Los Angeles, Calif. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres saw their shutout streak come to an end, and took it personally.
Visiting the Los Angeles Kings, the blue and gold went down 1-0 early and then ripped off four-straight goals to win again at Crypto.com Arena.
In a twist of fate, it was the opponent scoring first on this day. On a powerplay, Kings forward Artemi Panarin netted the first goal against Sabres goaltending since last Saturday night.
It was a stretch of time that nearly spanned three games' worth of minutes; covering the tail end of last Saturday's game against Toronto, both shutouts at Vegas and San Jose, plus the opening 10:48 of today's tilt.
The Sabres tied things up about four-minutes into the middle stanza. Their pressure carried over from the end of the first, and Tage Thompson was finally able to get the team on the scoreboard.
He showcased great patience, and his slick pair of mitts to beat Kings goalie Anton Forsberg in tight for his 36th goal of the season.
With 8:48 left in regulation, the Sabres took their first lead of the afternoon. Zach Benson took a hit to make a play, and got the puck to Sam Carrick who roofed the go-ahead goal on a backhand.
Kings interim head coach D.J. Smith opted to call his timeout, and then utilize the extra time to get an extended look at a play that happened leading to Carrick's goal. The puck was played with what he believed to be a high-stick, and Smith pulled the trigger on his coach's challenge.
Carrick's go-ahead score ended up standing after a longer look by Toronto's headquarters, so Los Angeles was penalized and sent Buffalo to the powerplay.
Rasmus Dahlin made it a 3-1 Sabres edge just one-minute into the man advantage. His 15th goal of 2025-26 was batted in by a Kings defender in front.
Then, with two-and-a-half minutes left to play, Zach Benson sealed the deal with an empty-net tally; his eighth goal of the year all but iced things and kept the Sabres rolling with a 4-1 final.
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SCORING RECAP:
First Period:
BUF: NONE
LAK: 10:48 - Artemi Panarin (24) PPG (Adrian Kempe, Anze Kopitar)
Second Period:
BUF: 4:05 - Tage Thompson (36) (Peyton Krebs, Mattias Samuelsson)
LAK: NONE
Third Period:
BUF: 11:12 - Sam Carrick (9) (Zach Benson, Zach Metsa); 12:11 - Rasmus Dahlin (15) PPG (Josh Norris, Tage Thompson); 17:35 - Zach Benson (8) ENG (Josh Norris, Beck Malenstyn)
LAK: NONE
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Bluestar Home Services Three Stars of the Game:
1. Tage Thompson - BUF
2. Sam Carrick - BUF
3. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen - BUF
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What's Next:
The road trip culminates tomorrow night, March 22 against the Anaheim Ducks. Puck drop at Honda Center is set for 8 p.m. ET with Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray on the call.
