Anaheim, Calif. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - For the first time during this 2024-25 campaign, the Buffalo Sabres have climbed above the .500 mark.
The Sabres did so in poetic fashion on Friday night in Southern California.
Lying face-down on the mat, the blue and gold turned a 2-0 deficit in the waning moments of the second period into a 3-2 victory with moments left in overtime against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center.
With about four minutes played in the opening period, Anaheim claimed an early lead and quieted any thought of consecutive shutouts for Buffalo. Defenseman Drew Helleson's shot through traffic eluded Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, and gave the Ducks the 1-0 edge.
Anaheim then doubled its lead with just under six minutes to play in the middle stanza. Right as a Sabres penalty was expiring, Ducks forward Isac Lundestrom deflected a shot that bounded up and over Luukkonen, and into the Buffalo net to make it 2-0.
The Sabres sliced the deficit right back in half minutes later.
With 83 seconds left in the period, a point shot by Owen Power was deflected by Alex Tuch, who received credit for Buffalo's opening goal. A late scoring change reflected the play as an own goal, which was Tuch's sixth goal of the season.
Less than a minute later, the Sabres clawed all the way back to tie the game at 2-2. Jason Zucker got sent free on a breakaway, and tallied his fifth goal of the season to knot the score just before the second intermission.
The game remained scoreless through the third period, and this contest eventually trickled into a sudden-death overtime.
After many good chances in the extra frame, the Sabres were finally able to put the finishing touches on the comeback effort.
Jiri Kulich dropped the curtain with one minute left before a shootout.
Tuch stripped the puck in the neutral zone, and headed the other way with Power. After a cross-crease attempt was snuffed, Kulich was there to clean up the loose change and register his first-career game-winning overtime goal in the NHL.
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SCORING RECAP
First Period:
BUF: NONE
ANA: 4:02 - Drew Helleson (1) (Trevor Zegras, Leo Carlsson)
Second Period:
BUF: 18:37 - Alex Tuch (6) (Unassisted); 19:27 - Jason Zucker (5) (Owen Power)
ANA: 14:07 - Isac Lundestrom (3) (Ross Johnston, Olen Zellweger)
Third Period:
BUF: NONE
ANA: NONE
Overtime:
BUF: 4:00 - Jiri Kulich (2) (Alex Tuch, Owen Power)
ANA: NONE
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Three Stars of the Game:
1.) Jiri Kulich - BUF
2.) Rasmus Dahlin - BUF
3.) John Gibson - ANA
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What's next:
The Sabres up their California swing on Saturday night with a matchup against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center. Faceoff from the Bay Area is set for 8 p.m. EST with Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray on the call.