The Buffalo Sabres were unable to rally from three goals down to fall to the Vancouver Canucks 5-4 on Tuesday night at KeyBank Center.
Buffalo had the first power play opportunity of the night, but were unable to capitalize on Bo Horvat's hooking minor. Instead, moments after returning to full strength, the Canucks scored to take a 1-0 lead eight minutes into the game. Dakota Joshua was alone in the slot and scored his third goal of the season on a one-timer from Nils Aman.
Ethan Bear dobuled the Vancouver lead to 2-0 with a shot from the slot that went through traffic. Craig Anderson was screened at the top of his crease, and the Sabres trailed by a pair less than 10 minutes into the first period.
The Sabres used smooth passing to their advantage to trim the deficit in half less than two minutes later. Rasmus Dahlin's cross-ice pass found Jeff Skinner and the foward buried his fourth goal of the season. The goal brought Buffalo within a goal, 2-1.
Dahlin was called for the first penalty of the Sabres of the game for holding. The team was able to kill off the majority of the penalty in the opening period. Buffalo was credited with seven shots on goal, while Vancouver recorded 15 of their own.
After Vancouver extended the lead back out to two goals Skinner once again scored for the Sabres to bring the team back within a goal, 3-2. The forward's second goal of the night capped off an offensive zone chance started by Tage Thompson.
The Canucks converted on a pair of power play chances to expand their lead out to three goals, the largest lead of the game, 5-2. J.T. Miller scored the first of the two goals almost immediately off of an offensive zone face-off win. Bo Horvat converted on a turnover for his 14th score of the season just over a minute later.
Three minutes later, Alex Tuch was able to deflect an Owen Power shot from the point for his eighth goal of the season. Thompson assisted on the second straight Sabres goal that made the score 5-3.
Casey Mittelstadt was able to bring the Sabres within a goal, 5-4, just after a power play chance midway through the third period. Mittelstadt's fourth goal of the year came after the forward was able to get to a loose puck in the slot and use a wrist shot to beat Spencer Martin.
The Sabres recorded 15 shots on goal in the third period, and finished the game with 32. Vancouver also ended the night with 32 shots on goal.
Game Summary
Goal Summary
First Period
BUF: 11:15 - Jeff Skinner (4) (Rasmus Dahlin, Alex Tuch)
VAN: 8:01 - Dakota Joshua (3) (Nils Aman, William Lockwood)
9:18 - Ethan Bear (1) (Bo Horvat, Conor Garland)
Second Period
BUF: 3:43 - Jeff Skinner (5) (Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch)
11:12 - Alex Tuch (8) (Owen Power, Tage Thompson)
VAN: 0:31 - Elias Petterson (7) (Oliver Ekman-Larsson)
7:13 - J.T. Miller (10) PPG (Bo Horvat)
8:25 - Bo Horvat (14) PPG (Brock Boeser, Elias Petterson)
Third Period
BUF: 12:02 - Casey Mittelstadt (4) (Dylan Cozens, Peyton Krebs)
VAN: none
Penalty Summary
First Period
BUF: 18:16 - Rasmus Dahlin (2 min., holding)
VAN: 4:32 - Bo Horvat (2 min., hooking)
Second Period
BUF: 6:20 - Ilya Lyubushkin (2 min., tripping)
7:32 - Rasmus Dahlin (2 min., tripping)
VAN: 18:22 - Bo Horvat (2 min., hooking)
Third Period
BUF: none
VAN: 9:57 - Brock Boeser (2 min., cross-checking)
Losi and Gangi Three Stars
1. Bo Horvat
2. Elias Petterson
3. Jeff Skinner
What's Next
The Sabres will head out on the road and play right away on Wednesday night. Buffalo and the Ottawa Senators will meet at 7:00 p.m. in Ottawa on the flagship home of the Sabres Radio Network - WGR Sportsradio 550. Pregame coverage with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog begins at 6 p.m.