Anaheim, Calif. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres' four-game Western road trip wrapped up Sunday with a comeback effort that fell just short in overtime, 6-5, to the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center.
The Sabres vaulted out in front just 3:36 into the first period. Owen Power activated himself after Peyton Krebs tossed a puck in deep. From behind the net, Power's centering pass was rammed home by Alex Tuch for a 1-0 lead.
Anaheim then flipped the script on the Sabres in the middle portion of the opening frame. A couple of power play goals suddenly had the Sabres looking up at the Ducks, trailing 2-1. Forward Chris Kreider and defenseman Jackson LaCombe did the scoring for the home side.
Josh Doan had an answer with 2:46 left in the first period, though, to tie things up just ahead of the intermission. Following a beautiful feed from Noah Ostlund, Doan roofed his 23rd goal of the season on his off-wing past Ducks goalie Ville Husso.
Anaheim had the two lone goals of the second period to take a 4-2 lead heading into the locker room through 40 minutes.
First it was rookie forward Beckett Sennecke taking a puck to the net on an odd-man rush, and tucking it right past the left leg of Sabres netminder Alex Lyon. The goal came just 2:35 into the middle frame.
Then with 4:20 remaining in the period, Troy Terry walked in off the end boards off a missed shot on goal, and backhanded a shot past Lyon to put Anaheim up by a pair.
The third period saw a spirited comeback by the Sabres to not only tie the game, but eventually take the lead.
It only took 4:40 into the third period for Sabres winger Jack Quinn to cut the deficit to one, as he accepted a drop pass from captain Rasmus Dahlin and wired a quick shot past Husso.
Jack Quinn SNIPE! 🎯 pic.twitter.com/GyMXlhKGG7
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) March 23, 2026
Just past the halfway point of the period, defenseman Owen Power evened the score at 4-4, as he fired a shot from the point off a faceoff that went in off a Ducks defenseman along the way, off the post and in.
OP through traffic! ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/hFcPlcQetU
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) March 23, 2026
Just 92 seconds later, Buffalo regained the lead thanks to Zach Benson, who was in the right place at the right time to bury a behind-the-back pass from Dahlin below the goal line to give the Sabres a 5-4 lead.
THE PASS. THE GOAL. WE HAVE THE LEAD! 🫨 pic.twitter.com/l0e4cPZ1hC
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) March 23, 2026
With less than two minutes remaining in regulation and the Sabres attempting to kill off an Alex Tuch penalty, Anaheim found the equalizer courtesy of Mikael Granlund, who fired a shot past Lyon from the slot to even the game and eventually force overtime.
It took less than 90 seconds for the Ducks to end it in the extra frame, as Terry corralled a loose puck off the boards, coughed up by Sabres forward Tage Thompson, and went in alone to score the game-winner past Lyon.
The loss was Buffalo's only defeat on its four-game West Coast swing, which has been nothing short of spectacular.
Earlier in the week, the Sabres won games over the Vegas Golden Knights, San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings, allowing just a singular goal against through those first three games.
By collecting 7-of-8 points on the road, it keeps Buffalo in first place in a tight Atlantic Division with 95 points, four points ahead of the second-place Tampa Bay Lightning. The Sabres have 11 games remaining in the regular season, while Tampa Bay has 13.
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SCORING RECAP
First Period:
BUF: 3:36 - Alex Tuch (29) (Owen Power, Peyton Krebs); 17:14 - Josh Doan (23) (Noah Ostlund, Bowen Byram)
ANA: 9:27 - Chris Kreider (22) PPG (Leo Carlsson); 12:23 - Jackson LaCombe (9) PPG (Mason McTavish, Bennett Sennecke)
Second Period:
BUF: NONE
ANA: 2:35 - Bennett Sennecke (21) (Jackson LaCombe); 15:40 - Troy Terry (15) (Tim Washe, Olen Zellweger)
Third Period:
BUF: 4:40 - Jack Quinn (17) (Rasmus Dahlin, Zach Benson); 10:05 - Owen Power (8) (Ryan McLeod); 11:37 - Zach Benson (9) (Rasmus Dahlin, Beck Malenstyn)
ANA: 18:16 - Mikael Granlund (14) PPG (Chris Kreider, Leo Carlsson)
Overtime:
BUF: NONE
ANA: 1:29 - Troy Terry (16) (Unassisted)
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BlueStar Home Services Three Stars of the Game:
1.) Troy Terry - ANA
2.) Mikael Granlund - ANA
3.) Zach Benson - BUF
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What's next:
The Sabres return home to host the Boston Bruins on Wednesday night at KeyBank Center. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. with Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray on the radio-only call. Pregame coverage on WGR starts at 6:30 p.m. with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog.
Buffalo fought back from a 4-2 third-period deficit, only to lose 6-5 in Anaheim
