At the Horn | Sabres 5 - Kings 3

The Buffalo Sabres scored four unanswered goals en route to a 5-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings inside Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday.

The Kings led 3-1 after the opening period before the Sabres added a pair of goals in the second and a pair in the third to secure the win.

JJ Peterka tallied two goals and an assist while Jack Quinn recorded a goal and two assists. Alex Tuch and Dylan Cozens also scored for Buffalo.

Goaltender Devon Levi stopped 38 of 41 shots in his first start since Jan. 9.

Anze Kopitar, Adrian Kempe, and Pierre-Luc Dubois each scored once for the Kings while Cam Talbot made 33 saves in the opposing net.

Forward Zemgus Girgensons exited the game with 12:48 left in the first period due to an upper-body injury and did not return.

SCORING SUMMARY

Period 1, 2:55 – Anze Kopitar from Adrian Kempe and Matt Roy (1-0, LAK)

Vladislav Gavrikov sent a pass to Roy at the Sabres’ blue line to set up the Kings on the rush. Roy dropped a pass back to Kempe, who fed Kopitar in the low slot to deflect the puck into the net and give Los Angeles an early lead.

Period 1, 5:01 – JJ Peterka from Dylan Cozens (1-1)

Peterka had an answer just over two minutes later as the Sabres forced a turnover in their own end to give themselves an odd-man rush. Peterka dished a pass to Cozens in the slot for a one-timer before Peterka put away the rebound at the backdoor.

Period 1, 5:24 – Adrian Kempe from Drew Doughty and Quinton Byfield (2-1, LAK)

The Kings responded 23 seconds later after winning a faceoff in the Sabres’ zone. Kempe stickhandled out of the way of Rasmus Dahlin and buried a shot from the left circle to take back the lead.

Period 1, 9:44 (PP) – Pierre-Luc Dubois from Alex Laferriere and Brandt Clarke (3-1, LAK)

After Tage Thompson went to the penalty box for slashing, Los Angeles extended its lead with seven seconds left on the ensuing power play. Dubois beat Levi glove side to put the Kings up 3-1 midway through the opening period.

Period 2, 8:22 – JJ Peterka from Jack Quinn (3-2, LAK)

Peterka scored his second of the night 8:22 into the second to bring the Sabres within one. Quinn intercepted a pass at his own blue line and fed a streaking Peterka, who collected the puck and beat Talbot blocker side on the breakaway.

Period 2, 10:30 – Jack Quinn from Casey Mittelstadt and Ryan Johnson (3-3)

The Sabres tied the score 2:08 later when Mittelstadt entered the Los Angeles zone with speed, dropping a pass back to Quinn at the point. Quinn skated into the high slot and ripped a shot into the top-left corner of the net to make it 3-3.

Period 3, 5:49 – Alex Tuch from Eric Robinson and Peyton Krebs (4-3, BUF)

Buffalo took its first lead of the night as Krebs won a puck battle in the corner to get the puck to an open Robinson behind the net. Robinson backhanded a pass to Tuch in front of the net before Tuch beat Talbot over his left shoulder.

Period 3, 8:54 – Dylan Cozens from JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn (5-3, BUF)

Just over two minutes later, Cozens buried a shot from the high slot to give the Sabres a two-goal lead.

HIGHLIGHTS

UP NEXT

The Sabres close out their three-game road trip in San Jose on Saturday. Pregame coverage on MSG/MSG+ begins at 3:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 4. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.