BOSTON – Peyton Krebs finally gave the Buffalo Sabres an early lead and they never looked back, winning Game 4 of their first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins 6-1 at TD Garden on Sunday afternoon.
The Sabres lead the series 3-1 and can advance with a victory in Game 5 at KeyBank Center on Tuesday.
Buffalo had not scored a first-period goal in the series before Krebs found the back of the net just 4:17 into Sunday’s contest. The Sabres went on to outshoot the Bruins 19-5 in the period and led 4-0 on goals from Krebs, Josh Doan, Zach Benson and Bowen Byram.
Beck Malenstyn and Alex Tuch added third-period goals for the Sabres. Tuch's goal chased Bruins starter Jeremy Swayman, who allowed six goals on 29 shots. Joonas Korpisalo saw his first action of the series in relief.
Alex Lyon started for the second straight game and made 21 saves before losing his shutout on a Sean Kuraly goal during the final minute.
Krebs (1+1) and Owen Power (0+1) both tallied points for the fourth straight game, joining Danny Gare as the only players in Sabres history to score at least one point in each of their first four career playoff contests.
Byram (1+1) and Tuch (1+1) – both of whom already have Stanley Cup Final trips on their resumes – also extended their point streaks to four games. They’re tied for the team lead with three playoff goals each. Tuch has a team-high six points.
Buffalo went 0-for-3 on the power play (and is now 0-for-17 in the series) – but only on a technicality. Doan’s goal, a redirect from the edge of the paint, was scored just as Viktor Arvidsson was leaving the penalty box to end the Sabres’ first power play of the night.
Arvidsson left the game with an upper-body injury and did not return. His two goals in the series are tied for the Boston lead.
Tyson Kozak and Jason Zucker left the game for the Sabres after completing their final shifts midway through the third period.
