Levi's 33 saves help Sabres to 'gut-check' victory over Wild

Devon Levi caught a glimpse of Kirill Kaprizov in the slot and simply let his instincts take over.

The Sabres were protecting a one goal lead with less than three minutes to play when Kaprizov – already with a goal under his belt – found the puck on his stick in front of the Buffalo net. Levi, positioned on the right post as Mats Zuccarello carried the puck on the rush, dashed to his left and made the save.

The play was one of 33 saves Levi made Friday and a microcosm of the Sabres’ bend-but-not-break performance in their 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild inside KeyBank Center.

“I don’t know how it got there, but there again, it was just a reactionary save,” Levi said. “I think my butt may have been touching the ground. Just trying to close the five-hole. Then again, guys got the rebound and cleared it. Great job by the boys.”

Henri Jokiharju opened the scoring for the Sabres while Jeff Skinner and JJ Peterka each had a goal and an assist. Levi, meanwhile, served as a last line of defense against a Wild team that entered the night ranked 10th in scoring per game and fourth in even-strength goals.

The rookie goaltender twice battled through screens to stop quick shots from Zuccarello on the power play. He made a sprawling glove save against Marco Rossi on a 2-on-1 rush with the game tied early in the second period. Each time, he leaned on his instincts.

“Went out, competed, kind of dropped the technical aspect of the game and just kind of tried to keep the puck out of the net,” Levi said. “So, it was just fun. The boys played really well.

“We shut it down at the end. Not many scoring opportunities just because the guys were blocking everything. It was hard for me to see because there was so much going on in front of the net, but the guys did a great job keeping it out. It was fun.”

When Kaprizov attempted a last-ditch shot from the point with 13 seconds remaining, Levi saw it through traffic and calmly covered the puck for a whistle.

“Devon played very well obviously,” Granato said. “… That’s what good goaltenders do.”

Granato echoed Levi in complimenting the job done by defenders in front of the net. The Sabres blocked 22 shots and boxed out around their goaltender, allowing him clear lanes of vision and preventing the Wild from pouncing on rebounds.

“I thought it was, in the end, a hell of a gut-check for our guys and they pushed through,” Granato said.

Here’s more from the Sabres’ seventh win of the season.

1. Peterka assisted on Skinner’s goal to give the Sabres the lead with 58 seconds remaining in the second period, then scored what would stand as the winner 3:33 into the third.

Peterka initiated the first goal by poking the puck free in the neutral zone, sending Skinner on a breakaway:

“Great play by JJ, obviously, to sort of anticipate and poke the puck, and then I was able to get behind their D because he kind of poked it by them,” Skinner said.

Tage Thompson drove the puck behind the Minnesota goal line on the rush and then passed to Peterka in front for the winner:

Peterka has six goals and 10 points in 14 games this season.

2. Matt Savoie made his NHL debut and skated 3:55. His parents, Scott and Jody, made the trip from Alberta to see their son play.

“I haven’t seen my parents since August when I left, so they took the red eye last night and got here in the morning,” Savoie said. “It was a bit of a hectic travel day for them last night but it was special to see them again.”

3. The Sabres held Hockey Fights Cancer Night in partnership with Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. Sophia LaBorde, a 13-year-old patient at Roswell, was honored during a pregame ceremony.

Learn more about Sophia and her inspirational story in the video below.

4. Players were joined by patients from Roswell Park as they arrived at KeyBank Center for a purple carpet experience. Check out photos of the Sabres and their guests of honor in the gallery below:

Up next

The Sabres conclude the back-to-back set in Pittsburgh on Saturday. Coverage on MSG/MSG+ begins at 7 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7:30.