Leafs vs. Sabres Pre-Season Takeaways

SABRES SCORE ONLY GOAL IN 1ST PERIOD, BUT MATTHEWS TIES IT EARLY IN 2ND
1. The Leafs brought their undefeated (3-0-0) pre-season record to Buffalo Saturday, but Toronto found itself trailing after one period when they got in penalty trouble and Sabres winger Kyle Okposo scored a power play goal at 4:17 of the opening frame. That turned out to be the lone goal of the first, although the Leafs outshot the Sabres 12-9. But Toronto didn't waste time evening the score in the second, as winger Tyler Ennis floated a perfect pass from just inside Buffalo's blueline all the way down to the right of Buffalo goalie Carter Hutton, and Matthews chopped it up top for his second pre-season goal.
That turned out to be the lone goal of the first, although the Leafs outshot the Sabres 12-9. But Toronto didn't waste time evening the score in the second, as winger Tyler Ennis floated a perfect pass from just inside Buffalo's blueline all the way down to the right of Buffalo goalie Carter Hutton, and Matthews chopped it up top for his second pre-season goal.

BRACCO SCORES SECOND OF PRE-SEASON ON PLAY STARTED BY BROOKS
2. Speaking of hand-eye coordination: Toronto winger Jeremy Bracco has been honing his skills and it's producing notable results. After scoring his first pre-season goal Wednesday against Ottawa, Bracco deflected defenceman Justin Holl's shot from the point past Hutton at 5:37 of the second to give the Leafs their first lead of the evening:

Bracco got much of the spotlight for finishing the scoring sequence, but also deserving of credit was centre Adam Brooks, who worked hard down low in Buffalo's zone to grab control of the puck and send it out to Holl.
BROOKS COMBINES WITH ROSEN TO BREAK TIE, GIVE LEAFS GAME-WINNING GOAL
3. As it did in Friday's 5-3 loss to the Leafs, Buffalo showed resilience Saturday, tying the game again with only 13 seconds left in the second period on winger Jeff Skinner's first goal as a Sabre. And Buffalo out-shot the Leafs 14-7 in the third period, but Buds goalie Calvin Pickard (who stepped in after starter Frederik Andersen stopped 19 of 21 shots he saw through the first 40 minutes of action) was solid in the final 20 minutes of play. And that allowed the Leafs to take advantage of a power play of their own: forward Trevor Moore curled out of the corner and got the puck to Brooks, who quickly recognized D-man Calle Rosen with a ton of open ice and a clear shot at Hutton. Rosen did not miss on the point shot, and Toronto took the lead at 10:32 of the third.

That would turn out to be the game's final goal, and the Leafs improved to 4-0-0 on the season. Their next action comes Monday at Scotiabank Arena, when the arch-rival Montreal Canadiens come to town for the first of two games in three nights. And if Toronto remains as competitive and speedy as they've looked thus far, the Habs are going to have their hands full.