Lyon makes 37 saves, wins 10th straight as Sabres top Kings

BUFFALO -- Alex Lyon made 37 saves to set a Buffalo Sabres record with his 10th straight win in a 4-1 victory against the Los Angeles Kings at KeyBank Center on Thursday.

He was previously tied with Gerry Desjardins, who won nine straight from Dec. 11-29, 1976.

“It’s great,” Lyon said. “It’s awesome to be a part of the history, but when you’re stacked up against guys like Ryan Miller and, obviously, [Dominik] Hasek, those were the guys that I idolized growing up. So I’m certainly not going to put myself anywhere near the conversation with those guys.

“So, for me, I’m just happy for the team. My goal coming into the season was to help win games and try to fight for that ultimate goal, and that’s what’s most important to me.”

“Incredible accomplishment really,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “He’s battled hard since day one of camp, coming in and understanding it’s more of a backup role but then stepping in and doing an unbelievable job and getting on the run he’s on. It’s a credit to him.”

Alex Tuch had a hat trick, Jack Quinn had three assists, and Ryan McLeod had two assists for the Sabres (31-17-5), who extended their winning streak to five games. Buffalo has also won 20 of its past 24 games (20-3-1).

“We’re coming in with a lot of confidence,” Tuch said. “Everybody’s coming in trying to prove themselves, and we’re trying to prove as a team that we’re legit. We’re not just gonna go for the playoffs, we’re gonna go for the [Stanley] Cup, and that’s our goal: get better each and every day.”

Adrian Kempe scored, and Darcy Kuemper made 28 saves for the Kings (22-17-3), who brought a six-game point streak (3-0-3) into the game.

“We had some really good chances,” Los Angeles coach Jim Hiller said. “I think we had 10 chances in the second period. … I really liked how we played in the second, specifically. You just can’t get down by two. It’s hard for our team. … Our margin for error is just thin.”

Tuch gave Buffalo a 1-0 lead on the power play at 7:14 of the first period. He put a shot toward the net from the right circle that deflected off Cody Ceci’s skate and went through Kuemper’s pads.

Mattias Samuelsson’s slap shot from the blue line went off Kuemper’s glove and trickled into the net to make it 2-0 at 11:17.

Tuch pushed it to 3-0 for the Sabres when he tipped Bowen Byram’s point shot over Kuemper’s glove at 6:29 of the second period.

Kempe scored on the power play at 7:47 to cut it to 3-1, skating into the slot to redirect Kevin Fiala’s pass by Lyon blocker side.

“I’ve been trying to play in the middle a little bit more,” Kempe said. “Been trying to get a little bit more tips and stuff like that on the puck, and they had a guy break their stick so I just tried to improvise and hop in the middle there. Kevin made a great play and [Corey Perry] had a great screen in front.”

Tuch completed the hat trick with an empty-net goal at 19:00 of the third period for the 4-1 final.

“You’re in these situations, in these games, and you’re up by a goal, up by two goals, we’re not shaking in our boots,” Tuch said. “We’re trying to jam it right back down their throats, we’re taking advantage of opportunities when we have to, and we’re playing really good defense. And we’re committed to that.”

NOTES: Kempe extended his point streak to five games (three goals, two assists). … Brandt Clarke’s assist on Kempe’s goal was his 20th of the season to become the seventh defenseman with multiple 20-assist seasons before their 23rd birthday. … Lyon is the eighth goalie in NHL history with a 10-game winning streak in their first season with a team. … Sabres have won a League-leading 21 games since Dec. 1. … Samuelsson has eight points (one goal, seven assists) in a career-long five-game point streak. … Ruff coached his 1,300th game with Buffalo, second most by a coach with a single team behind Al Arbour’s 1,500 with the New York Islanders.