Dahlin put the Sabres back up by two on the power play at 19:29 of the second period. Eichel sent a cross-ice, one-touch pass to Dahlin in the right circle, where he beat Holtby to extend Buffalo's lead to 3-1.
"We just went back to work. We didn't let it affect us," Sabres coach Phil Housley said. "We know that's a very dangerous team. I thought at times we let guys get to the open, but for the most part, we were pretty solid in our checking detail. That's why we were able to get that go-ahead goal when we needed it and get that two-goal cushion."
The Sabres got a scare 4:42 into the second period when Skinner, their leading goal-scorer (36), had to be helped off the ice after he was tripped by Carl Hagelin. But Skinner returned for the start of the third period.
"Obviously, that's huge for us, seeing him come back. That's a big lift for our group," Hutton said.
Burakovsky got Capitals to within 3-2 when he tipped in Christian Djoos' point shot at 4:16 of the third period. But Reinhart scored his second of the game at 5:43, deflecting Matt Hunwick's shot from the blue line, to make it 4-2. He completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal at 19:04 for the 5-2 final.
