| Buffalo Sabres vs Edmonton Oilers | ||||||
| Team | P1 | P2 | P3 | OT | Shootout | Total |
 Buffalo Sabres | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
 Edmonton Oilers | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Current Status: Final (Shootout) | ||||||
Buffalo’s late overtime winner chalked off, but take the two points in a shootout win
Score: Buffalo Sabres 3-2 Edmonton Oilers [SO]
Shots: BUF 27-32 EDM
Buffalo Sabres Goals: Thompson (19), Bryson (1) [Thompson, Tuch SO goals]
Edmonton Oilers Goals: McLeod (11), Foegele (14) [Draisatl SO goal]
Minus 1: Conceding First.. Again
It’s just not a home game if the Buffalo Sabres don’t go behind in the first period. How many times have we watched that movie this season?
At this point I’ll just keep copy-pasting this little blurb on top of every recap I write. Once again the Sabres got caught cold to start the game in a festive atmosphere for this matinee game. Second after puck drop and Buffalo had barely even seen the puck when Leon Draisatl’s delightful no-look backhand caught the Sabres sleeping, with Ryan McLeod stuffing the puck home after just 29 seconds had elapsed.
Plus 1: Power Play Delivers
The afternoon got worse before it got better. Buffalo got a power play about a dozen minutes into the game after Brett Kulak hooked Eric Robinson. The power play’s indecision and immobility got called out by new boy Bowen Byram on his debut, and got caught out again as a speedy break from the Oilers made it two. Jeff Skinner got in a tangle by the boards and two Oilers took advantage carrying the puck on a speed rush with Owen Power unable to intervene.
However, Tage Thompson ended a three-game scoreless streak slotting home from his knees, reacting quickest to the puck coming out to him between the dots. The power play ended the night 1-for-1, a rare success for a unit that has struggled mightily at times.
Plus 2: Overtime Drama
After Jacon Bryson nabbed his first goal of the season with a smart backhand shot to catch Steve Skinner unawares midway through the third period, the game headed to overtime.
The hosts had kept superstar Conor McDavid quiet for most of the game, holding him to just two shots and ending his thirteen-game scoring streak. But it was the other end where the Sabres then made it count, with Owen Power’s slapper beating Skinner at the far post with just two second left.
The fans went wild, and both teams had trudged off the ice, when a video review decided that over thirty second before the goal went in the Sabres had a player stray offside.
Back out on the ice came both teams to see out the remaining thirty seconds or so, before heading to a shootout. Tage Thompson scored again to start off proceedings before Ukko-Pekka Luukonen foiled McDavid. Power saw his shot saved and Leon Draisatl leveled it. Alex Tuch then scored, before UPL foiled Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and the Sabres were declared winners, again.
Final Thoughts
The three-game losing streak just made the seemingly impossible task of making the playoffs that much harder. However, you can only do what you can do, and then let the rest of the things fall in place.
New addition Bowen Byram has looked very comfortable since coming in, and logged 25:47 last night adding four shots and four hits alongside his top pair partner Rasmus Dahlin who played 28:55 with one shot and registering seven hits.
Casey Mittelstadt is gone and the rest of the squad needs to chip in with points. Seeing Tage getting back to his scoring ways was great, and a contribution from Bryson was excellent too.
An interesting week beckons with two games against the Detroit Red Wings and one against the New York Islanders, both teams sitting ahead of the Sabres in the wildcard race. Three wins with no points given away could suddenly see Buffalo making things very interesting this late on.