5 takeaways | Cozens exits early in loss to Penguins

Dylan Cozens was still being assessed by the time the Buffalo Sabres met with the media after their 5-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.
The third-period hit from Zach Aston-Reese that knocked Cozens out of the game - well, that they had already assessed.
"Looking at it now, it's a push in the numbers in a real vulnerable, dangerous spot," Sabres coach Ralph Krueger said. "I think it has to be a penalty. … Really difficult when you see a player exposed like that and you give them a push right in the numbers at that distance. You know the danger of that as the player. So, quite disappointed that that wasn't called at that point."

Cozens had dumped the puck into the Pittsburgh end and was several feet away from the boards when he was shoved by Aston-Reese. The Sabres rookie appeared to hit his head as he turned and went backward into the wall, forcing him out of the game with 17:33 remaining.
Aston-Reese was not penalized and the Penguins scored 16 seconds later, extending the Sabres' winless streak to nine games (0-7-2).
Here are five takeaways from the game, beginning with the fallout from the hit on Cozens.

1. Injuries continue to mount

Cozens was centering a line with Taylor Hall and Sam Reinhart in place of captain Jack Eichel, who will miss at least a week with an upper-body injury. Eichel joined an injured list that included defenseman Jake McCabe and starting goaltender Linus Ullmark, among others.
The fact that Cozens had been a spark plug in an otherwise difficult season for the Sabres made the hit more tough to swallow.
"I think it was kind of a bad hit," Victor Olofsson said. "He was in a vulnerable place and he kind of had his momentum going after he dumped the puck there towards the boards. Just gave him an extra push and I think that was really unnecessary and a dangerous play."

2. Sabres get a response, but no result

Colin Miller answered the hit on Cozens without hesitation, tossing his gloves and forcing a fight with Aston-Reese immediately afterward. It was the sort of response, Krueger said, that showed the group has stuck together through its struggles.
That passion, Krueger added, needs to translate to the scoreboard. Pittsburgh extended its lead to 4-2 on the shift following Miller's fight when Anthony Angello skated through the defense and beat goaltender Jonas Johansson with a shot on the rush.
"There is a lot of passion in this group and I believe in this group," Krueger said. "I love coaching this group. The pain of now is not changing that pleasure of coaching them. Millsie just showed the fire that is in this side and in this squad and we need to turn that into results."

3. Comeback efforts fall short

The Sabres fell behind early on a goal from Evgeny Malkin but responded with one of their own from Tage Thompson just 27 seconds later. They fell behind in the second period, 2-1, on a breakaway by Brandon Tanev only to even the score again on a shot from Victor Olofsson.
The magic ran out. Jake Guentzel buried a Sidney Crosby feed on the power play to put the Penguins ahead, 3-2, with 8:24 remaining in the second period. The Sabres hit the post multiple times in their bid for a comeback, including two off the stick of Miller on a single shift.
"Guys are trying but obviously it's not good enough," Krueger said. "We're measured by results and we've got to go back at it tomorrow and nobody's gonna feel sorry for us in this situation. We've just got to fight our way out of it. Nothing's coming easy, that's for sure."

4. Thompson scores in return to lineup

Thompson appeared in his first game since Feb. 25, replacing Tobias Rieder on a line with Cody Eakin and Kyle Okposo. His goal was his first in the NHL since Jan. 29, 2019.
The play was the result of a strong drive to the net after he won a battle along the boards in tandem with Okposo. Thompson fended off Crosby as he carried the puck behind the net and buried a wrap-around attempt between the pads of goaltender Tristan Jarry.

"That's something I've been putting a lot of emphasis on, just getting pucks down low and taking pucks to the net and using my body," Thompson said.

5. The big picture

In addition to the hit on Cozens, Krueger said the team was disappointed with what appeared to be a knee-to-knee collision from Penguins defenseman Chad Ruhwedel on Rasmus Dahlin. (Dahlin remained in the game following the play).
The Sabres will look to channel that anger into a win when the two teams meet again Saturday.
"We need to prepare ourselves for a reaction," Krueger said. "We've got Pittsburgh again in two days and the hits on Dylan and Rasmus, they're boiling the blood right now and we just need to show a reaction."