Points, hits, matchup defense; Samuelsson does it all as Sabres’ streak reaches 8

The Buffalo Sabres hadn’t won a game without Rasmus Dahlin in the last two seasons, and coach Lindy Ruff was well aware of that.

But with the captain unavailable Saturday – he’s with his fiancee in Sweden and is expected to play Monday in St. Louis – Buffalo still managed its eighth straight victory, beating the Boston Bruins 4-1 at KeyBank Center.

With Saturday losses by the Panthers, Rangers and Devils, the Sabres (42 points) are now tied with those teams for the second wild-card spot.

“I really think the guys wanted to win one for Ras,” Ruff said, “with all the stuff that he’s dealt with and all that he’s come back and given our team.”

Dahlin stayed up late to watch his season-long partner Mattias Samuelsson, deep into a breakout campaign, play one of his best games yet. The defenseman recorded his first career three-point game, delivered six hits and blocked two shots in 24:56 of ice time.

“I just tried to step up any way I could, play a lot of minutes in his absence and try to help the team win,” said Samuelsson, who added to single-season career highs in goals (6) and assists (12). “If that was block 10 shots and play good defense, then I would’ve done that, but lucky enough to chip in offensively.”

Save for a few good chances, the Sabres didn’t have much going, offensively, in the first period. They trailed 1-0 on a David Pastrnak goal and, admittedly, were still feeling the effects of the three-day holiday hiatus.

“Christmas break, some extra meals at the dinner table, [took] a period to get into it there for us,” said forward Peyton Krebs.

They returned from the first intermission with a bang, needing just eight minutes to reenergize the crowd and flip that deficit into a 3-1 lead. And Samuelsson showcased his 200-foot game – something he’s emphasized this season – in leading that second-period surge.

First, the 6-foot-4 blueliner crunched Morgan Geekie into the boards, separated the 25-goal scorer from the puck and led a breakout the other way, assisting on Ryan McLeod’s snipe off the rush.

“Whenever you can kick it out as a defenseman and push their D back, you can help your forwards create, and that’s what happened,” Samuelsson said. “… That’s hockey, that’s fun, that’s making plays.”

Then, 1:33 later, Samuelsson extended a shift with a keep-in at the blue line. He notched another assist when Krebs, set up in front of the crease, deflected in Tage Thompson’s shot. Krebs went 34 games without a goal but now has two since Sunday night.

And Samuelsson capped off the outburst with a tally of his own, beating Joonas Korpisalo with a well-screened shot from the top of the left circle. After playing 246 games without a three-point night, the 25-year-old had accomplished the feat in a 6:15 span.

Apart from one late shift by their first line, the Bruins had no answers in that second period, as the Sabres led 13-2 in shots and 21-10 in shot attempts to seize control of the game.

“You saw the surge, offensively, that we’re capable of when we play a fast game and keep the tempo up, attack, keep them on their heels,” Samuelsson said.

As Buffalo’s top matchup defender, he played a large chunk of his minutes against Pastrnak, Geekie and Elias Lindholm, and that trio was mostly quiet after Pastrnak’s early goal, just another testament to Samuelsson’s all-around excellence – Saturday and most of the season.

“He’s been one of our best players every single night,” Krebs said.

“From what he’s done chipping in offensively and the work he’s done on the PK, and then playing against every top line and big minutes every night," added Ruff, "he’s really playing a good brand of hockey for us.”

Here’s more from consecutive win No. 8.

Big crowd, big impact

With an announced attendance of 19,070, this marked the fifth Sabres sellout at KeyBank Center this season. And the team took notice as they improved to 12-5-2 on home ice.

Samuelsson: “Great atmosphere, obviously. They were into it and loud. I’m sure it’s a hard building to play in for the away team when it’s like that.”

Krebs: “I’ve been here for a while, now, and when you win, they’ll come back, and they’ve shown that. They’re a loyal fanbase, and if we continue to do that, it’s gonna be a lot of fun in this building.”

McLeod: “Everyone’s always talking about, when we start getting good, there’s no better city to play in, and I think it’s really showing right now.”

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen: “We want to win for them, and I feel like it makes it so much more special, with the streak now, that we’ve proven to ourselves and the fans that we can string some games together. I think every player just loves how electric it was there tonight.”

Luukkonen keeps rolling

Luukkonen got the start in net and maintained the momentum from Sunday’s win in New Jersey, stopping 21 of 22 Bruins shots for his sixth victory of the season.

He was busiest when Boston ramped up the pressure in the third period, making 11 saves before Josh Norris sealed it with a late empty netter. That compares to the second, when Luukkonen faced only two shots and the Sabres poured it on Korpisalo at the other end.

“I think that’s one of the biggest things as a goalie: how you stay mentally in the game,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what happens; if you get 25 shots a period or zero shots a period, how (do) you work through that? I think it’s been getting better, the more games I have in this league.”

Buffalo has a .932 team save percentage during the win streak, including a .959 from Luukkonen (2 goals on 49 shots) in two starts.

Up next

A three-game road trip begins Monday at 8 p.m. EST against the St. Louis Blues. MSG’s pregame coverage starts at 7:30.