Sabres edge Panthers, push road point streak to 8

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Beck Malenstyn broke a tie in the third period, and the Buffalo Sabres extended their road point streak to eight games by defeating the Florida Panthers 3-2 at Amerant Bank Arena on Friday.

Malenstyn put Buffalo ahead 2-1 at 11:38, scoring with a slap shot through traffic from the point, before Peyton Krebs scored into an empty net at 18:43 to make it 3-1.

“There were a lot of moments last year where we were up in games and were not able to close it out,” Malenstyn said. “You could see a little bit of panic. From training camp through the first chunks of the season, it was kind of a slow build. We’re confident and comfortable in winning hockey games. That comes from experience and doing the right things consistently.”

Sam Bennett was credited with the goal that cut it to 3-2 at 19:25. His shot went off the post, and Buffalo defenseman Rasmus Dahlin inadvertently swept the puck in for an own goal while trying to clear the rebound in the crease.

“Both goalies made incredible saves,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said. “We had enough looks, that’s not an issue. The puck movement could have been better, but you see that on a back-to-back.”

Alex Tuch had a goal and an assist for the Sabres (34-19-6), who are 7-0-1 in their past eight road games. Alex Lyon made 28 saves.

Lyon is 2-2-0 since winning a franchise-record 10 consecutive games. Both of those wins have come against the Panthers; he made 39 saves in a 5-3 win here Feb. 2.

“The guys played great tonight,” said Lyon, who has won nine straight road games. “We settled in halfway through the first period. They are a very desperate team and a very good team. We did a good job. … I like playing here, I like playing in this rink. I like walking in the sun during the day. … It gives you a little more energy after being in Buffalo.”

Bennett had a goal and an assist, Matthew Tkachuk also scored, and Daniil Tarasov made 36 saves for the Panthers (30-26-3), who have lost six of eight. They were coming off a 5-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.

“It was a tight game. Goals were hard to come by although chances were not,” Tkachuk said. “Both goalies played really well. [Tarasov] was unreal and gave us a chance. We weren’t just able to get the two points tonight.”

Tuch gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead on the power play at 17:48 of the first period, sending a high wrist shot from the top of the slot over Tarasov’s stick.

“I thought we stuck with it, had a lot of opportunities,” Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said. “Our goalie made a lot of big saves early, their goalie in the middle of the game made a lot of good saves. We were able to stick with it and keep creating chances.”

The Panthers tied it 1-1 at 13:51 of the second period on a power play of their own. After Brad Marchand’s shot was blocked by Malenstyn in the left circle following a face-off, Tkachuk collected the loose puck, drove in on Lyon and scored inside the left post.

“It was a long [Olympic] break and I was just trying to get into the game,” Tarasov said. “Especially on a back-to-back. Playing a good team like that, you know they’re going to start pretty hard on us. We kind of dominated the first half of the first period.”

Lyon played 15 games for the Panthers and helped them make the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2022-23, his lone season with them, when Florida rallied to claim the second wild card from the Eastern Conference and made the first of three straight trips to the Stanley Cup Final. 

“We have played him twice in the past four or five games and he has been incredible,” Tkachuk said of Lyon. “It is nice to see a guy like that, in his journey, do well. I just wish it wasn’t against us. He’s a battler. He gives his team a chance to win every night, too.”

The Panthers played much of the game with five defensemen after Uvis Balinskis was injured blocking a shot late in the first period. Balinskis went to the dressing room and returned for a shift before being limited to two shifts in the second period. He did not come out for the third.

Maurice did not have an update on Balinskis’ status.

“We will get him looked at tomorrow,” he said. “We don’t know the extent of it yet.”

NOTES: Buffalo’s point streak is tied for the fourth-longest in franchise history. … Lyon is the ninth goalie in NHL history with a road winning streak of at least nine games. … With the victory, the Sabres (74 points) leapfrogged the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens into second place in the Atlantic Division, tied in points with the Red Wings. The last time Buffalo ranked within the top two of its division this late into a season was at the end of the 2009-10 season.