The Buffalo Sabres defeated the Nashville Predators 3-2 at KeyBank Center on Mar. 8, with new acquisition Sam Carrick making a notable impact in his debut. Carrick won two crucial defensive-zone faceoffs against Ryan O’Reilly in the final seconds, helping the Sabres secure their sixth consecutive victory and maintain their position at the top of the Atlantic Division.
Carrick was brought in from the New York Rangers before Friday’s trade deadline to strengthen Buffalo’s performance on faceoffs, an area where he has posted a 53.8 percent success rate this season. “Early on in the game, I was actually struggling in the dot a little bit, just wasn’t finding my groove,” said Carrick, who finished 4-for-8 on draws. “But definitely glad I won those last two. Obviously, it’s a big part of what they want to see from me when they brought me in, so to win two at the end there was nice.” Tage Thompson added about Carrick’s contribution: “They add up and they win you hockey games. They may not look sexy, but it gets the job done. The addition with him has been great.”
The Sabres struggled offensively early in the game, managing only two shots in the first period and falling behind after Nashville scored early in the second period. Coach Lindy Ruff commented on his team’s slow start: “Maybe we thought it was going to be easier… The first period was nowhere near the way we needed to play.” Thompson tied the game with his 34th goal of the season before Jason Zucker gave Buffalo a lead by finishing off Jack Quinn’s shot.
Josh Doan scored early in the third period for Buffalo after forcing a turnover and converting a pass from Josh Norris. Doan acknowledged breaking his six-game goalless streak: “[Norris] is an exceptional player… Him and Osty do a good job of filling the middle and coming up the ice with speed, so it’s been really fun getting a chance to play with them.” Goaltender Alex Lyon made 23 saves for Buffalo and improved to 3-0-0 since returning from Olympic break.
Carrick expressed satisfaction with his move closer to home: “It’s been an absolute blast… just the energy is unbelievable here. Obviously, they’ve got a great group, they’ve done great things this year so far, and I’m just coming in trying to complement it as best I can.” He also noted relief that his trade brought him near family: “Just relieved to have heard Buffalo.”
The Sabres remain tied atop their division with Tampa Bay as both teams prepare for another matchup Sunday at KeyBank Center.
