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The blue and gold suffered another demoralizing loss on Friday at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens. However, Buffalo moved up from 15th to 14th place in the Eastern Conference standings while they were idle yesterday. Our Paul Hamilton caught up with Thomas Vanek yesterday at practice and spoke with the star forward about being benched in Friday's loss. If you haven't checked it out yet, click here.
Be sure to interact with me throughout the game in several different ways. Comment in the thread below, text me at 550550 and/or send me a tweet: @PatWGR. I will respond to as many as I can, and while you are there give me a follow. I will add my two cents during the contest, in addition to the scoring plays.
First Period
19:08 - SABRES GOAL. The captain does the dirty work by the side of the net and chips the puck over Brent Johnson's left pad to open the scoring less than a minute into the game. Jason Pominville leads by example yet again to give Buffalo the lead. Good work by the line of Thomas Vanek-Derek Roy-Pominville to energze the crowd early. 1-0 BUF.
17:27 - Tyler Myers is credited with one of the assists on the opening score of the game. The young defenseman did a good job to keep the puck in the zone and feed it down low to Pominville for the goal. He is paired up with Jordan Leopold early on in today's contest.
15:44 - SABRES GOAL. Where has that Derek Roy been all year?! The center is able to backhand a shot past Johnson while in a full blown spin, after taking a hit to make the play. Roy now has 2 points early on today, with the assist on Pominville's goal as well. 2-0 BUF.
11:41 - The Pens were able to kill off Matt Niskanen's high sticking minor but Buffalo had a few chances around the net. Brad Boyes possessed the puck a couple of times, as did Tyler Ennis and Roy but no one was able to get off a quality chance to up the lead to three.
9:12 - Ryan Miller comes up with his first big save of the game on a rocket off of Paul Martin's stick. A good job by the goalie to recover and slide across his crease to snare the puck with his glove. Pascal Dupuis had a chance at the other side of the net but whiffed on it. Still 2-0 Buffalo midway through the frame.
7:08 - Ville Leino is going to the box due to some careless use of his stick. He caught Dustin Jeffrey right in the yap with his stick behind the Sabres net. Leino didn't like the call but it was the correct one to make by Kevin Pollock. It is of the 2 minute variety.
3:19 - We are down to the final media timeout of the frame and the Sabres are outshooting Pittsburgh 7-4. Things have calmed down considerably in front of Johnson after an early onslaught by the blue and gold. Except for the Dupuis and Martin sequence, there hasn't been a ton of action in front of Miller.
End of period
Sabres 2, Pittsburgh 0
Goals
0:52 - (BUF) Jason Pominville (23), (Tyler Myers, Derek Roy)
4:16 - (BUF) Derek Roy (12), (Jason Pominville, Christian Ehrhoff)
Penalties
6:09 -(PIT) Matt Niskanen (2 min, high sticking)
12:52 - (BUF) Ville Leino (2 min, high sticking)
17:39 - (BUF) Derek Roy (2 min, tripping)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 7, PIT - 10
Second Period
19:10 - Dupuis goes off to the box early for high sticking. Let's see if Buffalo can open up a three-goal lead with their second PP chance of the game. They were unsuccessful in the opening frame on the man advantage.
17:08 - SABRES GOAL. Shortly after the minor penalty expired Nathan Gerbe took a shot from the right winf face-off dot, and Paul Gaustad slammed home the rebound into the top of the net to chase Johnson from the game. It is a three-goal lead for Buffalo as Marc-Andre Fleury is new between the pipes for Pittsburgh. 3-0 BUF.
16:21 - PENGUINS GOAL. Pittsburgh gets on the board thanks to a laser shot by Deryk Engelland from the point and Miller could not get back into position in time for the save. Evgeni Malkin has been buzzing this period and nets the only assist on the score. 3-1 BUF.
13:43 - Another big save in the game for Miller, this time on a clear cut breakaway chance for Malkin. The Pens' forward had a full head of steam as he bore down on the Buffalo netminder. Miller stayed with the puck the whole time and turned the chance away. That could be a big moment in the game to remember later on.
12:23 - WOW, I don't know how Nathan Gerbe missed the wide open net chance he just had moments ago. The puck cranked right off of the post after a perfect cross-ice pass from Patrick Kaleta. The score is still 3-1 Buffalo.
9:09 - Kaleta had a penalty shot chance thanks to a stick being thrown during the play in the offensive zone before the stoppage. Fleury made a nice save on the chance as Kaleta tried to go high, glove side on the shot.
7:28 - Another undisciplined penalty by the Pens gives Buffalo another chance to up the lead to three. This is very uncharacteristic of a Dan Bylsma-coached team.
