For the first time in franchise history, the Buffalo Sabres won a game in Las Vegas, Nevada. The blue and gold's win streak reached four on Monday night, as they withstood a late attack from the Vegas Golden Knights to grab a 3-2 victory inside T-Mobile Arena.
After a scoreless opening frame, the Sabres got on the scoreboard first. Alex Tuch and Jeff Skinner were streaking into the Vegas zone, and Tuch fed Skinner for the veteran forward's 16th goal of the season.
About five-and-a-half minutes later, Tage Thompson scored his regularly-scheduled highlight-reel goal. Thompson showed off his "silky mitts" in front of Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill, before he wired goal number 26 behind the netminder.
Six minutes later, Lawrence Pilut scored his first NHL goal in nearly three calendar years with a shot off the draw.
Pilut's goal capped the scoring through 40-minutes of play.
The Golden Knights got a pair of goals back in succession in the third period of play, thanks to a breakaway score from Chandler Stephenson and another from Reilly Smith in the late goings of the game. Vegas really dialed up the heat from Smith's goal on, as their emphasis on a game-tying third goal reached a fever pitch with only a couple of minutes on the clock.
Fortunately for the Sabres, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is in the midst of one of the strongest stretches of his young NHL career. "UPL" hunkered down, kept Vegas at bay for the rest of the night. Luukkonen was asked to stop 23 shots in the third period alone, and he saved 21 of them in the win.
The Sabres are now 16-14-2.
GAME SUMMARY:
Goal Summary:
First Period:
BUF: NONE
VGK: NONE
Second Period:
BUF: 1:53 - Jeff Skinner (16) (Alex Tuch, Lawrence Pilut, Casey Fitzgerald); 7;15 - Tage Thompson (26) (Casey Fitzgerald); 13:28 - Lawrence Pilut (1) (Kyle Okposo, Peyton Krebs)
VGK: NONE
Third Period:
BUF: NONE
VGK: 3:54 - Chandler Stephenson (Michael Amadio, Alec Martinez); 17:38 - Reilly Sith (17) (Alex Pietranglrlo, Willam Karlsson)
Penalty Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 8:18 - Ilya Lyubushkin (Boarding - 2 min.); 13:58 - Ilya Luyubushkin (Interference - 2 min.)
VGK: 3:59 - Keegan Kolesar (Boarding - 2 min.)
Second Period:
BUF: NONE
VGK: NONE
Third Period:
BUF: 9:47 - Mattias Samuelsson (Delay of game - puck over glass - 2 min.)
VGK: NONE
Losi and Gangi Three Stars of the Game:
1.)
2.)
3.)
What's Next:
The blue and gold have the middle of the work week off before hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday night, Dec. 23. Puck drop inside KeyBank Center is set for 7 pm EST, and pregame with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog starts at 6 pm EST on the flagship home of the Buffalo Sabres - WGR Sports Radio 550.