Hischier has 2 points in return, Devils cruise past Sabres to end skid

NEWARK, N.J. -- Nico Hischier had a goal and an assist in his return to the lineup for the New Jersey Devils in a 7-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres at Prudential Center on Saturday.

The New Jersey captain, who missed 11 games with an upper-body injury, was the center on a line with left wing Ondrej Palat and Jesper Bratt that finished with six points (two goals, four assists).

"I wanted to come back, and I thought today was the right moment and I'm glad I came back and was able to help the team," Hischier said. "When we play four lines, bring the effort, that intensity, then we play Devils hockey. We’ve got to just bring that more consistently."

The Devils outshot the Sabres 38-12, including 18-3 in the first period.

"We came out quick, speed through the neutral zone, speed on the entries," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said. "When you add a player like Nico, it kind of pushes the players back in position and gave us a little bit more depth in the top couple of lines, so I liked a lot about how we came out."

Tyler Toffoli scored twice, and Alexander Holtz, Luke Hughes, Dawson Mercer and Palat each had a goal and an assist for the Devils (8-9-1), who ended a three-game losing streak. Vitek Vanecek made 10 saves, and Bratt and Dougie Hamilton each had two assists.

New Jersey was coming off a 2-1 home loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday.

"There was no real panic within our game and we were calm and we made all those little plays that are not easy to make," Toffoli said. "You don't always want to make them; you want to kind of make the home-run plays all the time, but I thought we made those little plays and it went a long way for us."

Jeff Skinner and Kyle Okposo scored for the Sabres (9-10-2), who defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 at home Friday. Eric Comrie made 14 saves on 18 shots and was replaced to start the second period by Devon Levi, who made 17 saves.

"It's very disappointing; this was self-inflicted, and we just didn't work hard enough," Buffalo coach Don Granato said. "We had a struggling first period. There were too many goals on breakdowns, and that's how goals are scored in the NHL."

New Jersey scored four goals in the first to take a lead into the second on home ice for the first time in 10 home games this season (4-5-1).

"It was one of those games we've been searching for, and definitely the past couple games have been really disappointing within our group and it's been really frustrating," Toffoli said. "So we've got to use this as a stepping stone and know that's the bar for us."

Holtz made it 1-0 from the slot at 1:31, and Toffoli pushed the lead to 2-0 at 11:09 on a backhand just outside the left post. 

Hischier extended it to 3-0 at 15:20 when the puck deflected in off his leg while he skated down the slot, before Palat made it 4-0 on the rush at 18:27 with a snap shot in the high slot.

"We got to play as a team and I think tonight we did that," Hischier said. "It was a 60-minute effort. We're a dangerous team, but I think we understand that. We’ve just got to execute."

Skinner cut it to 4-1 at 1:53 of the second, scoring a power-play goal from the high slot.

"We weren't very good tonight and, a quarter of the season in, time is of the essence," Sabres defenseman Connor Clifton said.

Toffoli pushed it to 5-1 at 2:44 on a rebound off the left pad of Levi.

"He's just a good pro who cares about winning," Ruff said of Toffoli. "There's parts of his game that I really believe players that we have, who are around him, can take. Some of it is that hard compete and some of it is the hard decisions he makes. He cares about winning. He cares about playing the game the right way. He's been in the battles, and that experience can be helpful to a lot of our guys." 

Mercer made it 6-1 at 50 seconds of the third period when the puck deflected off his skate in the slot.

Okposo pulled Buffalo within 6-2 at 3:55, scoring on the power play with a redirection from the slot.

Luke Hughes scored a power-play goal at 5:38 for the 7-2 final.

NOTES: Isak Rosen had no shots in 13:00 of ice time in his NHL debut for the Sabres. Teammate and fellow forward Jiri Kulich had one shot and played 14:53 in his NHL debut. ... Buffalo defenseman Rasmus Dahlin had a four-game point streak end. ... Devils forward Erik Haula (assist) did not play in the third period because of an undisclosed injury. Ruff had no update.