Tatar gave the Red Wings a 2-1 lead at 8:36 of the third period, beating a screened Lehner with a wrist shot for his fifth goal of the season.
"I got the puck in the middle, and I had some time, so I just tried to throw it over his pads," Tatar said. "I'm not sure who was in front, but big thanks to them, because [Lehner] probably didn't see it."
Larkin made it 3-1 at 15:54, tucking a rebound under Lehner.
The Sabres had two outstanding chances while shorthanded early in the second period, but Howard stopped Jordan Nolan on a breakaway and Benoit Pouliot hit the post.
Buffalo killed three power plays in the second period, including 26 seconds of a 5-on-3 advantage, but felt that effort ruined the game.
"When you are spending that much time killing penalties, it takes you out of the game," O'Reilly said. "You wear out the guys that are killing, and the guys who aren't end up sitting around. You never get any rhythm."
The Red Wings took a 1-0 lead at 19:05. Lehner made a pad save on Glendening's shot from the edge of the crease, but Glendening flipped the rebound into the top of the net.
"With all the chances we were getting, this could have been a game that could come back to haunt us," Glendening said. "We just played smart and stuck with our plan, and it finally paid off."
Sabres forward Evander Kane slammed his stick on the ice after missing an open net with two seconds left.
"That was a frustrating period, because they took it to us, and we didn't respond," he said.
