'We're relentless right now' | Sabres overcome early deficit for 9th straight win

ST. LOUIS – Alex Tuch did his best to sell the game-tying goal.

With the Buffalo Sabres trailing during the second period on Monday, Tuch pulled beside the St. Louis net and used his skate to direct the puck over the goal line.

It seemed as though the Sabres had tied the game, until officials ruled that Tuch had kicked the puck into the net – the right call, if you ask him.

“Absolutely,” Tuch said. “I didn’t try to kick it – I was trying to stop it – but my foot’s in motion. It wasn’t going to be a goal.

“I tried to make it look like I was skating. I should’ve looked away from the puck.”

It didn’t matter. Tuch simply went back to work, eventually burying the actual tying goal with a shot off the far-side post later in the period and helping to propel the Sabres extend their winning streak to nine games with a 4-2 victory over the Blues at Enterprise Center.

The response from Tuch was a microcosm of the Sabres’ attitude throughout their streak. Winning by a goal or trailing by a goal, it doesn’t matter - they focus on the details, trust their process and let the results follow.

“We’re relentless right now, honestly,” Tuch said. “It’s great to see. I don’t think our confidence has wavered one bit.”

The Sabres have won nine straight games for just the sixth time in franchise history. They have a chance to match the franchise record with a 10th straight win – last accomplished in November of 2018 – in a showdown with one of the NHL’s top teams, the Dallas Stars, on New Year’s Eve.

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Within their streak, they’ve shown a propensity to win in different ways. The game in St. Louis required overcoming a bit of early adversity. Noah Ostlund finished a 2-on-1 feed from Josh Norris for the game’s opening goal, but the Blues – playing with desperation out of the gate – responded with two of their own.

The Sabres trailed by a goal after the first period, just as they had in their previous win against Boston. And, as in the Bruins game, they responded with a dominant effort over the last 40 minutes.

Buffalo outshot St. Louis 25-9 in the second and third periods. Benson’s winning goal – batted out of mid-air just 1:46 into the third – paved the way for a lockdown effort at even strength, with only two shots reaching Alex Lyon the rest of the way. (The Blues did manage two shorthanded scoring chances, but both missed the net.)

“I think we outplayed them in the second,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “We turned the game in our direction. We stacked a bunch of good shifts together in the O-zone. And I thought we followed it up with an even better third period.”

While the scoring chances tilted heavily toward Buffalo during the final 40 minutes, the details once again proved crucial. The Sabres forechecked their way to long shifts on the offensive end, avoided transition-fueling turnovers, and stayed out of the penalty box.

Even when a misplay behind the net from Lyon led to a scoring chance for the Blues in the final minutes, Michael Kesselring was in position to help break up Jimmy Snuggerud’s attempt on the open net. Peyton Krebs sent a shot down the ice into the empty net seconds later to seal the victory.

“We have a lot of character in this room,” Benson said. “Everyone knows we have skill, but you see how many blocks we have a night, pucks getting out on the wall. It’s just little things like that and it adds up throughout a game. We’re doing all the little details right.”

It’s all added up to a memorable holiday season in Buffalo. Here’s more from the Sabres’ ninth straight win.

McLeod, Norris lines fuel offense

The winning streak has allowed for consistency in Buffalo’s forward lines, which have remained relatively stagnant since the team’s win in Seattle on Dec. 14 (with the exception of Josh Dunne replacing Tyson Kozak, who is out with an injury).

All four lines have had their moments within the streak – and all have been trusted to play in a variety of situations. Two were particularly impactful in St. Louis: the trio of Ostlund, Norris and Tuch contributed two goals while the line of Benson, Ryan McLeod and Jack Quinn had a dominant night in the offensive zone.

Tuch helped force the first-period turnover that paved the way for Ostlund’s goal. Norris earned the primary assist on the play, his 12th point in the last 10 games.

Norris later drove to the net on the rush that produced Tuch’s tying goal in the second period.

“We’re getting more opportunities,” Tuch said. “We’re understanding where each other are and we’re just reading off each other and playing.”

The McLeod line, meanwhile, used its speed to create long shifts in the St. Louis end. The Sabres had a 21-5 advantage in shot attempts with the trio on the ice at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick, including Benson’s winning goal. That play saw McLeod force a turnover on the forecheck and pass to Quinn, whose shot deflected toward Benson beside the net.

“I think tonight was a really good game from us,” Benson said. “We were in the O-zone a lot. I think we’re getting pucks below their goal line rather than try and make a cute play at the blue line.”

Dunne’s homecoming

Dunne played a regular-season NHL game in his hometown St. Louis for the first time. He spoke pregame about what the moment meant, having grown up attending Blues games.

"It's incredible," he said. "I don't even have words for it. Just such a full-circle moment, growing up and going to these games. Just thankful for this opportunity. I wouldn't be here without my family and my coaching staff, so I'm just really excited to be here."

With a large contingent of family and friends in the crowd, he once again played a workmanlike role in the Sabres’ winning effort. He had two blocked shots, two hits and a drawn penalty in 13:08, along with a first-period backcheck to break up a potential chance from the slot.

Lineup notes

Rasmus Dahlin was back in the lineup after missing Saturday’s game against the Bruins for personal reasons. He skated 23:40 with five shots on goal.

Lyon got the start in net after Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen got the nod for Buffalo’s first game out of the holiday break on Saturday. Lyon stopped 16 of 18 shots for his seventh straight win.

Postgame sound

Up next

The Sabres close 2025 with a visit to play the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center on Wednesday. Coverage on MSG begins at 7:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 8.