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Last night was not a good night for the blue and gold. The team took a 7-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on the chin, and are looking to rebound tonight. Ryan Miller is expected in goal for the Sabres. Canadiens' general manager Pierre Gauthier made a trade earlier in the day, sending defenseman Hal Gill and a draft pick to the Nashville Predators in a package trade that includes Blake Geoffrion. Buffalo is one loss and a Hurricanes win away from occupying the basement of the Eastern Conference. For more, including some numbers on both teams, click here for Paul Hamilton's pregame primer.
Feel free to interact with me throughout the night in several differen ways. Comment in the thread below, text me at 550550 and/or send me a tweet: @PatWGR. Give me a follow while you are there.
First Period
20:00 - Cody McCormick (upper body) and Marc Gragnani are the scratches for Buffalo tonight. Only one for Montreal - Travis Moen tonight.
17:47 - The Sabres with three early shots and two of them were tough saves for Carey Price. He had to make a high save on a shot through traffic . Buffalo is being active in the offensive zone early on tonight.
15:44 - SABRES GOAL. Robyn Regehr takes a rip from the point, it gets knocked around in traffic and beats Carey Price for the opening score of the game. Buffalo has the lead. Patrick Kaleta and Nathan Gerbe were both buzzing around the crease. 1-0 BUF.
13:56 - We are to the first media timeout tonight, and Regehr is credited with the score. Gerbe and Alexei Emelin were battling for position right along the crease area, and it appears that the puck went off the shaft of Emelin's stick. It is one of those crazy bounces.
10:35 - Thomas Vanek takes a bad penalty in the offensive zone, and the Sabres go to the penaltu kill. Vanek cracked Chris Campoli right in the numbers with his stick, there was no doubt about it. I get that you are trying to give an extra effort, but there is a fine line.
8:32 - CANADIENS GOAL. Tomas Kaberle gets the tally just as Vanek was coming out of the penalty box, so I do not think Montreal will be credited with a PPG. But the tying goal counts either way, and either way Vanek should not have taken the minor. 1-1 tie.
4:17 - SABRES GOAL. Tyler Myers uses a quick snap shot to beat Price over his shoulder and gives the Sabres the lead once again. Buffalo now is in double digits in shots in this period. 2-1 BUF.
2:13 - Tonight is a milestone night for Myers. The young rear guard has recorded his 100th career NHL point with his goal, and it comes in his 200th NHL game. Those numbers will just keep growing and growing.
:13.6 - CANADIENS GOAL. Regehr has the puck deflect off of him and go over Ryan Miller's left shoulder for the tying score. Scott Gomez picks up his second goal of the season with the score. 2-2 tie.
End of period
Sabres 2, Montreal 2
Goals
4:16 - (BUF) Robyn Regehr (1), (Nathan Gerbe, Paul Gaustad)
11:26 - (MTL) Tomas Kaberle (2), (David Desharnais, Max Pacioretty)
15:43 - (BUF) Tyler Myers (Ville Leino, Derek Roy)
19:46 - (MTL) Scott Gomez (2) PPG, (Yannick Weber, Tomas Plekanec)
Penalties
9:25 - Thomas Vanek (2 min, cross checking)
17:47 - Nathan Gerbe (2 min, hooking)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 11, MTL - 9
Second Period
18:36 - Vanek must be out of Lindy Ruff's doghouse, even slightly. The forward was just on the ice with Matt Ellis and Tyler Ennis. An odd pairing for sure, but I like the idea of Vanek and Ennis teaming up. Now, Ruff just has to find another winger to place opposite Vanek.
16:59 - Yannkick Weber is in the box for hooking down Ville Leino along the right wing boards. I have liked Leino's play ever since coming back from injury last month. His game was starting to pick up prior to the injury, and he did not lose a beat when back in the lineup. The only time I haven't liked his play was the drop pass in Chicago that was inexcusable.
13:35 - No dice for the blue and gold on the recent PP chance. They had a couple of good looks from the point, but nothing that would qualify as a top notch scoring chance. Shots this period are 4-2, Sabres.
12:39 - The Canadiens are commonly referred to as the New York Yankees of hockey. They have the tradition and the Stanley Cups to back that up, and man do their fans travel well. Brian Koziol, Dave Buchanan and myself estimate that it is a 50/50 split in the seats tonight between the two fan bases. It is roughly an 8-hour drive from Montreal to Buffalo, and being so close to the border I have to venutre a guess that most fans between here and there have made it a long weekend in the Queen City.
