In their first game in more than 10 months, the Buffalo Sabres got the 2020-21 season off to a sluggish start with a 6-4 loss to the Washington Capitals on Thursday night at KeyBank Center.
The Capitals struck twice in the opening period to enjoy a 2-1 lead over Buffalo. Nicklas Backstrom scored the season's first goal that gave Washington a 1-0 lead, and after Buffalo tied the score, T.J. Oshie answered on the power play for the visitors.
Taylor Hall scored the Sabres first goal of the season that, at the time, tied the score at 1-1 midway through the first. Hall's first goal as a member of the blue and gold came on the power play thanks to tic-tac-toe passing from Jack Eichel and Victor Olofsson.
Washington added to its lead thanks to a pair of second period goals.
John Carlson's first of the season came as he was able to break in 1-on-1 against Carter Hutton and wire a wrist shot to make it 3-1. Washington's fourth goal of the night came from defenseman Brendan Dillon, just after the Sabres killed off a Colin Miller minor penalty and were back at full strength.
Tobias Rieder brought the blue and gold within a pair late in the middle frame as his wrap-around attempt found its way through Capitals goalie Ilya Samsonov and in. Dylan Cozens recorded the primary assist for his first NHL point in his first NHL game.
The Sabres looked to be back in sync to start the third period, scoring less than a minute into the third period. Jake McCabe's first goal of the season came 20 seconds into the final frame and brought Buffalo within a goal, 4-3.
However, Eric Staal turned the puck over in the defensive zone seconds later that led to a Jakub Vrana goal and 5-3 Capitals lead.
A late goal by Victor Olofsson, once again, brought Buffalo to within a goal, 5-4. The second-year NHLer scored with less than two minutes remaining in regulation.
In the end, Garnet Hathaway scored an empty net goal with just 1:03 left on the clock from the neutral zone to help preserve the Washington victory.
----------
GAME SUMMARY
Goal Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 8:48 - Taylor Hall (1) PPG (Victor Olofsson, Jack Eichel)
WAS: 5:43 - Nicklas Backstrom (1) (Alexander Ovechkin, T.J. Oshie); 10:33 - T.J. Oshie (1) PPG (Alexander Ovechkin, John Carlson)
Second Period:
BUF: 18:46 - Tobias Rieder (1) (Dylan Cozens, Jake McCabe)
WAS: 7:05 - John Carlson (1) (T.J. Oshie, Nicklas Backstrom); 13:23 - Brendan Dillon (1) (Conor Sheary, Lars Eller)
Third Period:
BUF: 0:20 - Jake McCabe (1) (Jack Eichel, Tage Thompson); 18:06 - Victor Olofsson (1) (Taylor Hall, Sam Reinhart)
WAS: 0:46 - Jakub Vrana (1) (unassisted); 18:57 - Garnet Hathaway (1) ENG (Nick Jensen)
----------
Penalty Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 9:34 - Rasmus Dahlin (Holding - 2 min.)
WAS: 8:30 - T.J. Oshie (Elbowing - 2 min.)
Second Period:
BUF: 11:19 - Colin Miller (Cross checking - 2 min.)
WAS: 2:40 - Nic Dowd (Holding - 2 min.)
Third Period:
BUF: 15:27 - Jake McCabe (Fighting - 5 min.)
WAS: 10:04 - Nic Dowd (Hit to the head - 2 min.); 15:27 - Brendan Dillon (Fighting - 5 min.)
----------
----------
Losi and Gangi Three Stars of the Game:
1.) T.J. Oshie - WSH
2.) Nicklas Backstrom - WSH
3.) Alexander Ovechkin - WSH
Two items of note:
1.) Frontline workers and first responders helped introduce the Sabres during pregame ceremonies before the season opener
2.) Taylor Hall logged 18:02 of ice time in his Sabres' debut.
What's Next:
The Sabres and Capitals will meet again on Friday night at KeyBank Center to complete their two-game series. Pregame coverage on the Paul William Beltz Pregame show starts at 6 p.m. EST with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog. Faceoff is set for 7 p.m. EST with Rick Jeanneret and Rob Ray on the call along the Sabres Radio Network.