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Sabres at Rangers Recap: Sabres Unfortunately Can’t Win Every Shootout This Season

First Period

– The Sabres and Rangers entered the game with the two worst power plays in the league, and it certainly showed on the Sabres first chance. The Rangers got more quality chances than the Sabres did.

Adam Pardy took his fourth minor penalty in three games, and it wasn’t very necessary. He seems to have contracted Sabres Bad Defense-itis. It’s going around these days.

– This was a really boring period, though the Sabres are competing well. Eleven total shots, minimal hitting, no really exciting chances or moments. Both teams seem to be playing safe, defensive hockey.

Second Period

– The second period saw things get a bit more exciting. Energy, battle, jam, whatever you want to call it, the Sabres have been playing with it this period.

– Grigorenko makes a nice to stay with the faceoff, and slips a pass to Drew Stafford, who whips the puck past Henrik Lundqvist for his second of the season. That makes two points in two games for Griggy.

– The Sabres are winning the shots battle after a very strong 14-shot effort, but they’re losing the facoeff battle 22-12. Of course, one of those led to their goal, so go figure.

Third Period

– The Sabres found themselves in a heap of trouble on the PK when Patrick Kaleta boarded Brad Richards from behind, earning a five minute major and a game misconduct. The shove didn’t look like the hardest one in the world, but Richards was already leaning forward and crumpled in to the boards, staying down for over a minute before skating off under his own power. It was a dumb, reckless penalty for Kaleta to take, and the the Rangers would go on to score two goals during the major.

– For you conspiracy theorists, Richards was back on the ice in about two minutes of game time.

– At the very end of the five-on-three, Steve Ott led a rush with Nathan Gerbe and made beautiful timing move to create space, then fed a perfect pass to Gerbe who buried the one-timer to tie this game at two. The Sabres are certainly more resilient recently than they have been so far this year.

– Two more power plays for Buffalo go absolutely nowhere. They are now 3 for their last 900,000 (all numbers estimated).

OT

Dan Girardi nails Tyler Ennis into the boards from behind and earns the same five minute major and game misconduct as Patrick Kaleta did earlier in the game for the same play. Oh, wait. It’s just a two minute minor. Sabres still can’t score, though.

Shootout

-You can’t win ’em all.

Comment of the Game

A shortie

would be so nice here

– go_buff, right before Nathan Gerbe scored a shorthanded goal to tie the game

Talking Points