9:26 - Jason Pominville made a horrible mistake in front of his own net, but Miller is able to stay with the play and keep the puck from ending up in the net. It was nothing spectacular, but could prove big later on tonight.
8:32 - CANADIENS GOAL. Chris Campoli is able to circle and dangle in the middle of the ice long enough to beat Miller with a shot from the left wing side, and just like that Montreal has their first lead of the night. Just moments beore that Zack Kassian wasted a 3-on-1 chance in front of Price. 3-2 MTL.
:37.2 - Just a few moments left in the middle stanza and Buffalo had their best scoring chance of the period 4-on-4. Price was out of position and flopping around trying to find the puck, but there was no one around to take advantage of the open net.
End of period
Montreal 3, Sabres 2
Goals
11:28 - (MTL) Chris Campoli (2), (Ryan White)
Penalties
2:34 - (MTL) Yannick Weber (2 min, hooking)
18:00 - (BUF) Mike Weber (2 min, roughing)
18:00 - (MTL) Scott Gomez (2 min, roughing)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 7 (18), MTL - 4 (13)
Third Period
18:11 - Ruff putting Drew Stafford on the wing with Vanek and Ennis to start the final frame. No offense to Matt Ellis, who is a very good guy to talk to in the locker room, but he is not suited to work on a line with those two. I get that Lindy was sending a message to Stafford, we will see if it worked at all.
14:42 - Just noticed P.K. Subban as he went in for the kill shot on Myers at the blue line. Talk about a player with just mountains of potential but does not know how to reign it in. Subban and Hal Gill were the top pair for the Habs when they made a run to the Eastern Conference Finals just two years ago. Now Gill, the mentor, is gone and Subban is trying to regain his form.
11:33 - The Sabres are finally getting some chances on the PP, but the shot blocking of the Habs is making it tough for Buffalo. Three times in a 10-second span a Montreal defender blocked a shot with his body. The Sabres still trail 3-2 in the third.
8:05 - SABRES GOAL. The puck ended up on Tyler Ennis' stick in the slot in between the hashmarks, and the forward did not miss. He went low, blocker side and beat Price with the shot to wake the fans up and get them out of their seats. It is a tie game now. 3-3 tie.
5:18 - The Carolina Hurricanes have won their game tonight, so if Buffalo loses in regulation they will fall below the 'Canes for last place in the East.
End of regulation
Sabres 3, Montreal 3
Goals
11:55 - (BUF) Tyler Ennis (5), (Ville Leino, Drew Stafford)
Penalties
7:05 - (MTL) Scott Gomez (2 min, hooking)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 9 (27), MTL - 6 (19)
Overtime
4:17 - Each team has a point for getting this far, but the extra one would be nice for Buffalo to get out of the basement. As of
the moment they still are behind the 'Canes, and in 15th in the East.
3:30 - The Sabres have hemmed Montreal in their own zone all period. Christian Ehrhoff had a golden chance with an open side of the net, but the defenseman was turned the wrong way and could not get back in a good position. Still 3-3 in OT.
:58.9 - Buffalo will get a late power play thanks to a Max Pacioretty trip. Ruff will use his timeout and get his play set up. Winning the face off is so key here.
End of overtime
Sabres 3, Canadiens 3
Goals
none
Penalties
4:01 - (MTL) Max Pacioretty (2 min, tripping)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 3 (30), MTL - 0 (19)
Shootout
Max Pacioretty and David Desharnais both scored in the shootout, while Brad Boyes and Jason Pominville were stopped on their attempts.
Goals
0:00 - (MTL) Max Pacioretty - Game-winning goal
0:00 - (MTL) David Desharnais
End of Game
Montreal 4, Sabres 3 FINAL/SO
Montreal 4, Sabres 3 FINAL/SO
Postgame
Well, the Sabres twice had a lead in the game and twice surrendered the one-goal lead in the first period. Then, late in the game Tyler Ennis was able to get the equalizer to get one point out of the game. The losing streak continues for Buffalo in what is quickly becoming a lost season. I don't know what the answer is, but to say things are stale for the Sabres is a massive understatement. I don't think big changes are coming in the next 10 days, but something certainly should change come the offseason. The Sabres are off tomorrow, but have a Sunday matinee against the Pittsburgh Penguins here in downtown Buffalo. The puck drops at 12:30 p.m. as part of the Hockey Weekend In America festivities. Catch all of the action on the flagship home of the Sabres Radio Network - WGR Sports Radio 550. Pregame coverage with Brian Koziol starts at 11:30 a.m.