Sabres fight back to earn point in OT loss to Rangers

NEW YORK – The Buffalo Sabres fell behind twice in a physical matchup with the New York Rangers, but the group erased deficits on both occasions to force overtime and earn a point in a 4-3 loss to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. 

After going down 2-0 with 4:25 left in the first, Buffalo responded just over a minute later with a goal from Rasmus Dahlin as Jordan Greenway rushed to a puck in the corner to keep the play alive and fed Dahlin in the slot to put the Sabres on the board.

The Sabres tied the score at 2-2 at the 1:42 mark of the second period, when Jack Quinn tallied his second of the season from Dylan Cozens and JJ Peterka.

“Good, very good effort,” Sabres coach Don Granato said. “Great atmosphere, obviously, tonight and we had to come back, we had to fight, we had to scratch, we had to fight a lot of different elements today and refocus on some different elements and stay focused, and I thought our guys did a great job with it.”

New York reclaimed the lead 7:13 into the second after Chris Kreider, Blake Wheeler, and Mika Zibanejad took advantage of a 3-on-2 opportunity. Luukkonen made the initial save on Kreider before Zibanejad put away the rebound to give the Rangers a 3-2 lead.

The Sabres didn’t stop there as Casey Mittelstadt had an answer early in the third to erase the deficit once again. Greenway and Zach Benson put pressure on the forecheck as Greenway forced a turnover by Braden Schneider, which landed on the stick of Mittelstadt in the slot. Mittelstadt buried the game-tying goal at the 6:50 mark of the third.

“It's tough to play from behind any game so the fact that we were able to come back and get ourselves back into the game it shows a lot of good characteristics about our team,” Greenway said.

Buffalo held a 15-8 advantage in hits and 26-13 lead in blocked shots as the Sabres put heavy pressure on the puck and forced turnovers throughout the night to go home with a point.

With at least a point in two consecutive games, Granato believes the group will be able to ride the momentum after the holiday break based on the way the team is playing.

“A lot more playing for the pure love of the game and enjoy the game, the energy, that appetite,” Granato said. “You know there's more for you and going after it. No question, the last couple of games have been much, much better and I feel very confident that this group is headed the right direction.”

Here’s more from Saturday’s game.

1. Mattias Samuelsson and Connor Clifton recorded a team-high seven blocked shots each in the overtime loss. 

The pair combined for four blocked shots during the Sabres’ final penalty kill of the night, including three in overtime, after Dahlin was given a hooking penalty with 1:14 left in regulation.

“I think those are some of the things that go unnoticed and some of the things that some of these guys in the room do for the team that may not get the credit they deserve,” Mittelstadt said. “I think Sammy out there, crawling back to the bench probably five times. Guy’s a warrior, absolute warrior. What a good teammate and, you know, he's just one of them but the first one that comes to mind, so it's awesome to see.”

2. Quinn tallied his second goal in three games since making his season debut on Tuesday after missing the first 32 games of the season due to an Achilles injury.

The Buffalo bench was all smiles following Quinn’s second goal of the season, which Mittelstadt said is a testament to not only his skill and talent but the energy he brings to the team.

“He's been here with us and he’s definitely a member of the crew here and fits in well, brings such a good vibe,” Mittelstadt said. “I think of course we missed his skill and missed his talent on the ice, but just to have him smiling and chuckling around the room. The guy will pretty much laugh at anything. Keeps the mood light and awesome guy to have back.”

3. Defenseman Erik Johnson was assessed a five-minute major for fighting, a two-minute penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, a 10-minute misconduct, and a game misconduct after he dropped the gloves in defense of Ryan Johnson, who took a hard hit by Will Cuylle behind the Sabres’ net with 7:17 left in the second period.

Jeff Skinner was also assessed a 10-minute misconduct of his own in response.

Buffalo’s penalty kill successfully killed off the ensuing New York power play as the Sabres’ PK unit went 3-for-4 on the night.

“The penalty kill did a heck of a job to finish the game, did a good job through the game,” Granato said.

4. Dahlin scored for the third consecutive game, marking the second-longest goal streak of his career.

The Sabres’ alternate captain has now recorded nine points (5+4) in his last nine games, including four points (3+1) in his last three.

Up next

The Sabres return to Buffalo for a two-game homestand following the holiday break. The homestand opens with a matchup with the Boston Bruins on Wednesday.

Tickets are available here.

The game will be exclusively televised on TNT at 7:30 p.m. Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray will have the radio call on WGR 550.