'Battle through adversity' | Sabres erase 3rd-period deficit in OT win over Blues

Lindy Ruff was shown on the KeyBank Center videoboard in the aftermath of a challenge that overturned what would have been the game-tying goal for the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, a reminder of the fiery personality currently behind their bench.

Dylan Cozens had just muscled his way to the slot area to bury a rebound. The Blues successfully challenged that Zach Benson, as he jostled for position with defenseman Ryan Suter, interfered with goaltender Jordan Binnington at the edge of the blue paint.

The referee told Ruff that the goal was overturned because Benson had entered the crease.

“I said, 'I respectfully disagree,' because I thought he was kind of bumped,” Ruff said. “He got bumped in there, trapped in there. But you have to be able to battle through adversity and I thought we did.”

Responding in the face of adversity was the story of the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime win against the Blues.

They responded to the loss of their leading goal scorer in Tage Thompson and their starting goaltender in Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, both of whom missed the game due to injuries and are considered day to day. With Thompson out, Ryan McLeod opened the game centering a line with Zach Benson and Alex Tuch. All three players scored goals.

Rasmus Dahlin responded to the late penalty he took in the team’s loss to Montreal on Monday, skating 27:31 and scoring the power-play winner in overtime on a one-timer from the right circle.

And, on a macro level, the Sabres responded as a team to that difficult loss to the Canadiens, which had snapped a three-game winning streak. Ruff’s directive in the ensuing days was to become a team that doesn’t lose two games in a row.

“Good response,” Ruff said. “Again, you’ve got to be able to overcome tough moments.”

The Sabres found themselves in an early hole following a few quality saves by Binnington to start the game. Brandon Saad caught a loose puck in the slot and scored on the Blues’ third shot of the night, giving them a 1-0 lead 3:11 into the contest.

Buffalo answered with goals scored 4:02 apart by Benson and McLeod to carry a 2-1 lead into the first intermission. St. Louis pulled ahead once again during the second period, earning the tying goal on a shot from the slot by Pavel Buchnevich and taking the lead on Saad’s second of the game.

“Our second period wasn’t that good, but the answer in the third period was,” Ruff said. “We started to control play again. We started to skate through the neutral zone.”

The Sabres appeared to have tied the game on what would have been a highlight-reel goal from Cozens less than five minutes into the third period. Cozens laid out Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist to the ice on the forecheck, then outmuscled Sundqvist again as he peeled to the net to score on a rebound off a shot from Dahlin.

Though the goal was disallowed, McLeod said Cozens’ effort on the play made a lasting impact.

“I think that physical play really got the guys going,” McLeod said. “Even though it didn’t count, I think it fired us up.”

McLeod set up the tying goal with 7:03 remaining in regulation. He received a pass from Bowen Byram underneath the goal line and drifted left to right behind the net, bringing Binnington’s attention with him. At the last possible second, he sent a pass back the way he came, where Tuch was waiting with a wide-open net.

“The pass he made, unbelievable hockey IQ,” Dahlin said.

Ruff added: “It’s one of the toughest plays on a goaltender when you come out the same side that you’re skating. He went back side and Tuchy was able to put it in an empty net.”

The Sabres opened overtime with a full power play after Sudqvist was called for goalie interference to end regulation. Dahlin scored the winner 1:33 into the extra period on a feed from JJ Peterka.

Dahlin finished the game with nine shot attempts, including four shots on goal.

“I think Rasmus’ answer to last game after the penalty, for him to put the game away with the game-winning goal in overtime and the way he played … I thought his response tonight was awesome,” Ruff said.

It was a microcosm of a larger response from the Sabres, who have now won four of their last five games.

“It was not pretty today, but we found a way,” Dahlin said. “That’s what good teams do. I think it was a really mature game by us. So, I’m really happy about the effort by everybody.”

Here’s more from the victory.

1. McLeod skated 17:17 in Thompson’s absence. He scored his first-period goal on a shot from the point with Tuch and Benson providing layers of traffic in front of Binnington.

“I thought he stepped up the way we needed,” Ruff said. “It was the next man’s opportunity and he took advantage of it.”

2. With Luukkonen out, Levi made his first start since Nov. 1 and turned away 24 shots. James Reimer served as backup after he was claimed off waivers from Anaheim on Wednesday.

3. Shot volume had been an area of emphasis for the Sabres in the days following their loss to the Canadiens, in which they totaled 18 shots on goal. They responded with 33 shots on Thursday, their highest total in the last four games.

“I think we could shoot even more, honestly,” Dahlin said.

4. Dahlin and Peterka each extended their point streaks to five games, with three goals and four assists each during their respective runs.

5. The Sabres have now scored a power-play goal in eight of the last nine games. They are 9-for-30 in that span.

Up next

The Sabres open a run of four straight road games in Philadelphia on Saturday. Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7.