Columbus, Ohio (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres kicked off the 2025-26 preseason in style by shutting out the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-0, at Nationwide Arena.
Though the opening period lacked any scoring, it didn't go by without a fight. With 2:33 left in the period, Josh Dunne squared off with Columbus forward Max McCue.
Five minutes into the middle stanza, the Sabres broke the scoreless tie.
Bowen Byram let a wrist shot go from the high slot, which beat goalie Elvis Merzlikins for a 1-0 Buffalo advantage.
Just three-and-a-half minutes later, the Sabres doubled the lead.
Beck Malenstyn cashed in on some loose change, as he put home a rebound off a shot from the left point by Owen Power.
The score swelled to 3-0 late in the third period of regulation.
As the Blue Jackets played with an extra-attacker in lieu of a goalie, Jack Quinn took advantage of the opportunity in front of him and rammed home the team's third goal of the evening.
Buffalo wasn't quite finished scoring, though.
Inside the final minute of regulation, Konsta Helenius beat goalie Jet Greaves with a slick move in close. The play was kickstarted by a forced turnover in the neutral zone.
The tandem of Alexandar Georgiev and Devon Levi combined for the clean sheet between the pipes for Buffalo. Georgiev took care of the first 40 minutes with 16 saves, while Levi put the finishing touches on the shutout with six saves in the third period.
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SCORING RECAP
First Period:
BUF: NONE
CBJ: NONE
Second Period:
BUF: 4:51 - Bowen Byram (1) (Radim Mrtka, Tyson Kozak); 8:22 - Beck Malenstyn (1) (Owen Power, Michael Kesselring)
CBJ: NONE
Third Period:
BUF: 15:01 - Jack Quinn (1) ENG (Josh Doan, Jiri Kulich); 19:11 - Konsta Helenius (1) (Anton Wahlberg, Vsevolod Komarov)
CBJ: NONE
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Three Stars of the Game:
1.) Alexandar Georgiev - BUF
2.) Bowen Byram - BUF
3.) Jet Greaves - CBJ
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What's next:
The Sabres return home to host the Blue Jackets in the second game of their back-to-back series on Tuesday night. Puck drop at KeyBank Center is set for 7 p.m. and can be heard on the radio home of the Sabres - WGR Sports Radio 550.