Buffalo Plows Forward, Buries Pittsburgh for Five in a Row
Score: Buffalo Sabres 5-1 Pittsburgh Penguins
Shots: BUF 26-28 PIT
Buffalo Sabres Goals: McLeod 12th SHG (unassisted) Norris 9th PPG (Doan, Byram) Tuch 25th SHG (Power Thompson) Power 6th (Norris, Ostlund) Samuelsson 12th (unassisted)
Pittsburgh Penguins: Rust 21st SHG (Kindel)
Even 1: Battle of the Shorties
After nearly two days of whirlwind trade speculation, the Sabres got back at it on the ice in Pittsburgh. Two big deals fell through for Buffalo GM Jarmo Kekäläinen, one for too high of an asking price, one due to player discretion. He has less than a day now to get a deal done to boost the Sabres for the homestretch and hopefully playoffs as well. This team is playing like they don’t even need the help.
Back to the game at hand. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had to make some great early saves. The Sabres then had to kill an early penalty (successfully) then got several good chances of their own. Josh Norris hit the post and Josh Doan had some crazy good chances. Those two, along with Noah Ostlund were really cooking. Buffalo then got a power play but no dice. The Pens then went back on the man advantage but that backfired when Ryan McLeod scored shorthanded, after tipping the puck to himself off the wall. Toothless had a long breakaway and deeked Pittsburgh goalie Arturs Silovs before backhanding the puck between his pads. It was Ryan’s 5th shortie of the season and 12th goal overall.
Buffalo was still playing the PENGUINS though, which has been a struggle for several seasons now. Pittsburgh quickly answered with a shorthanded goal as well, as Bryan Rust notched his 21st of the season. Rasmus Dahlin failed to chip the puck ahead and ULP overcommited. The Sabres blew a chance to go up by two, instead the first period ended in a 1 to 1 tie. Buffalo outshot the Pens in the first, 7-6.
Plus 1: Three More Goals but WTF Malkin?
The 2nd period started with Evgeni Malkin maddess. After an altercation at the side of the Buffalo net with Dahlin, Malkin closed in on the Buffalo defender to mix it up. But he recklessly lumberjacked his stick down on Dahlin’s helmet and neck. Thankfully he has OK and we hope that action was accidental, but it sure didn’t look like it. A suspension may be forthcoming for the Pittsburgh legend. Buffalo went to a 5 minute power play after the major penalty and game misconduct. The man advantage looked absolutely listless for over three minutes before Josh Norris finally scored on a rebound. He cashed in on some loose change out front after a shot from the point from Bo Byram. The Pens challenged the goal for interference (Josh Doan) but it was held up by Toronto.
The floodgates opened for Buffalo after that. After a carousel of players went to the penalty box, Alex Tuch scored the Sabres second short handed goal of the night. (on a delayed call) Alex went to the net to screen the goalie and nicely tipped the puck by Silovs after Owen Power’s shot from the blueline. It was a clutch goal that really tilted the momentum in Buffalo’s favor. Tage Thompson also picked up an assist on the play. About four minutes later, Power’s smart, hesitant pause and 15 foot wrist shot put the Blue and Gold up by three. The Sabres went up 4-1 and that was your score after two. UPL made a couple great saves late to preserve that lead. Shots were 18-17 in favor of Buffalo after two.
Plus 2: Close it Out
In the third period, Buffalo came out and kept at it. They took the offensive chances when they had them and buckled down on D. Much of the period was uneventful, just the way the Sabres liked it. The Pens killed a power play and Buffalo took a slashing call with eight minutes left. Luukkonen stood tall, even as Pittsburgh pulled the goalie for a two man advantage. Buffalo killed the penalty but the Penguins kept Silovs on the bench for a bit before putting him back in.
The Pens would pull Silovs again but the Sabres just played it cool, playing defense, no urgency to try and score. This went on for several minutes…until Mattias Samuelsson put the game away with an empty netter. It was Sammy’s 12th marker of the year as Buffalo wins this one going away by a score of 5-1. They stuck the Penguins in the freezer tonight, right next to the ice cubes and fish sticks. The Sabres now have 80 points, one more than they had last season, WITH 20 GAMES TO GO.
Final Thoughts:
Another big win for this club, FIVE in a row now, four of them on the road. The Sabres keep winning, keep having controlled close-outs to their games. The line of Norris, Doan and Ostlund was probably Buffalo’s best tonight, good game by that trio.
Not the best look for the Penguins, on the scoresheet and on their bodies. Those mostly gold uniforms just don’t cut it. Stick with the black and gold trim.
The Sabres next host Nashville at Keybank Center on Sat, Mar 7th at 5:30 pm. Note the early start time.