The Buffalo Sabres were in Detroit on Saturday night, as they visited the Red Wings inside Little Caesars Arena.
Despite opening the scoring, the Sabres coughed up a pair of goals to Detroit and had to play comeback in the waning minutes just to force overtime in Michigan. In the end, it was an up-and-coming rookie forward dropping the curtain on the Sabres on this night by way of a 3-2 final.
After a scoreless first period, the Sabres broke through five minutes into the second. The blue and gold broke into the Red Wings defensive zone and scored a very pretty goal courtesy of Kyle Okposo, Brett Murray and Dylan Cozens.
It was Cozens' fifth goal of the season, and Murray's primary assist on the play was the first point of his NHL career.
The Sabres' lead lasted less than five minutes, though. In fact, in a span of 1:20 the blue and gold went from leading, to tied, to trailing. Detroit started driving the Sabres' net hard and were rewarded twice in quick succession. Forwards Carter Rowney and Pius Suter did the damage, respectively.
It looked like Suter's goal was going to hold up as the game-winner for Detroit. Jeff Skinner and the Sabres had other ideas; for the time being. With 1:37 left in regulation, Skinner deflected this Cody Eakin shot into the Detroit net to tie the game with his sixth goal of the year.
The teams headed to overtime tied at that 2-2 score, but the extra frame didn't last long at all. Standout rookie forward Lucas Raymond dropped the curtain on the Sabres with a game-winning goal against Dustin Tokarski just 26-seconds in.
Losi and Gangi Three Stars of the Game:
1. Lucas Raymond - DET
2. Dustin Tokarski - BUF
3. Pius Suter - DET
What's Next:
The blue and gold come back home to host the Seattle Kraken on Monday night, November 29. Puck drop inside KeyBank Center is set for 7 p.m. EST, and the Paul William Beltz Pregame Show with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog starts at 6 p.m. EST on the radio home of the Buffalo Sabres - WGR Sports Radio 550.
