Early penalties prove costly in loss to Flyers

PHILADELPHIA – A pair of early penalties swung momentum in favor of the Philadelphia Flyers, who never relinquished their hold on what ended as a 5-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday.

The Sabres successfully killed their first penalty, a boarding minor against Connor Clifton, but went shorthanded again when Zach Benson was called for slashing 12:58 into the contest. Tyson Foerster opened the scoring for the Flyers on the ensuing power play, then Travis Sanheim buried a one-timer to double their lead less than three minutes later.

“I think when you start a game and you take the two penalties that we took, you haven’t learned enough yet about playing on the road,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “We spend a lot of time talking about first periods. That’s a way to just have a disastrous first period.”

The Flyers extended their lead to 3-0 just 2:08 into the second period when defenseman Egor Zamula lofted a shot that deflected off a Sabres’ player stick, then continued to bounce on its way into the Buffalo net.

Penalties arose again for the Sabres as they attempted to fight their way back into the game. They earned two power plays in the middle period, but both times were penalized within the next minute to bring play back to 4-on-4. On the latter occasion, Travis Konecny scored the Flyers’ fourth goal of the night to complete a 2-on-0 rush.

“Unfortunately, it’s something that we’re still battling with,” Sabres forward Jason Zucker said regarding the team’s penalties. “But we’ve got to figure it out and we’ve got to figure it out quick, because we’re taking too many and it’s biting us too many times now.”

Added Ruff: “It comes down to ice time. If we’re going to take those type of penalties, the ice time’s got to get less. Sometimes maybe you won’t play. But it’s got to be a harsher message.”

Rasmus Dahlin scored a power-play goal on a one-timer from the point to put the Sabres on the board with 9:54 remaining. Ryan McLeod scored their second goal from the blue paint with 1:05 on the clock and goalie Devon Levi pulled for an extra attacker. The comeback bid ended when Konecny scored into an empty net during the final minute.

Levi made 27 saves for the Sabres, who were outshot 32-25 against a Flyers team that paid special attention to defending their own net.

“I’m going to give them credit,” Ruff said of the Flyers. “They had great sticks, they were good in shot lanes. Their small details were better than ours today.”

Here’s more from the loss in Philadelphia.

1. The Sabres were without forward Tage Thompson and goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for the second straight game due to injuries. Both players participated in an optional team skate Saturday morning and are expected to be ready to play Wednesday night in Los Angeles.

2. Buffalo was also without forward Jordan Greenway, who left practice early on Friday due to what Ruff described as a nagging injury. The Sabres recalled Jiri Kulich to replace Greenway in the lineup at forward.

3. Dahlin finished the night with a goal and an assist, extending his point streak to six games. He had four goals and five assists in that span.

4. JJ Peterka also extended his point streak to a career-best six games with an assist on Zucker’s goal. He has three goals and five assists in those games.

5. The Sabres held their Mentors Trip, which began during Thursday’s home victory over the St. Louis Blues. Player guests included parents, coaches, siblings, and former teammates, among others.

Watch Thompson’s mom, Kim, read the starting lineup and various mentors answer questions about their players in the videos below.

Up next

The Sabres open a three-game trip to California when they visit the Kings on Wednesday. Coverage on MSG begins at 10 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 10:30.