Anderson wins 300th, Sabres top Golden Knights to spoil Eichel's return

BUFFALO -- Craig Anderson made 30 saves for his 300th NHL win, and the Buffalo Sabres spoiled the return of Jack Eichel to KeyBank Center with a 3-1 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday.

Eichel was traded to Vegas by Buffalo on Nov. 4. The former Sabres captain had two shots on goal in his first game against his former team. He was greeted with loud boos from fans whenever he touched the puck.
"There was plenty of people here who were supporting me, and plenty of people who were booing," Eichel said. "They must be booing because they wish I was still here. I don't know. It is what it is. I'm not the first guy to deal with it. So just move on, and yeah, it was a tough game. Give them credit, they played hard."
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Anderson is the sixth United States-born goalie to have 300 NHL wins. The Sabres played a video at the end of the game featuring members of his family, including his parents, current teammates, former Ottawa Senators teammates, and friends. All his Buffalo teammates stayed on the ice to watch.
"It's a great moment to take in and just enjoy it," Anderson said. "You just don't know how the game is going to go. You don't know how the night [is going to go or] what the future holds, but you try to stay in the moment as best you can and take it all in. …
"It's a good memory, it's a good moment. I think the way the game played out, I think it was a memorable one. So, you know, you just kind of keep ticking the boxes and keep pushing forward and staying hungry is the key. Stay hungry for the next one."
Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch, who were part of the Eichel trade, scored for the Sabres (19-32-8), who have won three of their past five games.
"Me and 'Tuchy', we're passionate about playing here in Buffalo," Krebs said. "We want to do the best we can for this organization. And that felt good giving [Anderson] a hug. It's just exciting, I think, for sure. Obviously, it's just one hockey game. They're a good team too. But that was nice."

Ben Hutton scored, and Laurent Brossoit made 21 saves for the Golden Knights (32-23-4), who lost their second straight and are 4-7-1 in their past 12 games.
"I didn't get a chance to talk to the guys, but I'm disappointed," Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said. "We know we've got to win games. Having said that, we could've won in Philly (a 2-1 loss at the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday), we could've won here tonight. So we have to keep showing up, playing good hockey and find a way to win."
Krebs gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead at 7:53 of the first period. Vinnie Hinostroza drove down the left side and sent a centering pass to Krebs, who tipped it in on his backhand from the slot.
Hutton tied it 1-1 at 12:01 of the third period with a floating shot from the point.

Victor Olofsson put Buffalo ahead 2-1 at 16:16 from the left circle on the power play, and Tuch scored into an empty net with 36 seconds remaining for the 3-1 final.
"I think our team showed a lot of maturity tonight," Tuch said. "We were up 1-0 going into the third, they put a lot of pressure on us late in the second period and we didn't back down, we didn't give them too many crazy chances. 'Andy' obviously made some really big saves, so much poise in the net there, gives the guys a lot of confidence in front of him. … Just shows the character and the maturity that's starting to come with our team. I think that was a huge win. Especially obviously it was against my old team, felt really good, but it showed a lot of character and maturity."
NOTES:Anderson joined former Sabres goalie Ryan Miller (391), John Vanbiesbrouck (374), Tom Barrasso (369), Jonathan Quick (351) and Mike Richter (301) as United States-born goalies with 300 wins. … Buffalo forward Rasmus Asplund left the game after the first period with a lower-body injury, and defenseman Casey Fitzgerald left after the second period with an upper-body injury. Coach Don Granato did not have an update on either after the game. … Golden Knights forward Jonathan Marchessault had his six-game point streak end.