Sabres drop third-straight game in loss to Red Wings

Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550/WBEN) - The Detroit Red Wings rode a big first period to beat the Buffalo Sabres, 5-2, on Friday night at KeyBank Center.

Alex DeBrincat scored once and assisted on two other goals for the Red Wings, while goalie John Gibson made 28 saves in the win for Detroit.

Detroit took advantage of an early high sticking penalty by Josh Norris just four minutes into the game.

DeBrincat was able to chip home a rebound in front of the Buffalo net just seconds into the power play to give the Red Wings a 1-0 lead.

Midway through the first period, it was Detroit’s special teams coming through once again, this time with Logan Stanley off for interference.

Lucas Raymond extended the Red Wings’ lead to 2-0 with a shot to the top corner of the Buffalo net.

Nearing the end of the opening 20 minutes, Marco Kasper made it a 3-0 lead for Detroit to cap off a dominate first period on the score board.

The Sabres were finally able to cut into the lead 5:35 into the second period, as Peyton Krebs found Tage Thompson for a one-timer in the slot to make it 3-1.

The goal ended up being Thompson's 400th point of his NHL career.

Though only scoring one goal, Buffalo controlled the offensive play for most of the second period, as they outshot Detroit, 12-3, in the middle frame.

A possible Sabres comeback was stifled in the third period, as a pair of high sticking penalties were called against Buffalo. First, captain Rasmus Dahlin was sent off for a two-minute minor, and then Thompson got penalized with a double minor.

The score remained the same until later in the third period when former Sabres defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker extended the Detroit lead to 4-1.

Buffalo quickly got one back when Dahlin picked up a loose puck in front and flipped it over the pad of Gibson to make it a two-goal game once again.

In the final moments, though, with Alex Lyon on the bench for the extra attacker, it was South Buffalo native Patrick Kane sealing the game with an empty-netter to cap off a 5-2 win for the Red Wings.

Special teams was an important piece in this game, as Detroit scored twice early with the man advantage less than 10 minutes into the game. Meanwhile, Buffalo went 0-for-4 on the power play in the loss.

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SCORING RECAP

First Period:
BUF: NONE
DET: 4:02 - Alex DeBrincat (36) PPG (Moritz Seider, Dylan Larkin); 9:11 - Lucas Raymond (23) PPG (Moritz Seider); 16:06 - Marco Kasper (8) (Emmitt Finnie, James Van Riemsdyk)

Second Period:
BUF: 5:35 - Tage Thompson (37) (Peyton Krebs, Conor Timmins)
DET: NONE

Third Period:
BUF: 16:25 - Rasmus Dahlin (16) (Tanner Pearson, Bowen Byram)
DET: 15:46 - Jacob Bernard-Docker (1) (Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat); 18:17 - Patrick Kane (13) ENG (Alex DeBrincat)

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STATS OF THE GAME:

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BlueStar Home Services Three Stars of the Game:

1.) Lucas Raymond – DET
2.) Moritz Seider – DET
3.) John Gibson - DET

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What's next:

The Buffalo Sabres continue their homestand on Saturday, as they welcome the Seattle Kraken to KeyBank Center for a 5:30 p.m. puck drop. Catch all of the action on WGR Sports Radio 550, starting at 4:30 p.m. with pregame coverage hosted by Brian Koziol.