Sabres close out homestand with win over Panthers

Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR) - The Buffalo Sabres returned to the win column to close out a five-game homestand on Tuesday afternoon with a 5-3 win over the Florida Panthers at KeyBank Center.

The Sabres got on the board first just six minutes into the opening period thanks to winger Josh Doan, as he broke into the Florida zone with speed and snapped a shot past the right shoulder of goalie Jacob Markstrom.

Midway through the first period, the Panthers evened the score as forward Anton Lundell put a loose puck through the five-hole of Sabres goalie Colten Ellis and just over the goal line. Defenseman Olen Zellweger was also in the crease for Buffalo, but couldn't keep the puck from entering the net.

Later in the opening frame, Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin ripped home a one-timer on the power play to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead.

Buffalo exited the first period with a 2-1 lead, while also holding an 11-7 advantage in shots on goal.

To start the second period, the Panthers made a change in net with Akira Schmid replacing Markstrom. Markstrom ended up not returning to the Florida bench for the remainder of the game.

The Panthers got their first chance on the power play in the second period and tied the game, 2-2, courtesy of former Sabres forward Sam Reinhart. After a point shot from defenseman Seth Jones squeaked through the legs of Ellis, Reinhart tapped the loose puck into the net.

Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff then elected to pull Ellis after the goal in favor of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Ellis finished his afternoon with just seven saves on nine shots faced in 26:26 of work.

Some unfortunate injury news came down for the Sabres in the second period, as Dahlin ended up going to the locker room after taking a shot on goal and appearing to feel in some sort of discomfort. It wasn't long after his exit that the team announced he was not returning to the game with an upper-body injury.

Buffalo grabbed the lead back again minutes later, as defenseman Olen Zellweger hit Ryan McLeod streaking into the Panthers zone, and the Sabres forward cut across the goal mouth and tucked a puck past the extended right leg of Schmid to make it a 3-2 game.

Florida got another chance on the power play in the period and, once again, it was Reinhart scoring to tie the game with his second tally of the middle frame..

The second period ended with Buffalo continuing to lead in total shots, 24-14, but the game all even at 3-3.

With Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad in the penalty box for holding the stick, the Sabres power play came through for a second time in the game just 7:15 into the final period. This time, it was Buffalo completing a beautiful passing sequence, capped off with winger Zach Benson feeding forward Noah Östlund in front to give the Sabres the lead once more.

A little more than six minutes later, the Sabres got some breathing room with a goal from Tage Thompson streaking down the slot, and Buffalo's lead ballooned to a pair, 5-3.

Despite a late push from the Panthers to cut the deficit, Buffalo was able to keep things tight and close out the win to end the homestand on a positive note.

As for Luukkonen, he finished his afternoon strong in relief with 13 saves on 14 shots in relief.

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SCORING RECAP

First Period:
BUF: 5:58 - Josh Doan (1) (Peyton Krebs); 15:55 - Rasmus Dahlin (2) PPG (Jack Quinn, Tage Thompson)
FLA: 11:00 - Anton Lundell (1) (Aaron Ekblad, Sandis Vilmanis)

Second Period:
BUF: 11:25 - Ryan McLeod (1) (Olen Zellweger, Owen Power)
FLA: 6:26 - Sam Reinhart (1) PPG (Seth Jones, Matthew Tkachuk); 13:39 - Sam Reinhart (2) PPG (Seth Jones, Brady Tkachuk)

Third Period:
BUF: 7:15 - Noah Östlund (2) PPG (Zach Benson, Jack Quinn); 13:20 - Tage Thompson (4) (Owen Power, Peyton Krebs)
FLA: NONE

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STATS OF THE GAME:

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Bluestar Three Stars of the Game:

1.) Noah Östlund - BUF
2.) Ryan McLeod - BUF
3.) Jack Quinn - BUF

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What's next:

The Sabres head out for the first of a three-game road trip on Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens. Faceoff from the Bell Centre is slated for 6:30 p.m., with pregame coverage on the radio home of the Sabres - WGR - starting at 5:30 p.m. with Zach Jones and Derek Kramer.