6:46 - Christian Ehrhoff is trying to up the ante today with his play at both ends. I have likes his game for most of the season. His heavy shot from the point went off of the crossbar and into the netting. Then moments later he breaks up a chance in his own end with a diving play to knock the puck off of the Penguin stick.
2:24 - Patrick Kaleta finds himself on the wrong end of a Chris Kunitz boarding play. A dangerous hit from the Penguins' winger as he had his sights set on the 36 on Kaleta's back, no doubt about it.
End of period
Sabres 3, Pittsburgh 1
Goals
2:52 - (BUF) Paul Gaustad (7), (Nathan Gerbe, Jordan Leopold)
3:39 - (PIT) Deryk Engelland (3), (Evgeni Malkin)
Penalties
0:38 - (PIT) Pascal Dupuis (2 min, high sticking)
11:46 - (PIT) Matt Cooke (2 min, tripping)
17:36 - (PIT) Chris Kunitz (2 min, boarding)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 10 (17), PIT - 7 (17)
Third Period
17:38 - A huge "Let's Go Pens!" chant erupts as the period gets underway, which in turn brings out a round of booing from Sabres fans. A little back and forth to get everyone going early in the final stanza.
16:27 - Robyn Regehr gets his stick into the small of the back of James Neal, which touches off a wrestling match after the play is stopped. Regehr is in the box along with Gerbe and Kunitz. Gerbe and Kunitz paired off and got into a scrum that was eventually broken up by the linesmen. Minors all around for the three players, which gives the visitors a man advantage.
14:55 - PENGUINS GOAL. The puck juuuuuuust gets through Miller and crosses the goal line to bring Pittsburgh within one. Jordan Staal gets his 19th of the year as a just a bit of the white ice shown through on the overhead view of the play. 3-2 BUF.
13:50 - SABRES GOAL. Bang, Buffalo gets the two-goal lead back thanks to some good work by Christian Ehrhoff and Drew Stafford. Ehrhoff lugged the puck up ice, had a tip chance that missed and camped himself in front of the net as Stafford banks his third effort off of an outstretched Fleury. 4-2 BUF.
11:28 - SABRES GOAL. The Sabres have woken up in a big way this period. Derek Roy gets his second goal of the game on a beautiful cross-ice pass from the captain while shorthanded. It is no surprise to me that Pominville and Ehrhoff are in on the scoring with both assists. Those two have been great today. 5-2 BUF.
7:32 - Three different members of the blue and gold are having 3 point days so far. Roy (2G, 1A), Pominville (1G, 2A) and Ehrhoff (3A) are all having a good day offensively.
4:38 - The Sabres seem content to just burn the clock, while the Pens are just trying to get rid of James Neal's minor. The clock just continues to run down.
3:17 - SABRES GOAL. Tyler Ennis joins the party after some nifty passing down low. Zack Kassian worked the puck down low, Ville Leino also helped out on the score. 6-2 BUF.
End of game
Sabres 6, Pittsburgh 2
Goals
5:05 - (PIT) Jordan Staal (19) PPG, (James Neal, Steve Sullivan)
6:10 - (BUF) Drew Stafford (10), (Christian Ehrhoff, Thomas Vanek)
8:32 - (BUF) Derek Roy (13) SHG, (Jason Pominville, Christian Ehrhoff)
16:43 - (BUF) Tyler Ennis (6), (Zack Kassian, Ville Leino)
Penalties
3:33 - (PIT) Chris Kunitz (2 min, roughing)
3:33 - (BUF) Robyn Regehr (2 min, cross checking)
3:33 - (BUF) Nathan Gerbe (2 min, roughing)
6:39 - (BUF) Jordan Leopold (2 min, holding)
14:35 - (PIT) James Neal (2 min, charging)
16:03 - (BUF) Drew Stafford (2 min, roughing
16:03 - (PIT) Matt Cooke (2 min, roughing)
Shots on Goal
BUF - 7 (24), PIT - 9 (26)
Postgame
This was a nice win for the blue and gold today. They were firing on all cylinders from the start and got to Brent Johnson, just like they have done most of the times they have faced the goalie in the past. The early goals set the tone and forced the Penguins to take bad penalties due to frsustration and trying to do too much. How many times have we seen the Sabres be the ones does that recently? Too many times, that is the answer to the rhetorical question. We will have to wait until Tuesday night to see if the team can carry some of this positive momentum over to their next game. They host the New York Islanders at 7 o'clock on the flagship home of the Sabres Radio Network - WGR Sports Radio 550. Pregame with Mike Schopp and the Bulldog starts at 6 p.m. Buffalo sits 1 point behind the Isles in the Eastern Conference standings as of right now.