Luukkonen, Sabres survive OT and take down Capitals

After three straight overtime losses – three extra periods where missed opportunities cost Buffalo a point in the standings – the Sabres broke through on Saturday, beating the Washington Capitals 4-3 in a shootout at KeyBank Center.

Goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen saved the day in 3-on-3 play, helping Buffalo survive extended, exhausting defensive-zone shifts for Tage Thompson (3:11), Rasmus Dahlin (3:10) and Alex Tuch (2:10).

“We played it smart,” Luukkonen said after his second appearance of the season. “Nobody started to take runs or tried to jump into plays. I think we kept it tight and let them shoot not from the optimal spot. That’s what we’ve been missing, to play smart on the 3-on-3, and I think we did that tonight.”

Luukkonen followed his five-save overtime period with five shootout stops against a cast of talented scorers. In Round 4, Alex Ovechkin stickhandled to the crease and, to Luukkonen’s surprise, never got much of a shot off.

Then, Bowen Byram made the most of his first career shootout opportunity in Round 5, ripping a glove-side wrister past Charlie Lindgren that proved to be the game winner.

“I feel like shootouts, you’re 1-on-1 against the shooter, it’s almost easier to read than the plays that happen (in) overtime,” said Luukkonen, now 7-4 in shootouts in his career. “There’s so much speed and everybody’s kind of all over the place. So, it just felt good to help the team to win tonight.”

Lower-body injuries limited Luukkonen through training camp and the start of the season, and when the Sabres’ projected starter made his 2025-26 debut Oct. 25 at Toronto, he allowed four goals in the first of those three overtime defeats.

This Saturday’s outing got off to a rocky start, with two Capitals goals in the first 2:15. From that point on, though, Luukkonen stopped 29 of 30 shots (plus the shootout stops), and he finished the night with six high-danger saves, per Natural Stat Trick.

"His start has nothing to do with his game; it had to do with our game, our group,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “We tried to come with pressure, they beat our pressure, and when they beat our pressure, we gave them a couple great looks.

“… I thought he was really dialed in. He just looked comfortable. Made some great saves. … I thought he got in a pretty good rhythm.”

Here’s how Saturday’s chaotic game reached overtime.

1st-period surge

Buffalo wasted no time responding to Washington’s early burst. Thompson, thanks to a great forecheck by new linemate Jason Zucker, buried a slot chance just 15 seconds after Aliaksei Protas’ goal had made it 2-0. And midway through the period, Tuch outraced defenseman John Carlson and tied it on the rush.

Isak Rosen’s first career goal – in his 16th career game – gave the Sabres a 3-2 lead late in the first. The accomplished AHL scorer’s previous NHL call-ups had mostly seen him in a fourth-line role; on Saturday, he started on a line with Jiri Kulich and Jack Quinn, and Quinn’s no-look pass set up Rosen for No. 1.

“Just a great play by Quinner, a great pass,” said Rosen, who plans to hang the puck on his wall. “Just trying to get it on net, and it went in. Really good feeling, of course – probably the best feeling ever, to be honest.”

Rosen appeared more confident, as a skater and a shooter, than in last season’s NHL stints. He finished with three shots on goal, plus three additional attempts, two hits and two shot blocks in 14:44 of ice time – including a 30-second shift in overtime.

“He's really played well down there (AHL), and he's coming up here knowing that we're going to give him a good opportunity, use him on the power play, playing where he's been playing, and get enough ice time with quality people to get something done,” Ruff said.

Clutch kills in the 3rd

A 4-for-4 night has the Sabres’ penalty kill at an NHL-best 90.5 percent this season. With Saturday’s game tied 3-3 in the third period, the unit had perhaps its best showing yet.

Buffalo killed back-to-back minors early in the third, then another with three minutes remaining. As Ruff pointed out, the Capitals didn’t muster a single scoring chance on those three power plays, and they registered just one total shot on goal.

“That's how good they were,” Ruff said. “I thought our clears were excellent. I thought (Mattias) Samuelsson, all night, was a beast when it comes to the killing and blocking shots.”

Samuelsson (4:43), Conor Timmins (4:45), recent addition Jordan Greenway (4:14) and Ryan McLeod (3:45) each shouldered heavy shorthanded loads, especially with Tuch, a mainstay on the kill, in the box for that last penalty. With those guys, among others, the Sabres boast the personnel for continued shorthanded success going forward.

“That’s been the whole season, I think, how well we’ve been killing penalties and how well the guys are ready to put themselves on the line – block shots and make plays on the penalty kill,” Luukkonen added. “I think it’s been awesome to see.”

Up next

The Sabres take on the Utah Mammoth for the first time Tuesday at KeyBank Center. Tickets are available here.

Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. before puck drop at 7.