'At his age, it's incredible' | Krebs impresses in win over Flyers

Peyton Krebs has always considered himself more of a playmaker than a goal scorer, a tendency he traces back to Timbit hockey in Okotoks, Alberta.
In the spirit of sportsmanship, players were not allowed to score more than three goals in a game. So, Krebs - five years old at the time - would notch his hat trick and turn his attention to setting up a friend who was among the smallest players on the ice.
"Everyone would be so pumped because the little guy scored," Krebs recalled earlier this month. "So, I think I just got that excitement and getting everyone excited that their kid scored."

That pass-first nature alleviated some of the pressure for Krebs to score his first NHL goal. The 20-year-old had played 19 games without one entering a matchup with the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday. By the time the afternoon was over, he had two.
"I'm not known as a goal scorer, so I wasn't too worried about it," Krebs said. "But it's kind of just a nice thing to get off the back. Yeah, I think the floodgates will open."
The Sabres kicked the gates down during their 6-3 victory over the Flyers at KeyBank Center. Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner each tallied two goals and an assist, joining Krebs as the first trio of Sabres teammates to have multi-goal performances in a single game since Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, and Jochen Hecht did so in 2008.
Krebs became the ninth player in Sabres history to notch his first two NHL goals in the same game, a list that includes names like Vanek, Pierre Turgeon, and Craig Ramsay, among others.

"We're not winning games to a level anybody likes," Sabres coach Don Granato said. "But my confidence that we're gonna win games is through guys like Peyton. Through guys like Jack Quinn and Dylan Cozens. Through Rasmus Dahlin. I mean, these young guys, you just know. You just see every day how much better they're gonna get.
"They're dominant in moments and those moments are going to become more frequent. It's gonna happen. We're gonna keep supporting them to that end and it's gonna happen, and we know it. And Peyton is another guy that fits right into that category."
The Sabres had built a 3-2 lead when Krebs tipped a Henri Jokiharju slap shot for his first goal late in the first period. Granato pointed to the play as a testament to Krebs' willingness to attack the net-front.

Krebs' second goal was a display of skill. He exited the penalty box after serving a tripping minor, was met by a perfect stretch pass from Rasmus Asplund, and then pulled the puck to his backhand to beat goaltender Carter Hart on the breakaway.

"I (dreamt) of that as a kid and I want to go do it again and again," he said.
Granato spent more time discussing the details of Krebs' game during his postgame press conference than the two goals. He pointed to Krebs' ability to alleviate pressure along the wall on the power play and lauded his effort on backchecks.
"At his age, it's incredible," Granato said. "… There's a switch that goes off in him when the puck is coming toward our net. I saw it watching film of him before we had him and you watch it now. He knows his responsibility and the team player in him kicks in high gear when a puck starts going toward our net."

Krebs has three points in seven games since making his Sabres debut on Dec. 29. Saturday marked his third game since returning from an absence of more than two weeks due to COVID-19.
"It's a little more of an adjustment than I thought, to be honest with you," he said. "I just try to stick with the system, pick my spot. I just try to get better every day."

Wanting more

The Sabres had a similarly promising box score against Stars on Saturday, albeit with a different result. Dylan Cozens, Jack Quinn, Alex Tuch, and Rasmus Dahlin - all young players who figure to be part of the team's core moving forward - scored goals in a 5-4 loss.
Buffalo overcame a bit of early adversity to reverse its fortunes against Philadelphia. Skinner opened the scoring just 1:29 into the game, but the Flyers pulled ahead on goals from Rasmus Ristolainen (making his return to Buffalo) and Claude Giroux.
"I loved the talk on the bench at that point," Granato said. "They were a little ticked off and wanted more. And they got more. It was nice to see that."
The Sabres took the lead on three goals scored in a span of 2:27 - including two power-play goals from Thompson scored just 23 seconds apart.

"I think in the past games we've let leads slip in the third and that's something we've been working to correct," Thompson said. "Now we are just trying to shake it off and keep pressing forward and I think that we did a good job with that, going into the third with the lead and getting the win."

Tuch stays hot

Alex Tuch recorded a pair of assists, upping his point total to 10 (3+7) in nine games with the Sabres. He skated a team-high 21:20.
"He's huge, he can fly and has a great shot," Thompson said. "At that size it opens up so much for me to find spots to get me open. With his speed [and] skill, he creates a lot of offense."

Houser earns win No. 2

Michael Houser made 30 saves to improve to 2-0-0 this season. He is now 4-2-0 in his NHL career.

Up next

The Sabres visit the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. Puck drop is schedule for 7.