Boston, Massachusetts (WGR Sports Radio 550) - Though the path to the finish was different on this night, the Buffalo Sabres suffered a third-consecutive 4-3 overtime loss. Tonight, it was the Boston Bruins who got the last laugh inside TD Garden.
Despite boasting an early shot advantage, the blue and gold got into some penalty trouble and the Bruins made them pay. With 13:07 gone in the opening period, forward Morgan Geekie started the scoring for Boston on an aforementioned powerplay.
The Bruins extended the lead two-minutes later, all courtesy of forward David Pastrnak. "Pasta" forced a turnover in his defensive end, and went headway for a 2-on-1 rush the other direction. He took the shot in lieu of a pass, and beat Alex Lyon to sink the Sabres into a 2-0 deficit.
It wasn't until there was four-minutes left in the middle stanza that the Sabres were able to break through on the scoreboard. It was the captain leading by example, as Rasmus Dahlin's one-timer made it 2-1 Bruins on a powerplay.
Dahlin's goal seemed to add to some built-momentum for the blue and gold, as they were finally reaping benefits of a strong shot mentality. Unfortunately, Boston tacked on a demoralizer just 20-seconds before the intermission, when forward Mark Kastelic powered home a loose puck in the crease that Lyon lost sight of.
Josh Doan and the boys did not hang their heads, though, and got right back to work in the third. Seven-minutes in, Doan caught a puck from high out of the air, tossed it perfectly onto his blade, and scored to make it a 3-2 contest inside TD Garden.
Then, with 5:35 left in regulation the Sabres climbed all the way back even. Dahlin located Alex Tuch flying down the slot, and the give-and-go paid dividends as Tuch evened the score three goals apiece with a dandy.
Tuch's goal proved doubly large as it ended up guaranteeing the team another point, as Buffalo headed to its third-consecutive overtime contest. The blue and gold had to earn the point in crunch time, as Jordan Greenway took a minor penalty with 1:17 left in regulation.
In overtime, the song remained the same. The offense tried to do too much with too little support, and it led to numbers the other way. On this night it was Dahlin, who slipped while he was alone trying to create.
The miscue resulted in the game-winning goal, as Bruins forward Marat Khusnutdinov dropped the curtain on the blue and gold. Jack Quinn was left to defend what was essentially a 3-on-1 Boston rush.
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SCORING SUMMARY
First Period:
BUF: NONE
BOS: 13:07 - Morgan Geekie (9) PPG (David Pastrnak, Pavel Zacha); 15:07 - David Pastrnak (7) (Unassisted)
Second Period:
BUF: 16:01 - Rasmus Dahlin (1) PPG (Zach Benson, Tage Thompson)
BOS: 19:39 - Mark Kastelic (3) (Tanner Jeannot, Sean Kuraly)
Third Period:
BUF: 7:00 - Josh Doan (4) (Alex Tuch, Owen Power); 14:25 - Alex Tuch (4) (Rasmus Dahlin, Ryan McLeod)
BOS: NONE
Overtime:
BUF: NONE
BOS: 2:07 - Marat Khusnutdinov (1) OT-GWG (Fraser Minten)
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Blue Star Home Services Three Stars of the Game:
1. Marat Khusnutdinov - BOS
2. David Pastrnak - BOS
3. Joonas Korpisalo - BOS
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What's Next:
The blue and gold come home to host Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals. Puck drop at KeyBank Center is set for 7 p.m. EST with Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray on the call.