Buffalo inexplicably buffaloed at home by Colorado
Score: Buffalo Sabres 4-5 Colorado Avalanche
Shots: BUF 30-43 COL
Buffalo Sabres Goals: Thompson (12,13), Peterka (8), Malenstyn (2)
Colorado Avalanche Goals: Mackinnon (8), Kiviranta (5), O’Connor (3), Mackinnon (9), Lehkonen (5)
Plus 1: Strong Start
The Sabres are starting to make this a habit, scoring goals in bunches. Before his injury every time Tage Thompson went over the boards the ice tilted in Buffalo’s favor. Following his return the forward took some time getting his scoring touch going again, but we saw it in full effect tonight.
Buffalo scored three times in three and a half minutes to jump into a commanding lead, and then Nicolas Aubé-Kubel made a great play winning the puck center ice before finding Beck Malenstyn steaming in at the back post to bury the fourth, and chase Alexandar Georgiev with eight minutes to play in the first period.
Before that, JJ Peterka also broke his eight-game scoring drought with an excellent pass from Zach Benson and Dylan Cozens continuing his redemption tour with another assist.
Minus 1: Second Period Flop
The Avs are too good a team to be put down for too long, and they showed it in the second half. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had to rob the returning Casey Mittelstadt after having just stopped Artturi Lehkonen as well.
Not that Buffalo helped themselves either, with Connor Clifton’s careless pass through the middle picked off by Nathan Mackinnon who then walked in on UPL to open the visitor’s account.
After holding Colorado to no high danger chances in the first period, the Sabres let the Avs initially double them on shots in the second, with a 64.15% Corsi For and gave up six high danger chances 5v5. They did have UPL to thank for keeping the Avs down to just one goal.
A delay of game penalty on Nikolai Kovalenko with a minute left in the second relieved the pressure, though the Sabres did spurn the opportunity to restore their four-goal advantage going into the locker rooms for the final intermission.
Minus 2: FAFO
The Avs killed off the remaining minute of their penalty to start the third, and then the fireworks started.
In just a matter of minutes, Colorado scored thrice and Rasmus Dahlin exited the game with an injury as the visitors poured on the shots and beat UPL again and again. Twice the goalie gave up juicy rebounds that his dmen failed to clear, and then MacKinnon tipped Rantanen’s shot as Jared Bednar’s aggression paid off to level the game with over 12 minutes still to play in the third.
The Sabres were barely hanging on at this point with the Avs dominating them in every facet of the game, and with under five minutes to play they duly got their fifth goal. Colorado finished the game with an incredible 19 shots in just the third and a 65.63% CF.
Final Thoughts
The three-game skid after that excellent California road trip was an apt reminder that this team still hasn’t got it all worked out, and then we had this rollercoaster experience today was a stark lesson that no lead is untouchable when you stop doing the things that get you up to begin with.
There’s just really not much to say after this kind of defeat. Hopefully Lindy Ruff has something more coherent to add to the conversation in the locker room tonight.
In lieu of the comment of the game tonight, I will leave you with this. RIP the Gaudreau brothers.