'So pumped for him' | Metsa’s first NHL goal proves crucial as Sabres beat Canucks

Typical, extended puck possession by Buffalo Sabres fourth liners Jordan Greenway and Beck Malenstyn created a gap in the middle of the offensive zone, and a blocked shot rebounded into that empty ice.

Enter defenseman Zach Metsa, who stepped up, settled the puck and roofed his first NHL goal past goaltender Thatcher Demko.

“A little surprised – not necessarily that it went in, but in that moment, that I just scored,” said the 27-year-old rookie. “Yeah, crazy feeling. It’s something you’ve dreamed about since you were a little kid.”

Extending Buffalo’s third-period lead to 4-0, the play didn’t seem too consequential at the time, but it proved to be the game winner in the Sabres’ 5-3 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday.

“Maybe I didn’t want it to be a game-winning goal, but it’s funny it turned out that way,” Metsa said.

Shortly after his milestone tally, Vancouver scored three times in a 5:38 span, injecting some nerves into the KeyBank Center crowd and prompting Sabres coach Lindy Ruff to use his timeout with 4:05 remaining.

Momentum aside, Buffalo still led 4-3 thanks to Metsa, and the team has grown accustomed to defending late, one-goal advantages during its recent hot streak.

“All I said is, ‘We’ve been in this position a lot of times already, and we’re going to be in it a lot more times,’” Ruff recalled. “Just play our game. System is locked in. Be ready for it, we know we’re going to have to have some strong wall battles. I thought the execution after that was pretty good – and they were putting some heat on.”

Vancouver missed the net on a few chances after the timeout, and with 1:24 to play, Josh Doan called game with a 200-foot shot into the Canucks’ empty net.

The Sabres are now 11-1-0 in their last 12 games, and Metsa has certainly played his part. He’s currently the only right-shot defenseman on the active roster and has played the last eight games since Conor Timmins broke his leg Dec. 18, averaging 10:46 of ice time with a plus-five rating and mostly mistake-free play on the back end.

“He’s come up and done a great job just being steady and simple and playing hard, which is, I feel like, how everyone gets traction and starts to play well,” Bowen Byram said of Metsa. “We see it all in practice every day. He’s a really good player; he can shoot the puck and make plays. We’re super happy for him.”

Metsa, Rochester’s captain in the AHL, made his NHL debut in October and returned to the Amerks after four games. Finally reaching the top level a day after his 27th birthday was a feel-good story at the time; now, in his second Sabres stint, Metsa looks far more comfortable, and Tuesday’s goal showed the 200-foot impact he’s capable of.

“You saw it on the bench: we’re all so pumped for him,” Alex Tuch said. “He’s just an awesome guy. Huge biceps, too, by the way.”

Here’s more from the win.

PK’s standout 1st period

Buffalo’s second-ranked penalty kill has gotten it done in different ways all season, and Tuesday’s first period provided some good examples.

The first shorthanded situation, a minute after Tage Thompson had opened the scoring, was all about the goaltending. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made six saves in quick succession, his first of a 31-save performance, to help the Sabres survive those two minutes.

The second kill, midway through the period, saw Tuch and Ryan McLeod combine for one of their signature shorthanded rushes. Tuch pounced on a Kiefer Sherwood turnover along the wall and skated the puck up ice. McLeod, always looking for offense on the kill, sped into the play and buried Tuch’s feed for his third shorthanded goal of the season and a 2-0 Sabres lead.

“We got a lucky bounce on the blue line, and I knew Clouder was joining me,” Tuch detailed. “… When you face a power play, sometimes there’s only one defenseman out there, so you’ve got guys that are thinking about offense, so you may be able to jump them. And if you can, get a little bit of a 2-on-1 or even sometimes even a breakaway."

Byram the workhorse

Byram registered two primary assists for his fourth multi-point game of the season. On the second helper, he drove to the red line and finessed a beautiful backhand pass to a wide-open Tuch at the back door.

The defenseman skated 24:23 on Tuesday, including 3:49 shorthanded. He’s skated 20 or more minutes in every game since the beginning of the 10-game winning streak, averaging 23:03 during that span while playing some of his best hockey yet – offensively and defensively.

“He’s got a great tank; he can skate forever,” Ruff said. “If you ask him, if he plays 24 minutes, he would tell you, ‘I think I can play 28.’ If you asked him about 28, he would probably say, ‘I can play 30.’ … He relishes the opportunity for that extra ice time. He’s done a good job with it.”

Zucker returns

Forward Jason Zucker returned from an 11-game absence – he’d been dealing with both upper- and lower-body injuries – and skated 14:07 with a plus-one rating.

He was involved early, starting on a line with Josh Norris and Tuch and contributing to a couple great scoring chances on the opening shift.

Pride Night at the arena

Tuesday was Pride Night at KeyBank Center, and part of the celebration included special practice jerseys with a logo designed by local artist Adam Weekley.

A jersey was made for each Sabres player, and they’re each up for auction, with proceeds benefitting local LGBTQIA+ organizations. Place your bids before the auctions close Jan. 11.

Up next

The Sabres face the New York Rangers on Thursday at 7 p.m. at Madison Square Garden. MSG’s pregame coverage begins at 6:30.