At the Horn | Sabres 6 - Canadiens 1

MONTREAL – Devon Levi stopped 32 of 33 shots while the Buffalo Sabres had nine different players record at least a point in a 6-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens inside Bell Centre on Thursday.

Buffalo held a 38-33 advantage in shots, led by Mattias Samuelsson with five shots and Rasmus Dahlin, Jeff Skinner, and Tage Thompson, who had four shots apiece.

Casey Mittelstadt and Skinner scored power-play goals early in the second before Joel Armia answered back with a shorthanded goal for the Canadiens.

The Sabres responded with four unanswered goals in the third from Jack Quinn, Thompson (2), and Dahlin as Levi made a flurry of saves in the final minutes, including a glove save on Cole Caufield to secure the victory.

Buffalo ended the night 2-for-4 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.

Skinner (1+3), Thompson (2+1), Quinn (1+1), Dahlin (1+1), Mittelstadt (1+1), and Alex Tuch (0+2) all recorded multi-point performances in the win.

SCORING SUMMARY

Period 2, 5:33 (PP) – Casey Mittelstadt from Jeff Skinner and Rasmus Dahlin (1-0, BUF)

Levi stopped 15 of 15 shots in the opening period as the two teams went into the locker room tied 0-0.

The Canadiens thought they had the game’s first goal 2:06 into the second, but the Sabres challenged for goaltender interference. The call on the ice was overturned after video review determined Joel Armia interfered with Levi.

The Sabres opened the scoring just over three minutes later after JJ Peterka drew a slashing penalty on David Savard. Buffalo capitalized on the ensuing power play as Skinner fed Mittelstadt in front of the net for a one-timer to beat Allen.

Period 2, 6:59 (PP) – Jeff Skinner from Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson (2-0, BUF)

The Sabres added another power-play goal after Canadiens center Mitchell Stephens was assessed an interference penalty.

This time Tuch passed across the crease to Skinner, who lifted the puck over Allen’s glove to give Buffalo a 2-0 lead.

Period 2, 13:19 (SH) – Joel Armia, unassisted (2-1, BUF)

Another power-play opportunity for the Sabres resulted in a shorthanded goal for the Canadiens. Armia stripped the puck from Dahlin and ripped a shot from the right circle to bring Montreal within one.

Period 3, 6:45 – Jack Quinn from JJ Peterka and Connor Clifton (3-1, BUF)

The Sabres entered the Canadiens' zone on the rush when Peterka dropped a pass back to Quinn, who skated into the slot and buried a shot off the post and in for his fourth goal in seven games.

Period 3, 8:35 – Tage Thompson from Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch (4-1, BUF)

Under two minutes later, Tuch fed Skinner behind the Montreal net before Skinner stickhandled in alone on Allen to set up Thompson for a tip-in. Thompson's 11th goal of the season extended the Buffalo lead to three goals.

Period 3, 14:25 (EN) – Rasmus Dahlin from Mattias Samuelsson and Casey Mittelstadt (5-1, BUF)

Mittelstadt won the draw in the Sabres' zone before Dahlin floated a shot down ice and into the empty net.

Period 3, 18:32 – Tage Thompson from Jeff Skinner and Jack Quinn (6-1, BUF)

After the Sabres won another faceoff in the defensive zone, Quinn fed Skinner in the neutral zone to send Buffalo on a 2-on-1. Skinner hesitated and passed to Thompson in the right circle for his second tally of the night.

HIGHLIGHTS

POSTGAME COMMENTS

UP NEXT

The Sabres close out their two-game road swing when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday.

Pregame coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. on MSG/MSG+ with puck drop scheduled for 7. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.