The Buffalo Sabres missed out on a full sweep of their Florida road trip after falling 4-3 in overtime to the Tampa Bay Lightning at Benchmark International Arena on Tuesday. The Sabres were leading late in regulation, but Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh tied the game with just 26 seconds left. Jake Guentzel then scored the overtime winner for Tampa Bay.
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff commented on the late goal: “I think we just shrunk a little bit too deep, gave them a little bit too much room for the shot.” He added, “But heck of an effort. You could see that, back to back, (we) didn’t quite have the energy early, but we found some energy late.”
The Lightning controlled play early and capitalized on a Sabres turnover when Nikita Kucherov scored. Rookie goaltender Colten Ellis made 12 saves in the first period and finished with 31 overall. Forward Josh Doan praised his teammate’s performance: “Colten was huge for us. In the first period, we gave up way too many odd-man rushes and chances against, and he shut the door for us. He played a heck of a game for us.”
Mattias Samuelsson led Buffalo offensively with two goals—his second multi-goal game this season—bringing his total to 11 goals. He tied the game late in the first period and put Buffalo ahead early in the third. Samuelsson said, “Playing with a little confidence offensively, just trying to get involved where I can.”
Tampa Bay’s Oliver Bjorkstrand tied it on a power play before Doan responded with his own power-play goal to restore Buffalo’s lead with just over five minutes remaining. The Sabres had further opportunities but couldn’t extend their advantage before Raddysh forced overtime.
Despite letting one point slip away, Doan saw positives: “Not that you’re happy with one point, but it’s a point that moves us in the right direction… We’ve got a good team in here, and we’ve got a lot of belief in our group. So, that’s a game where it shows that we’re right there on the road with the top team in the conference.”
Zach Benson missed Tuesday’s game after suffering an upper-body injury against Florida; he will be evaluated upon returning to Buffalo. Konsta Helenius replaced him in the lineup and contributed by drawing a penalty that led to Doan’s goal.
Defenseman Michael Kesselring was scratched after warmups as he continues to recover from an ankle injury.
In terms of standings, Columbus and Toronto both won their games while Washington and Ottawa lost; each of Columbus, Toronto and Washington now has 63 points. The Sabres are even with Montreal at 70 points through 56 games but hold third place due to more regulation wins (26-20). Detroit remains two points ahead having played one more game.
Ruff reflected on playoff positioning: “I think everybody realizes that the Atlantic Division, it’s extremely tough,” he said. “It just seems like every game, every night now, is a tight game. We’ve just got to make sure, when we get the lead like that late, we can find a way to close it out.”
Buffalo returns home Thursday night against Pittsburgh for its final matchup before the break.
