The Senators (113 points) and Sabres (110) would finish that season as the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. The head-to-head matchup, however, had not been kind to the Sabres. The Senators won the first three contests by a combined score of 21-5.
The Sabres won the fourth meeting in a shootout, 2-1. (You can watch that game on our
Sabres Classics video channel.
) But March had brought two more losses at the hands of the Senators.
At several points, it seemed as if the Senators might take the fifth matchup, too. The Sabres erased a 3-1 deficit in the second period on the strength of goals from Derek Roy and Rory Fitzpatrick. Chris Kelly put the Senators back in the lead, 4-3, with 5:12 left in the third.
Which brings us to Briere. The Sabres co-captain scored to tie the game with 39 seconds remaining in regulation, set up at the right of the net by defenseman Brian Campbell. Briere then buried the winner with 47 seconds left to play in overtime, this one fed by a pass through the crease from Maxim Afinogenov.
A few notes about this game: Afinogenov tallied a season-high four points, including the goal that opened the scoring in the first period. Martin Biron earned the secondary assist on that goal, one of 14 he'd earn during his career. The win was No. 300 for coach Lindy Ruff, who became the 16th coach to reach the milestone with one organization.
The Sabres and Senators met one more time in the regular season, a 6-2 victory for Buffalo on April 8. Again, we won't spoil the playoffs.
