Buffalo Sabres goaltender Alex Lyon made a strong impact on Apr. 24 by stopping 24 of 25 shots and leading his team to a 3-1 victory over the Boston Bruins in Game 3 of their playoff series at TD Garden. The win gives Buffalo a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Lyon, who admitted to feeling nervous before games, said, “Sometimes in practice I get really nervous. That’s just part of who I am. But it’s fun, too. I’ve learned to deal with it and kind of enjoy that part a little bit and not let it deter me at all.”
The game marked Lyon’s first start since being pulled from an April contest due to allowing three quick goals and then missing time with an injury. He credited his brief relief appearance earlier in the week for helping him prepare: “I think getting in for a few minutes of the last game was really helpful,” Lyon said.
Defenseman Bowen Byram praised Lyon’s steady play: “Nothing we aren’t used to,” Byram said about his goalie’s performance. “You come to just expect it from [Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen] and Lyon. They’ve been making huge saves for us all year and keeping us in games when we need them to.”
A pivotal moment came midway through the second period when Boston was awarded a penalty shot after some bad luck for Buffalo led to a foul during a breakout attempt. Lyon stopped Viktor Arvidsson’s shot, which coach Lindy Ruff called “probably the save of the night.” Ruff explained, “It’s just a huge momentum swing, one direction or the other.” Just over one minute later, Byram scored for Buffalo.
Alex Tuch put Buffalo ahead early in the third period while Noah Ostlund sealed the win with an empty-net goal late in regulation during his playoff debut. Despite heavy pressure from Boston late in regulation due to consecutive penalties against Buffalo, penalty killers helped maintain control as Lyon continued making key saves.
Reflecting on playing against hostile crowds at TD Garden before—having started several playoff games there last year—Lyon noted he now has “a much bigger hand” with this Sabres team than he did previously with Florida: “So, just feeling really excited and feeling really appreciative of the opportunity right now…just trying to really soak everything up.” According to Natural Stat Trick statistics cited by team officials after Game 3, Lyon saved five high-danger shots and stopped more than one goal above expected value.
Coach Ruff concluded about his goaltender: “We all know he’s [given] us everything he’s had since the start of the year,” adding that “tonight he gave us another great performance.”
