Sabres overcome Eichel's injury to earn win in Boston

BOSTON -With their leading scorer having gone down with an injury, the Buffalo Sabres could have fallen flat against a talented opponent in the Boston Bruins. Instead, they responded with one of their most complete performances of the season.
Jack Eichel left the game in the first period with an apparent lower-body injury, but a stellar defensive effort - combined with second-period goals from Evander Kane, Scott Wilson and Benoit Pouliot - paved the way for the Sabres to earn a 4-2 victory at TD Garden on Saturday night.
The win was Buffalo's second in a row and fourth-straight on the road. Chad Johnson made 25 saves, while Rasmus Ristolainen scored an empty-net goal with 28.2 seconds remaining.

"I thought guys made a terrific effort tonight, one of the best games I've seen us check with sticks and coming back into our zone," Sabres coach Phil Housley said. "As a result, we got a lot of chances, a lot of looks, a lot of 2-on-1s and we cashed in on some. I thought everybody stepped their game up when Jack went down."

Eichel sustained his injury with 6:52 remaining in the first period after falling awkwardly on his right leg during a collision with Bruins defenseman (and former Boston University teammate) Matt Grzelcyk. Housley had no further updates on his status after the game.
Eichel leads the Sabres with 53 points this season, 34 of which have come since the beginning of December. He missed the first 21 games of last season with a left high-ankle sprain.

"When you're in-game, sort of everything around you goes away," Johnson said. "It's tough losing Jack, he's our best player and our franchise player. It's tough but we're all professional, we understand the situation. Guys get injured or get hurt so guys have to step up."
In Eichel's absence, the Sabres received contributions from throughout their lineup. Kane began the night amid a 14-game goal-scoring drought. Pouliot's drought was at eight games. Wilson sat out Thursday's game as a healthy scratch, having entered the lineup due to an illness to Zemgus Girgensons.
"When you lose your big guy, everyone knows a couple more minutes are coming your way and you're just going to have to dig down that much more," Wilson said. "I thought we did a good job of staying together and just getting it done."

Even beyond the goal scorers, the Sabres outcompeted a Bruins team that entered the night as one of the NHL's hottest clubs. The Sabres outshot the Bruins 28-27, outhit them 33-22 and recorded 20 blocked shots in front of Johnson.
How hot were the Bruins? They came into the night having earned a point in all but one of their last 23 games, with an 18-1-4 record in that span. They had earned at least a point in their last 21 games with Tuukka Rask in net (19-0-2), including eight-straight wins.
"I think the compete and the battle and the heaviness in the battle, definitely you have to win those," Housley said. "But I just thought, the way we checked, coming back, even on the forecheck and coming into our zone, there wasn't a lot of room early.
"We did a terrific job protecting Johnny and when we needed a save, he made some big saves."

The Sabres will have further word on Eichel's status once he's reevaluated by team doctors on Sunday. With or without him, they'll have a chance to win their third game in a row that night at home against the Colorado Avalanche.
With an impressive win under their belt, Wilson thinks the team should go into that game with confidence.
"I think we lacked that for a long time," he said. "Obviously getting this one tonight, it grows on you a little bit. We've beaten some good teams this year, we've just got to keep it going tomorrow and build on that confidence."

Good luck charm?

The Sabres have had special guests in attendance for each of their last two victories. Their annual "fathers trip" began in Buffalo on Thursday, when players had their dads and mentors in attendance for a 4-3 win over the New York Islanders.
The fathers traveled with the team to Boston and were in attendance once again on Saturday.
"It's great that the fathers are on the trip," Housley said. "I hope they can stay with us the rest of the year."

A big night for Benny

Pouliot ended his night with one goal, but Kane joked that he could have had five. That might not be so far-fetched - Pouliot tallied six shot attempts, including one that rung the post and one that was robbed on a glove save by Rask.
The goal Pouliot did score came during a 3-on-1 rush on a feed from Wilson.

"I was using my speed," Pouliot said. "I think when I use my speed I can be effective in that way. The guys I played with made big plays too so that was nice. So yeah, speed. If the whole team does that we'll have a lot of success."

Reinhart stays hot

The Sabres twice had minor scares involving Sam Reinhart, first when he got up and skated gingerly to the bench after going hard into the boards on a hit from Grzelcyk and later when he blocked a shot, limped off the ice and briefly went into the tunnel to shake it off.
Not only did Reinhart remain in the game after both incidents, he made the pass that sprung Kane free for a breakaway on his second-period goal.

With the assist, Reinhart now has 14 points (4+10) in his last 11 games.

Up next

The Sabres will return home to host the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. Looking for a night out with the family? Family packs - which include four 300-level tickets, four hot dogs, four sodas and four popcorns - are available here.
If you can't make it downtown, coverage on MSG-B begins at 6:30 p.m. with the GMC Game Night Pregame Show. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550, with puck drop set for just after 7.