BUFFALO — Determination.
It's the name of the game.
And it's becoming the identity of the Flames, who battled back from a two-goal deficit - again - to salvage a point in a 3-2 shootout setback to the Sabres.
Matt Coronato and Mikael Backlund scored for Calgary, who finished their three-game Eastern road trip with four of a possible six points.
The Sabres opened the scoring 1:11 into the contest. A point shot from Jacob Bryson was blocked in front of the Flames net, but the rebound fell to Zach Benson, who backhanded home his second goal of the season.
Tage Thompson extended the lead on a powerplay at 13:37; the puck went around the horn from right to the left circle, where he accepted a one-timer feed from Rasmus Dahlin, banging the puck off a body and into the net.
At the other end, Sabres netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made his best save of the frame off a point shot from Kevin Bahl that zipped its way goalward through traffic.
Shots were 7-6 in Buffalo’s favour after 20 minutes.
Calgary started the second on the front foot, Connor Zary forcing Luukkonen into a pad save after he sent the puck goalward from the right wing on an odd-man rush.
Coronato clanked one off the left post 10 minutes later on another 2-on-1 break, beating Luukkonen but not the iron.
But he’d find the scoresheet before the period was through.
As chaos erupted in the neutral zone between Justin Kirkland and former Flame Dennis Gilbert, Calgary took advantage of some extra space in the offensive zone. MacKenzie Weegar feathered a pass through to Coronato at the right post for a back-door tap-in.
