'It was relief' | Olofsson's goal propels Sabres to win over Isles

Victor Olofsson caught a glance from Peyton Krebs and knew a pass would soon follow.
Krebs tracked the puck into the opposite corner. Olofsson cocked his stick and positioned himself near the right faceoff dot, the location from which he had scored so often throughout his career.
The sight of Olofsson burying the shot, short-side - his first goal since Halloween - inspired two emotions among the players in blue and gold. For Olofsson, it was relief. For his teammates, elation.

"He's such a positive guy, such a good teammate, and you want guys like that to break through some of those streaks because it happens to everybody," Alex Tuch said. "… I hope someone got the video of the whole bench because we were freaking out. It was a huge goal."
The MSG broadcast did in fact capture the reaction, which was true to Tuch's description:

Olofsson's goal broke a 3-3 tie with 2:55 remaining in the third period and stood as the deciding score in the Sabres' 6-3 win over the New York Islanders at KeyBank Center on Tuesday. He added a second goal into an empty net for good measure.
The two-goal outing marked the end of a lengthy drought for Olofsson, who led Buffalo with five goals in eight games when he sustained an upper-body injury on Halloween. He missed the next eight contests due in large part to the nature of the ailment, which coach Don Granato said hampered his shooting.
Olofsson had not found the back of the net in 30 games since returning to the lineup on Nov. 21. Doubt became a mental hurdle, he said, allowing hesitation to diminish one of the NHL's premier shots.
"It's been the toughest stretch of my career, for sure," Olofsson said. "I haven't scored in a long time, so it definitely felt good."

That the goal put the Sabres ahead in a game in which the Islanders had erased a trio of one-goal deficits was reason enough to celebrate. The joy on the bench had as much to do with who scored it.
"One of the things is we have such a tight group, such a good group of guys, that when guys are going through slumps or tough times, I think everyone is there to support them or pick them up," forward Tage Thompson said.
"Not just him, but anyone that's going through slumps because everyone goes through them. That's something I'm really proud of this team about. It's fun to be a part of such a close-knit group."
Added Granato: "I think everyone on the bench had a smile. But most importantly, he had a smile."
Now, onto more notes from a win that stretched the Sabres' point streak to three games (2-0-1) since returning from the All-Star break.

A learning moment

The Sabres had held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 before Tuch deflected a shot from Krebs on the power play to regain a 3-2 advantage with 0.6 seconds on the clock in the second period.
The Islanders had one more answer in them. Kyle Palmieri caught a carom off the boards and scored on a tough-angle shot that went in off the mask of goaltender Dustin Tokarski. The score could have conjured thoughts of two games prior, when the Blue Jackets erased a third-period deficit in Buffalo.
Instead, the Sabres dominated the back half of the period and pulled ahead on Olofsson's goal.
"It's a growing moment," Tuch said. "I think the energy was a little bit different from previous games that we gave up the lead. We didn't sit back. We didn't change our game. We said, 'Hey, you know what, happens.' … We didn't have any doubts seep into our minds. I think that was really good for this group."

Granato saw the type of fearless aggression he has sought from his young team all season, which translated in key moments. Thompson held onto the puck in the New York zone and shrugged off multiple defenders before scoring shorthanded in the second period. Tuch's power-play goal was preceded by multiple puck battles won by the Sabres.
"That's the byproduct of playing with passion, playing to that point of fearlessness," Granato said. "It's all the stuff that I've talked about, getting back to playing fearless. You saw it tonight."

The Cozens line

Granato stuck with a line of Krebs, Dylan Cozens, and Olofsson after debuting the trio in Montreal on Sunday. The coach met with the three players after the morning skate to break down video of their first game and discuss areas he felt they could capitalize on.
The group responded with a dominant effort. Shot attempts were 11-2 in favor of the Sabres in 9:09 when Krebs, Cozens, and Olofsson shared the ice at 5-on-5. Cozens tallied three assists, the first three-point outing of his young career.
"I thought they were really good tonight supporting each other and playing with the confidence of that and were rewarded for it," Granato said. "So great job by them."

Pysyk 500

Mark Pysyk appeared in his 500th NHL game. His night included …
A warmup photo with his wife and daughter:

A video tribute during the first period:

And even a turn as reporter during the first intermission:

All in all, a good day for the defenseman.

Up next

The Sabres continue their three-game homestand Thursday against the Ottawa Senators. Tickets are available here.
Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. The puck drops at 7.