Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - The Buffalo Sabres were unable to rally from three goals down and fall to the Vancouver Canucks, 5-4, on Tuesday night at KeyBank Center.
Buffalo had the first power play opportunity of the night, but were unable to capitalize on Bo Horvat's hooking minor.
Instead, moments after returning to full strength, the Canucks scored to take a 1-0 lead eight minutes into the game. Dakota Joshua was alone in the slot and scored his third goal of the season on a one-timer from Nils Aman.
Ethan Bear doubled the Vancouver lead to 2-0 with a shot from the slot that went through traffic. Craig Anderson was screened at the top of his crease, and the Sabres trailed by a pair less than 10 minutes into the first period.
The Sabres used smooth passing to their advantage to trim the deficit in half less than two minutes later. Rasmus Dahlin's cross-ice pass found Jeff Skinner, and the forward buried his fourth goal of the season. The goal brought Buffalo to within a goal, 2-1.
Dahlin was called for the first penalty of the game for the Sabres, as he was guilty of holding. The team was able to kill off the penalty that ran primarily at the end of the opening period.
Buffalo was credited with seven shots on goal, while Vancouver recorded 15 of their own.
After Vancouver extended their lead back to two goals thanks to a re-direction goal from Elias Pettersson in front of goalie Craig Anderson, Skinner, once again, scored for the Sabres to bring the team back to within a goal, 3-2. The forward's second goal of the night capped off an offensive zone chance started by Tage Thompson.
The Canucks converted on a pair of power play chances to expand their lead to three goals, 5-2. J.T. Miller scored the first of the two goals almost immediately off of an offensive zone faceoff win. Just over a minute later, Bo Horvat converted on a turnover for his 14th score of the season.
Three minutes later, Alex Tuch was able to deflect an Owen Power shot from the point for his eighth goal of the season. Thompson assisted on the second-straight Sabres goal that made the score 5-3.
Casey Mittelstadt was able to bring the Sabres back to within a goal, 5-4, just after a power play chance midway through the third period. Mittelstadt's fourth goal of the year came after the forward was able to get to a loose puck in the slot and use a wrist shot to beat Canucks goalie Spencer Martin.
The Sabres recorded 15 shots on goal in the third period, and finished the game with 32 shots, but were unable to complete the comeback in the end. Vancouver also ended the night with 32 shots on goal.
As a result of the loss, the Sabres have now lost six-straight games.
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GAME RECAP
Scoring Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 11:15 - Jeff Skinner (4) (Rasmus Dahlin, Alex Tuch)
VAN: 8:01 - Dakota Joshua (3) (Nils Aman, William Lockwood); 9:18 - Ethan Bear (1) (Bo Horvat, Conor Garland)
Second Period:
BUF: 3:43 - Jeff Skinner (5) (Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch); 11:12 - Alex Tuch (8) (Owen Power, Tage Thompson)
VAN: 0:31 - Elias Petterson (7) (Oliver Ekman-Larsson); 7:13 - J.T. Miller (10) PPG (Bo Horvat); 8:25 - Bo Horvat (14) PPG (Brock Boeser, Elias Petterson)
Third Period:
BUF: 12:02 - Casey Mittelstadt (4) (Dylan Cozens, Peyton Krebs)
VAN: NONE
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Penalty Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 18:16 - Rasmus Dahlin (Holding - 2 min.)
VAN: 4:32 - Bo Horvat (Hooking - 2 min.)
Second Period:
BUF: 6:20 - Ilya Lyubushkin (Tripping - 2 min.); 7:32 - Rasmus Dahlin (Tripping - 2 min.)
VAN: 18:22 - Bo Horvat (Hooking - 2 min.)
Third Period:
BUF: NONE
VAN: 9:57 - Brock Boeser (Cross-checking - 2 min.)
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Losi and Gangi Three Stars of the Game:
1.) Bo Horvat - VAN
2.) Elias Petterson - VAN
3.) Jeff Skinner - BUF
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What's next:
The Sabres will head out on the road and play right away on Wednesday night against the Ottawa Senators. Faceoff at the Canadian Tire Centre is set for 7 p.m. EST on the flagship home of the Sabres Radio Network - WGR Sports Radio 550. Pregame coverage with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog begins at 6 p.m. EST.
