Luukkonen, Sabres hand Sharks 14th loss in past 15

BUFFALO -- Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 27 saves for the Buffalo Sabres in a 3-0 win against the San Jose Sharks at KeyBank Center on Monday.

Luukkonen, who made his third straight start, is 4-1-0 in his past five starts with a 1.40 goals-against average and .950 save percentage.

"I talked about how well we've been playing as a team, and that gives me confidence, too," Luukkonen said. "I mean, I think that's a key as a goalie, when you have confidence and you feel good in the net, that kind of boosts your own game, too. Just I feel like getting a couple good starts in a row helps a lot, too. Getting trust from your coaching staff, too. It's all those things that kind of combine and give me confidence to play."

Casey Mittelstadt had a goal and two assists for the Sabres (19-21-4), who are 4-2-0 in their past six games.

"Any time you get the first goal, it's going to be big, especially against a team that's been struggling, and maybe gives you some momentum [to] keep going," Mittelstadt said. "[Luukkonen] once again played great and just battling back there and making big saves for us, fun to watch and, yeah, he deserves it, he's a warrior for sure."

Kaapo Kahkonen made 32 saves for the Sharks (10-31-3), who have lost 14 of their past 15 games and were shut out for the seventh time this season.

"I don't think anybody's thinking about losing streaks," Sharks coach David Quinn said. "We're thinking about getting some rest, getting to Chicago (to play the Blackhawks on Tuesday), and getting ready to play tomorrow night. You can't play in this League that way, thinking that way. Obviously we've had two long ones (5-4 last-second loss to Ottawa Senators on Saturday) but I don't think anybody's thinking of that. You've just got to live in the moment and prepare to play again tomorrow night."

Mittelstadt gave Buffalo a 1-0 lead at 11:34 of the second period. He took a pass from Kyle Okposo at the blue line to the top of the left circle where he used San Jose defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic as a screen before shooting the puck through Vlasic and defenseman Mario Ferraro's legs and under Kahkonen's right arm.

"Honestly, I'm not really aiming there, just trying to get it through," Mittelstadt said. "I still don't know where it went in. 'Okie' did a great job. He gave me so much room there, he dropped it to me and then drove the [defense] all the way back, gave me enough room to make that toe-drag and the shot. Just trying to get it through, lots of traffic, and glad to see that one go in."

Alex Tuch made it 2-0 at 14:37 when he one-timed a pass from Jack Quinn from the slot on the power play.

"We didn't react quick enough, and they found a way to get that one through," Sharks forward Luke Kunin said.

Jordan Greenway scored an empty-net goal at 16:34 for the 3-0 final.

"We have to just put more shots and with the power play, too, we just have to get pucks to the net, guys around the net they get the rebounds," San Jose forward Tomas Hertl said. "It feels like we expected tap-in goals and when they're coming for you, that's the only goal you will score. You just have to get around the net, screen the goalie and get the rebounds because nobody will just hand it to us. It's on us forwards, we have to just be more hungry and wanting to score."

NOTES: Luukkonen, who had his second shutout of the season, is the first Sabres goalie with multiple shutouts in a single season since Carter Hutton had two in 2019-20. … Mittelstadt had his 10th multipoint game of the season, becoming the first Sabres player to do so this season. … Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson did not play after sustaining an upper-body injury in a 1-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. … Buffalo recalled defenseman Kale Clague from Rochester of the American Hockey League on Monday, but he did not play. … Sharks captain Logan Couture, who has not played this season because of a lower-body injury, is nearing a return but will not play against the Blackhawks on Tuesday, Quinn said before the game.