Sheary scores twice as Sabres beat Penguins in overtime

Down a goal heading into the third period against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Buffalo Sabres rekindled some magic from earlier in the season put themselves back in the game.
In the last meeting between the two clubs on Nov. 19 in Pittsburgh, the Sabres rallied back to win 5-4 in overtime for the fifth victory of a 10-game winning streak.
On Friday at KeyBank Center, the Sabres tied the game late thanks to a wrist shot from Brandon Montour, his first as a member of the team. Then Conor Sheary scored his second of the night in a wild overtime period to win it 4-3.

"I just think it shows them that they can still come back again if they stay the course and stick with it," Sabres coach Phil Housley said. "These guys fought right through to the end …It just shows if you keep fighting - and our determination was really solid in the third and overtime - that we can find a way to win. It just reminds them that they can still do it."

Sheary, acquired in a trade with the Penguins over the summer, now has two goals and two assists in two games against his former club. He has 11 goals on the year.
"That was a good one for me to get," he said after his three-point night. "Just overall, I think I needed to start scoring more, but it was a little bit more special against my old squad.
"…We know at this point of the year, we got to press for every point we can get. So those two points were really important. I get the opportunity to be in some really good positions being out there in overtime. I was able to take advantage tonight."

Montour's goal, which came with 2:32 remaining in regulation, was his sixth of the season and his first since Dec. 12 when he was with the Anaheim Ducks. His shot from the point deflected in off a Penguin who was trying to tie up Sheary near the top of the crease.
Montour finished the night with a goal, an assist and three shots on goal in 19:45 of ice time.

"He plays to win and he attacks the game," Housley said. "He's trying to make a difference. He brought a physical element tonight and got rewarded because Conor Sheary was standing in front of the net. ... I really liked the tenacity in his game."
Jack Eichel opened the scoring 3:09 into the game with his 23rd goal of the season. He's now on a seven-game point streak, which ties his season high. He has five goals and four assists over that stretch. He also became the first Sabres player with at least 70 points since Jason Pominville recorded 73 points in 2011-12. Pittsburgh, however, tied it up 56 seconds later on a goal from Nick Bjugstad.

Sheary made it 2-1 Buffalo on the man advantage with 7:07 left in the first period, but the Penguins power play would be the story of the second period.

The Penguins capitalized twice on a high-sticking double minor assessed to Scott Wilson late in the second. With 2:42 remaining, Patric Hornqvist deflected in a shot to tie the game 2-2 and then Sidney Crosby one-timed the puck in 1:03 later to give the Penguins the lead.
The Sabres didn't take another penalty the rest of the game. Eichel believed that level of discipline was key to the comeback.
"We stayed out of the box," he said. "I know if you're on that opposite side and you're getting all those power plays, your game starts coming because you're feeling the puck a lot. I thought we did a good job coming out in the third and finding a way."
Linus Ullmark made 31 saves through two periods and finished with 41 stops overall. At the other end of the ice, Matt Murray turned aside 36 Sabres shots.

Coming up

The Sabres now have 68 points on the season heading into Saturday night's matchup against Toronto. They did not receive much help around the league as Philadelphia, Montreal and Carolina - three teams they're chasing - all won in regulation on Friday. The Sabres are currently seven points behind Columbus for the second Wild Card spot.
Buffalo knows they face an uphill battle, but Sheary, a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins, understands what it takes to string together wins late in the season.
"The most important thing is playoff teams play their best hockey at this time of the year," Sheary said. "No one wins in the playoffs because they had the most points before. I think the eight teams get in for a reason."
The Sabres were coming off back-to-back losses against the Maple Leafs and Flyers, and they'll see Toronto again tomorrow night for a 7 p.m. faceoff from Scotiabank Arena.
"It was big. We've been in a tough rut lately. It seems like we've been back and forth. We've played some good hockey, we haven't," Eichel said. "So it was good to come out against a team that's, you know, they're in a tough spot too. So they're obviously desperate and I thought we played a good game and we find a way to get two points, which is what's important."
Catch the GMC Game Night pregame show starting at 6:30 p.m. on MSG on Saturday. Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray will have the call just after 7 on MSG and WGR 550.

Dan and Marty go Bald For Bucks

Speaking of Dan, he and Martin Biron had their heads shaved during the broadcast as part of the Bald For Bucks fundraising initiative.
Prior to the start of the broadcast, fans had helped raise over $107,000. You can donate through March 2 by clicking here.