Rookie players led the Buffalo Sabres to a 5-3 victory over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena. The first period saw significant contributions from the team’s youngest members, with Noah Ostlund, 21, scoring twice and Konsta Helenius, 19, netting his first NHL goal in just his second game.
Coach Lindy Ruff praised the trio of Ostlund, Helenius, and 20-year-old Zach Benson for their performance. “They were the best line, by far,” Ruff said. “Skated well, made every play. Every time they were on the ice, they were in the offensive zone. … You look at back-to-back games, some guys have a little more (energy) than others. They had a lot of energy, and they made a lot of great plays.”
Helenius nearly opened the scoring early in the game before assisting on Ostlund’s opening goal after a deflection off his stick. The same line maintained pressure in their next shift; Ostlund scored again after collecting another rebound from Helenius’ shot.
“It wasn’t the hardest goals I’ve scored,” Ostlund said after recording his second career two-goal game. “But they were good today.”
Ruff added about Ostlund: “I think the world of Ostlund, the way he plays down low and how smart he’s been.”
Helenius scored late in the first period with a wrist shot that gave Buffalo a 3-0 lead through 20 minutes. Ruff noted: “We knew that Helly’s got a great wrist shot. When he walked down the pipe there, there’s not many guys that can score that goal, but he proved that’s one of his weapons.”
Helenius commented on his achievement: “You always dream about scoring a goal in the NHL, and now it happens, so it’s a really good feeling.”
Tage Thompson extended Buffalo’s lead with his 26th goal early in the second period before Nashville responded with goals from Ryan O’Reilly and Filip Forsberg. The Predators increased pressure throughout much of the second period.
“We got out of structure on a couple of plays; we got in a long shift,” Ruff explained regarding Nashville’s comeback attempt. “Intentions were good, but we didn’t manage the puck well enough, which really hurt us… You get caught with tired people, and you’re going to face chaos.”
Buffalo stabilized their play during the third period despite another goal from O’Reilly that cut their lead to one with just over ten minutes remaining. Peyton Krebs secured victory for Buffalo with an empty-net goal as time expired.
Goaltender Alex Lyon made 31 saves in his return to action since December 29 and has now won eight consecutive starts. According to Natural Stat Trick data cited by team officials, Lyon saved over one expected goal above average during all situations against Nashville.
Lyon credited teammates Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin for helping steady play after Nashville’s strong push in the second period: “I’ve been in this building before, and when those guys turn it on and get going, it’s always a sight to behold… We hunkered in, and that’s just what good teams do.”
The Sabres have now improved their record to 16-3-1 over their last 20 games and hold onto an Eastern Conference wild card spot as they prepare for Thursday night’s road game against Montreal.
