Luukkonen's 40 saves lead Sabres to win in Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had already turned away seven shots by the time he stared down Sidney Crosby on a breakaway attempt less than six minutes into the Buffalo Sabres’ game against the Pittsburgh Penguins inside PPG Paints Arena on Saturday.

Like the seven shots before it – and like all but one of the 33 that followed – Crosby’s attempt was calmly turned away by Luukkonen, who made a season-high 40 saves in the Sabres’ 3-1 win.

“I think that was the most just confident, poised I’ve seen him play in his whole career,” Alex Tuch said. “… I thought he stood on his head, and he was probably the biggest reason we won tonight.”

Luukkonen was a steady presence for the Sabres in what was an otherwise unorthodox game, featuring two Pittsburgh goals overturned by coach’s challenges and a full two minutes at 5-on-3 awarded to the Penguins during the third period.

Tuch opened the scoring for the Sabres just 2:53 into the contest. The Penguins appeared to tie the game twice during the first period but had both goals overturned due to successful challenges by the Sabres, one for an offside entry and another for goaltender interference.

Rickard Rakell did finally net the tying goal with eight seconds left on Pittsburgh’s 5-on-3 power play, the result of concurrent penalties issued against Zemgus Girgensons (slashing) and Connor Clifton (interference). But Girgensons went to the net-front to bury a rebound for the winner with 4:38 remaining, then Rasmus Dahlin sent a shot from his own zone into an open net for added insurance.

The result was a second straight win for the Sabres, with a six-game homestand awaiting them.

“Crazy, lots of events,” Sabres coach Don Granato said. “But you know I’ve said it for weeks now, it’s a mentality. We talked about some mojo, some swagger, and the fact that we didn’t have that, and we played with fear. Tonight, you don’t come through that game unless you have that swagger and fearlessness.

“You’ve got to block it out, and we were able to block it out. Upie was able to block that out and just continue doing what he did. That’s the mental toughness that we need and mental toughness we have not had.”

Luukkonen’s night included three breakaway saves on Crosby, Rakell, and Jake Guentzel. His outing came on the heels of a 32-save victory from Devon Levi in Montreal on Thursday.

Granato said leading up to the game that he is inclined to rotate the two young goaltenders for the time being, in part so that both can benefit from rest between starts.

“They’ve been good,” Granato said. “The way the schedule is, if we give these guys a little rest, they can rise. [Luukkonen] certainly did for us tonight.”

Here’s more from the win in Pittsburgh.

1. Tuch wore an “A” as an alternate captain for the first time this season, with captain Kyle Okposo currently out due to a lower-body injury.

The forward – who missed practice on Friday with an illness – was on the receiving end of a stretch pass from Clifton and buried a wrist shot from the high slot for the game’s opening goal.

2. Clifton’s assist on Tuch’s goal was his ninth in 14 games since Dec. 7, which leads the Sabres and is tied for ninth among NHL defensemen in that span.

3. Girgensons’ winning goal was the product of a hardworking shift alongside linemates Eric Robinson and Peyton Krebs. Robinson and Girgensons were both providing layers of traffic in front of Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry as Mattias Samuelsson shot from the point, after which Girgensons boxed out Erik Karlsson for the rebound and scored on a backhand shot.

“Sometimes you can go there, go there, go there and nothing’s going to happen,” Girgensons said, referencing the opposing net. “But eventually something’s going to go in. It’s nice to get rewarded for being in there.”

4. Dahlin forced a turnover along the boards in the defensive zone as Jarry was on his way to the Pittsburgh bench for an extra attacker. Dahlin immediately shot on the open net, eluding a diving attempt from Jarry as the goaltender attempted to recover.

The goal was Dahlin’s second in as many games and 12th of the season, most among NHL defensemen.

Up next

The Sabres host the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday to open a six-game homestand at KeyBank Center.

Tickets are available here.

Pregame coverage on MSG/MSG+ begins at 6:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.