The Buffalo Sabres squandered two two-point leads in the second period as the Pittsburgh Penguins forced overtime en route to Sidney Crosby burying the game-winning goal in just nine seconds, sweeping the two-game series to end the preseason at PPG Paints Arena.
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The second period saw the Sabres lead twice, only for the Penguins to storm back in the last frame after Buffalo’s penalty kill allowed Pittsburgh’s power play to score twice on both opportunities. Despite the loss, Jiri Kulich proved to be the team’s silver lining after posting two goals for the night. Meanwhile, the goaltending situation remains questionable as the season is about to start.
Shorthanded Sabres Got Exploited on the Man-Advantage
The Sabres held on to their lead in the second period as the defensive corps stepped up in the absence of four of the top six Sabres’ defensemen (Rasmus Dahlin, Michael Kesselring, Owen Power, and Mattias Samuelsson). However, as mistakes piled up on Buffalo, warranting them penalties (too many players on the ice, Tage Thompson holding), the Penguins capitalized on the man advantage to send the game to overtime.
Furthermore, Pittsburgh bombarded the Sabres with double their shots in the last 20 minutes as their forwards started to outmaneuver Buffalo’s defense, proving the absence of their key personnel crucial in this situation. Two of the Sabres’ penalty kill regular players were also missing, hence their struggle with defending the power play continued.
Rickard Rakell’s goal on the first power play cut the deficit to one before Crosby flicked the game-tying goal to send the game to overtime. It’s also worth noting that in overtime, Erik Karlsson easily penetrated the Sabres’ defense on the way to delivering his assist to the positioned Crosby to nail his game-winning goal.
Kulich Shines Despite the Loss
The center of the intriguing and young third line, together with Jack Quinn and Josh Doan, tallied a pair of goals in a valiant effort for the Sabres. Kulich backhanded a rebound from a shot in the left faceoff circle to give Buffalo its first two-goal lead of the night. He once again came rushing to dump a rebound off of a denied shot to hand the Sabres a 4-2 lead.
Having to work with Zach Benson’s injury, Thompson and Josh Norris showed glimpses of chemistry after he swung a perfectly placed pass to the striding Thompson, who tipped it beside the netminder’s glove side to put the Sabres on the scoreboard.
Although the Sabres’ woes on the power play continued, Jason Zucker managed to net a goal off a Bowen Byram high-slot wrist shot in a man-advantage situation, snatching the lead, 2-1.
Situation in the Crease Leaves a Lot to Be Desired
In light of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s injury, the Sabres alternated between Alex Lyon and Alexandar Georgiev anchoring the crease. Luukkonen, who is listed on a week-to-week evaluation, is expected to miss the start of the season, leaving Buffalo with two not-so-desirable options.
Georgiev, who started the preseason strong with a shutout against the Columbus Blue Jackets in his first game, struggled to find consistency in his netminding duties. He currently holds a subpar .872 save percentage (SV%).
On the other hand, Lyon, who seems to be the more reliable option, boasts a .909 SV% this preseason. With Luukkonen’s injury, the team will rely on the services of these two, with Lyon seeming to have a slight edge because of his recent performances.
What’s Next?
The Sabres are set to regroup with the finalized rosters to be announced on Oct. 6. They also look forward to the return of injured players to open the season at full strength from a healthier roster.
