‘Another stepping stone’ | Sabres take care of Bruins, show potential for long playoff run

BOSTON – The Buffalo Sabres have been checking "For the first time since..." boxes all season, and they added to the list Friday at TD Garden.

For the first time since 2007, the Sabres have won a playoff series, putting away the Boston Bruins with a 4-1 win in Game 6.

“Part A is getting to the playoffs. Part B is trying to have success once you get there,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “We talked about how hard this series was going to be and what a challenge it was going to be to take out a good team – Boston’s a good team. And then to do it on the road with a team that had played so well at home, one of the better home records in the league, I thought our guys dug in and gave us a heck of a game tonight.”

• Round 2 info | Tickets, watch parties and more

“Unbelievable,” added Alex Tuch, who scored a team-high four goals in the series. “Really special. Feels like it's been a long time coming. … For me, it's been five long years waiting for something special to happen, and we're hoping it's just a start.”

The Sabres had a couple days to think about Tuesday’s overtime loss, a missed opportunity to end the first-round series on home ice. Keeping with the “one game at a time” mantra that has guided them all season, they brushed off that disappointing finish, opted against a Friday morning skate and just showed up at the Garden ready to handle business.

“We said before this game, we knew we were gonna win this game regardless of what happened,” Tage Thompson said.

Their effort backed that up, especially on the series-clinching play early in the third period. Buffalo led 2-1 on first-period goals from Tuch and Mattias Samuelsson and was facing heavy pressure in its own zone, but goalie Alex Lyon continued his dominant series with some key stops. When a Boston turnover leaked back toward the Bruins’ end, Buffalo’s dogs went hunting.

Josh Doan – his hustle a staple of this team’s success all year – outraced Bruins stars David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy to the loose puck, then dished a backhand pass to Zach Benson all alone in the slot. As Doan absorbed a McAvoy elbow to the head in the corner, Benson snapped a shot past goalie Jeremy Swayman to pad the Sabres’ lead.

“Benny calls for it, and [I] see him over my shoulder,” Doan recalled. “Obviously, there’s a chance you’re getting hit pretty hard there, but you’ve got to find a way to get a puck through there to Benny, and that’s a big-time goal from him there.”

With that 3-1 cushion, the Sabres put on a clinic in closing out a win. They dumped pucks in at every opportunity, forechecked hard and dominated possession over the final 14 minutes, further frustrating a Bruins team on the verge of elimination. Eventually, Josh Norris’ empty netter sent the Boston crowd running for the exits after three disappointing outcomes on home ice.

The Bruins were the NHL’s second-best home team during the regular season, but the Sabres rolled in and went 3-0 in the series at TD Garden. Whereas the games in Buffalo had a tighter, more defensive feel that favored the Bruins, the three in Boston were all about speed and skill. And in those departments, the Bruins couldn’t hang with the Sabres.

Concerns about playoff experience (or lack thereof) are now moot; the Sabres took care of an 100-point team and are now onto the second round. After enjoying this for a night and resting for a few days, they’ll be locked in on their next obstacle, either Tampa Bay or Montreal.

“I think when you get the taste of winning, you just get hungrier and hungrier,” Thompson said. “This is another stepping stone, another great achievement, but there’s still more ahead.”

Here are some takeaways from Game 6 and the series.

Lyon takes over

Lyon finished Game 6 with 25 saves on 26 shots, including some massive ones with Buffalo leading in the first period. Casey Mittelstadt had two attempts on a partial breakaway, then Elias Lindholm got alone atop the crease for a one-timer, but Lyon stood tall. His only blemish wasn’t on him, as a neutral-zone turnover created a 2-on-1 rush and a David Pastrnak goal early in the second.

“He bailed us out, I don’t know how many times,” Thompson said. “In big games like that, there’s a lot of momentum swings, you’re getting each team’s best, and a couple huge saves at key moments in the game when it’s still 2-1. … He likes the big moments, and he’s not afraid of them. He stands on his head when we need him.”

The net was Lyon’s once he relieved Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen during the Game 2 loss. Lyon posted a .955 save percentage in the series as he held the Bruins to one, one, two and one goals in his starts. MoneyPuck credits him with 4.6 goals saved above expected, fifth best among all goalies these playoffs.

Benny the agitator

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Benson emerged as a series villain for the Bruins. The 20-year-old’s production (2 goals, 1 assist) and involvement after the whistles clearly irritated Boston, and things boiled over late in Game 6. McAvoy, taken down by Benson, retaliated with a two-handed slash on the Buffalo winger. Benson, on brand, was seen laughing through the scrum.

“You see guys doing stuff like that to him, there’s a reason for it. He gets under the best players’ skin, and now he came through in big moment for us there with a goal, too,” Thompson said. “… He’s a big piece of why we’re successful and where we’re at.”

Added a smirking Doan: “He’s the little dog that everyone’s scared of, that for some reason thinks he’s really tough.”

Postgame sound

Up next

Game 1 will be at home, sometime next week, against either the Canadiens or Lightning, who face off in Game 7 on Sunday. Stay tuned to Sabres.com for updates on the Round 2 schedule and broadcast info.