Buffalo comes out of the gate strong, fizzles toward end but skates away with two points
Score: Sabres 3 | Lightning 2 (OT)
Shots: BUF 31 | TBL 22
Buffalo Sabres Goals: Zemgus Girgensons (1), Jeff Skinner (1), Dylan Cozens (1)
Tampa Bay Lightning Goals: Brandon Hagel (3, 4)
Plus 1: A Strong Start
Tuesday’s first period was easily the best of the Buffalo Sabres’ young season so far. The team looked generally sharp and refreshed, even if it wasn’t a perfect 20 minutes of play. (For instance, Alex Tuch getting called for hooking, thus negating the Buffalo power play.) There was a lot to like, though.
Zemgus Girgensons’ first goal of the season at 8:57 gave the Sabres their first lead of the season – a small, yet significant, moment. It was a great shot from Girgensons, a snipe that found the top of the net behind former Sabres netminder Jonas Johansson. Tyson Jost, in his first game of the season, made the pass to Girgensons, making an immediate impact. Let’s keep him in the lineup, yeah?
Things went from good to even better less than seven minutes later when Jeff Skinner got on the board, sending KeyBank Center into a High School Musical-induced flurry of excitement. (Skinner’s goal song this year is Breaking Free from the hit Disney Channel movie.) Owen Power took the initial shot, finding Skinner along the goal line to Johansson’s left, who promptly tucked it in.
The Sabres finished the first period with a 2-0 lead and up 11-7 in shots – not too shabby for a team who appeared to struggle on and off in their first two games.
Minus 1: A Rough Finish
While the Sabres looked great for the first 35-ish minutes of the night, things seemed to fall apart as the second period came to a close. Brandon Hagel got the Lightning on the board, and Buffalo just seemed to be scrambling from there. Rather than holding the lead and commanding the game, they were hanging on for dear life, and looked lucky to get out of the second period with a lead.
The same can be said of the third period, except this time, they didn’t get out of that period unscathed. Hagel scored his second of the game – and fourth of the season, already! – with just seven seconds left in regulation to tie it and force the extra frame. It’s one of those frustrating moments that just makes you shake your head in disbelief. Seven seconds! SEVEN seconds! Alas, the Sabres were lucky they even got that far with hanging on to the lead, and with how things looked, it was no surprise that, of course, Tampa would tie the game.
Plus 1: A Dominant OT, and a Win
Positive number one: it took only 1:46 of overtime for Dylan Cozens to give the Sabres the extra point, notching his first goal of the season. He outworked Conor Sheary, getting a shot out from just inside the circle to Johansson’s left, and the puck hit the back of the net. Cozens now has 49 career NHL goals.
Positive number two: the Lightning did not have possession of the puck at all in overtime. That’s exactly how you want the Sabres to play an overtime period, especially after how they played the final ~25ish minutes of regulation.
Final Thoughts & Other Notes
This was a much, much-needed win for the Sabres – and their fanbase. It wasn’t an easy win, and at times it felt like they were holding on by the seat of their pants, but they got the two points in the end, and it’s a big two points. Seeing a handful of players get their first goals of the season is also a positive, and Zach Benson continues to look sharp. He was mere inches away from getting his first NHL goal.
Defenseman Mattias Samuelsson missed most of the third period after heading to the locker room with a team doctor. The Sabres later said that he would not return to the game with an upper-body injury, but the good news is that per Don Granato in post-game, Samuelsson is fine and is “day-to-day.”
Let’s take this vibe into the days ahead, as the Sabres continue their homestand with three more straight at KBC. First up, it’s the Calgary Flames coming into town on Thursday night.