Buffalo, NY (WGR 550) - It hasn’t been pretty lately, but the Buffalo Sabres have found ways to get points.
Buffalo knocked off the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, 4-3 in a shootout to raise their record to 4-1-2 in the last seven games. That’s points in six out of seven games.
When the Sabres left the game on Saturday, they had passed the Pittsburgh Penguins for fourth in the East Division, which is a playoff spot.
This game had a few big stages that produced a Sabres win.
First, at 12:15 of the first period, Eric Staal and Brandon Montour went to the penalty box, giving New Jersey a full two-minute 5-on-3 advantage. Not only did Curtis Lazar, Jake McCabe and Rasmus Ristolainen do a terrific job of taking passing lanes and shot lanes away, they held the Devils to no shots in the advantage.
Second, in the third period, Jack Eichel had to leave the ice after getting hit in the mouth with a puck. Devils goalie Scott Wedgewood was having the easiest game of his life. With Sam Reinhart injured and not playing, nobody got anywhere near Wedgewood to screen or bother him.
When Ty Smith went for hooking, Ralph Krueger replaced Eichel with Ristolainen, who sprinted from the right point to the front of the net, and pretty much sat in Wedgewood’s lap. It worked perfectly as Victor Olofsson found himself alone in the slot, and all he had to do was pick a corner because the Devils netminder couldn’t see a thing thanks to No. 55.
Last season, Krueger did that some on the power play with pretty good success, and I think they need to continue it. There are too many players on this team that don’t attack the net, and Ristolainen is one of the strongest players in the league. Most players or goalies can’t move him.
Krueger also put Lazar out there to take the draw. He wanted immediate possession, which he got.
Originally, Krueger put Dylan Cozens on the No. 1 power play unit for Reinhart and put Tage Thompson on the No. 2 unit for Cozens.
Third, Eichel returned to play and scored the only goal of the shootout to preserve the win. Linus Ullmark stopped Jesper Bratt, Nikita Gusev and Kyle Palmieri to get the two points.
Ullmark is 9-of-10 on the season in shootouts, with John Carlson from the Washington Capitals to only one to score on him.
The Sabres were able to come back quickly in the third period after Andreas Johnsson had given New Jersey a 2-1 lead. It took Tobi Rieder just 41 seconds to tie the game back up. Rieder already has three goals on the season.
With Reinhart out, Thompson came back into the lineup playing right wing with Eichel and Olofsson. It didn’t go well, as Thompson looked nervous and timid being with the captain. He hesitated on plays, and the line was never dangerous.
As soon as Thompson got a shift with Lazar and Riley Sheahan, he looked great. He attacked the zone with purpose and speed, cut through the left circle and created a great chance on goal.
Right before Eichel got hurt, Krueger moved Olofsson to right wing and put Jeff Skinner on the left.
Things that held the Sabres back in this game is veterans like Taylor Hall and Eric Staal took bad offensive zone penalties, with Staal’s costing them a goal.
They also need to figure out a way to make games more difficult for goalies. There’s too much perimeter play and not enough people around the crease and the goaltender.
After getting two out of four points against the Philadelphia Flyers nearly two weeks ago, the Sabres went to Washington and took three out of four points. The next series against the Rangers at home also produced three out of four points, and they have an opportunity to sweep the Devils with a win on Sunday afternoon.
Buffalo now has a .556 points percentage. The Sabres haven’t had a regulation loss in four games, going 3-0-1.
