his head. Jacob Bernard-Docker had two assists. Ryan McLeod was fantastic. The Sabres didn’t have a lot of shots early on – just nine through the opening 40 minutes – and that’s an area that certainly needed some improvement, but in the end, I’ll take this win and run with it.
The Amerks were also victorious on Sunday, taking a 4-3 regulation win over the Utica Comets. (Utica’s third goal came with a second remaining in the game.) Erik Brännström scored his fourth goal in five games in Rochester (!), while Noah Östlund followed up his hat trick on Saturday with yet another goal. Anton Wahlberg & Nikita Novikov also scored, while Devon Levi had 33 saves on 36 shots faced.
Next up, the Sabres host the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night.