Forsberg, Senators end Sabres 6-game winning streak

OTTAWA -- Anton Forsberg made 33 saves, and the Ottawa Senators ended the Buffalo Sabres' six-game winning streak with a 3-1 victory at Canadian Tire Centre on Sunday.

Forsberg was making his first start since Dec. 18 and earned his first win since Dec. 3.
"At the end of the day, I've just got to focus on what I'm supposed to do even if I'm not playing," Forsberg said. "That's my job. Everybody goes to work, and I come in every day and try to have a good attitude and work on what I know I need to work on, and work together with the goalie coaches (Zac Bierk and Justin Peters).
"Both goalie coaches have done a great job of coming up with drills, and we've been working hard together to be able to stay in game shape. I felt good out there. I didn't feel like I hadn't played for a while, which is great."
Tim Stutzle
had two goals, Jacob Lucchini scored his first NHL goal, and Claude Giroux had two assists for the Senators (17-17-3), who have won three of four.
"We knew the way we had to play in order to win, and I just thought we stayed with it all the way," Ottawa coach D.J. Smith said.

Zemgus Girgensons scored, and Craig Anderson made 30 saves in his first start since Dec. 17 for the Sabres (18-15-2).
"I thought [Anderson] was just steady," Buffalo coach Don Granato said. "He's just a good goalie, and he made it look simple. He read shooters extremely well and kind of had an effortlessness to him. He was fresh. He did his job."
Stutzle gave the Senators a 1-0 lead 47 seconds into the first period when his centering pass ricocheted off Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin back to him for a shot that beat Anderson glove side.
"Just got to be better," Buffalo forward Tage Thompson said. "It wasn't a good enough effort tonight by me, and I think we left [Anderson] hanging a lot.
"You've got to give them credit. They played a hard game, they were physical, in your face all night, took time and space away from us, and when that happens, you've got to simplify, you've got to keep it really simple, and we did not do that. We passed pucks right into their pressure and gave them easy turnovers, and that's where they got a lot of their offense."
The Sabres had an opportunity to tie the game after Senators defenseman Nick Holden was called for tripping at 18:14 and defenseman Travis Hamonic was penalized for hooking 20 seconds later. However, Buffalo did not record a shot on goal during the two-man advantage and is 1-for-12 on the power play in its past four games.
"The 5-on-3 depicted everything," Granato said. "We complicated what should have been really simple. We had time and space. We just couldn't even make a simple play."
Girgensons tied it 1-1 at 6:51 of the second period, receiving a stretch pass from Mattias Samuelsson as he split the defense and scoring on a breakaway with a forehand deke.
Lucchini restored Ottawa to a 2-1 lead at 11:45 when he drove to the net and scored backdoor on a power play.
"When the puck squirted out, knowing that you have a chance to score your first goal, you get pretty excited," Lucchini said. "My eyes opened up pretty big. Just so excited. Obviously, it's something I've dreamed about my whole life. It might be my last first goal, I think, so it was unbelievable."

Lucchini said he "blacked out a little bit" after the goal. His mother, Sandy, who flew in from Detroit, was in attendance for his fifth NHL game.
"It's so hard to put into words, honestly," Lucchini said. "You just dream about it, and it was so special and obviously, the crowd with so many people. It was such an exciting game. To have a positive impact like that was really, you know, important for me and good for our team."
Stutzle scored an empty-net goal at 18:49 of the third period for the 3-1 final.
"We're used to scoring goals, and when that doesn't happen, everyone gets, you know, 'Oh my goodness, we didn't score.' But that's going to happen," Anderson said. "You're going to run into some bad luck or a hot goalie in some way, shape, or form throughout the year. We can't dwell on it. You just have to turn the page and look forward to the next one."
NOTES: Ottawa forward Drake Batherson had his point streak end at 13 games (seven goals, 11 assists). … Stutzle extended his point streak to five games (four goals, two assists). He has seven career multigoal games, passing Alexandre Daigle for second-most by an Ottawa player before their 21st birthday. Only Martin Havlat (eight) has more. Stutzle also has 26 multipoint games, the most by a Senators player before their 21st birthday.