Hurricanes

RALEIGH, N.C. -- One night after allowing two goals in two attempts in a shootout loss, Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward took a different approach when the opportunity arose again.
"I told the boys I was overdue, which is the truth," Ward said. "I almost laughed it off. Just kind of said 'whatever happens, happens.'"

Lee Stempniak and Sebastian Aho scored on Carolina's first two attempts, and Ward stopped Sam Reinhart and Jack Eichel to give the Hurricanes a 2-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres at PNC Arena on Saturday. The win came one night after a 4-3 loss in which he was beaten by Washington Capitals forwards T.J. Oshie and Evgeny Kuznetsov in the tiebreaker. Ward had a laugh at his own expense after the win against Buffalo.
WATCH: All Sabres vs. Hurricanes highlights
"To come up with a shootout win, those are pretty rare with me, so those certainly feel good," said Ward, who is 17-39 in the tiebreaker. "There's only one way to get over what happens. Today I felt a lot more relaxed and calm than I did last night."
Ward made 23 saves for the Hurricanes (13-11-7), who are 8-0-1 in their past nine home games. Anders Nilsson made 21 saves for the Sabres (12-11-7).
Buffalo made a late push in the third period and tied the game 1-1 with 2:37 remaining when Evander Kane redirected Jake McCabe's shot from the point just inside the right post. Marcus Foligno was credited with the second assist.
Joakim Nordstrom gave the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead at 14:04 of the first period. He jumped on a loose puck after a possession battle between Carolina's Jay McClement and Buffalo's Zach Bogosian and shot it past Nilsson from close range. Brett Pesce earned the second assist with an aerial pass out of the defensive zone.
"That one was over the head of both guys, and they're both skating back to a bouncing puck," Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said. "You take a whack and try to get it out of there. We missed it on the first try, unfortunately, and the clearing attempt gets whacked onto an open guy's stick."
The game was tight-checking through two periods, with little room for either team to create offense in the neutral zone. Carolina held a 13-12 advantage in shots.
"It was pretty sloppy, especially on the breakouts for both teams," Kane said. "It was a neutral-zone battle through the course of the game, which can be frustrating at times. That's the way the game is being played."
Each team had good looks at the net in overtime. Jack Eichel fed Kane at the left post for a likely tap-in, but the puck eluded Kane's stick. Nilsson came up big when he stopped Jeff Skinner's redirection of Victor Rask's shot.
It was the second game in as many nights for each team. The Hurricanes lost to the Washington Capitals 4-3 in a shootout; Buffalo defeated the New York Islanders 3-2 in overtime.

Goal of the game

Kane's goal was a gem. He had position on Rask but reached behind him to catch a piece of McCabe's wrist shot.

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Save of the game

With two minutes remaining in overtime, Skinner started a give-and-go with Rask from the right circle. But when Skinner drove the net and tipped the puck, Nilsson was square to the shooter and closed his pads.

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Highlight of the game

The entire overtime. After the two teams spent 60 minutes clogging the neutral zone and playing tight gaps, the 3-on-3 play was a combination of cautious possessions and quick scoring chances.

Unsung performance of the game

Foligno got loose for a breakaway in the final minute of regulation, but Carolina defenseman Jaccob Slavin got back and tied him up before he could get a shot off.

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They said it

"Both teams spent portions of the overtime that were very similar: puck possession in the offensive zone, pretty patient defensive posture from the opposition. Then the puck possession turns into tired bodies, and eventually there's a breakdown and guys get on the back door." -- Sabres coach Dan Bylsma
"I just tried to get [Nilsson] to move side to side a little bit. He's a big goalie, so he takes away the bottom part of the net. I just had to get it over his pad." -- Hurricanes forward Lee Stempniak, describing his goal that began the shootout
"We played better last night and lost and played not as good tonight and won. What does that tell you? You've got to stay with it, you've got to battle, you've got to compete. You've got to look to make plays." -- Hurricanes coach Bill Peters

Need to know

With Bylsma's next victory, he will become the 47th coach to win 300 NHL games. ... Pesce played his 100th NHL game. … A first-period hooking call against Buffalo forward Johan Larsson was the only penalty of the game. … Slavin had a game-high five blocked shots.

What's next

Sabres: At the Florida Panthers on Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; MSG-B, FS-F, NHL.TV)
Hurricanes: Host the Detroit Red Wings on Monday (7 p.m. ET; FS-D+, FS-CR,NHL.TV)