Sabres’ early struggles continue, have ‘got to remember it’s 60 minutes’

WASHINGTON -- A ghost from the Buffalo Sabres’ past came back to haunt them Saturday, but their demons of the present have been a recurring plague thus far this season.

Former teammate Alex Tuch scoring his second goal of the game at 3:42 of overtime capped a frustrating 4-3 overtime loss to the Washington Capitals and followed a familiar pattern for the Sabres (4-4-3) through their first 11 games. Playing from behind again after a sloppy second period turned a 2-1 lead into a 3-2 deficit, Buffalo tied it on Noah Ostlund’s goal at 2:20 of the third period but couldn’t find a way to take the lead, despite having two power-play opportunities.

Facing the Sabres for the first time since the sign-and-trade deal that sent him to the Capitals on June 24, Tuch delivered the final dagger with a snap shot from the high slot that whistled past goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and inside the left post for the winning goal.

“We’ve got to find a way to use that intensity in the third earlier in games,” forward Josh Doan said. “I think our third periods have been really good all year, (but) we've shot ourselves in the foot and started from behind in majority of those.”

Buffalo has been outscored 18-7 in the second this season and has trailed entering the third in 10 of 11 games. The Sabres have managed to get at least one point in six of those games (3-4-3) because they’ve outscored opponents 12-4 in third periods, but needing to rally nearly every game is a lot to ask.

“I feel like we start strong and then we kind of feel good about the first period,” captain Rasmus Dahlin said. “We’ve got to remember it’s 60 minutes and we have to push every single shift and it's not going to be easy.”

It was another challenging night for Luukkonen, who allowed four goals on 34 shots. On the first goal, Tuch’s attempted centering pass deflected in off Sabres forward Tage Thompson’s stick at 16:10 of the first period to begin the Capitals’ comeback from an early two-goal deficit. Buffalo also had defensive breakdowns on Dylan Strome’s second goal of the game that gave Washington a 3-2 lead at 17:24 of the second and the overtime goal, on which Jack Quinn lost coverage on Tuch.

“There's not much you can ask for on the goals against tonight, and I think that's become a common theme is we've let him down,” Doan said. “I think everyone in this room knows that we've let ‘Upie’ down, and that's on us. I think there's a reason that this room and everyone here has faith in Upie. We've all seen it, and we all know how competitive he is, and how much he brings to the table for us, and I think we all owe him a huge apology right now.”

Trade rumors have hung over the Sabres and Luukkonen since the offseason, particularly those involving Connor Hellebuyck, a three-time winner of the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie who requested a trade from the Winnipeg Jets. Although Luukkonen (3-3-3, 3.56 goals-against average, .866 save percentage) reportedly was assured by general manager Jarmo Kekalainen recently that he isn’t going to be traded, it would have been understandable if the rumors impacted his play. 

Sabres coach Lindy Ruff expressed hope after the morning skate Saturday that Hellebuyck being traded to the New Jersey Devils on Friday might lift some of the cloud of uncertainty off Luukkonen and the rest of the team.

“I said I don't spend a lot of time on it, but I think if you're a player, it weighs on your mind when your name has been out there and you probably have people asking you about it,” Ruff said. “So, you have to understand that part. I think we all understand it's part of the game, but it is a difficult part at times for individuals to deal with.”

Although the Sabres weren’t blaming Luukkonen for the loss Saturday, it’s clear their goaltending needs to be better. Between Luukkonen and Colten Ellis (1-1-0, 3.19 GAA, .864 save percentage), Buffalo is 31st in the NHL in team save percentage (.863). Having Alex Lyon, who rotated with Luukkonen in goal for much of last season, unavailable since sustaining an upper-body injury during the preseason, has forced Luukkonen to carry more of the load.

Ruff hopes playing regularly will help Luukkonen to find the rhythm that helped the 27-year-old go 22-9-3 with a 2.52 GAA, .910 save percentage and one shutout when Buffalo finished first in the Atlantic Division and ended its 14-season Stanley Cup Playoff drought last season.

“We’re looking at trying to get UPL some reps back-to-back, see if we could get in the groove,” Ruff said.

Coming within a 3-2 overtime Game 7 loss to the Montreal Canadiens of reaching the Eastern Conference Final last season raised expectations for the Sabres, but they’ve had trouble putting complete performances together so far this season. In addition to issues with falling behind and goaltending, they’ve struggled with defensive-zone coverage, the power-play (4-for-38, 10.5 percent) and the penalty kill (27-for-39, 69.2 percent).

That’s a lot to overcome. Despite losing their past three games (0-1-2), though, the Sabres have been finding ways to earn points, including one Saturday in the opener of a four-game road trip.

They’re hoping their fortunes will turn as they head to California for the rest of the trip, beginning against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday (10:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN360).

“We got one point today, and now we're going to Cali,” Dahlin said. “It's going to be fun. We’ve just got to keep working and I'm sure it will get better here.”