Sabres continue 'good vibes,' improve to 3-0 with win over Canucks

Kyle Okposo recognized the importance of a win over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, another brick in the foundation the Buffalo Sabres are trying to build under coach Don Granato.
The talented Canucks came out strong and controlled play long enough to score the game's first goal. The Sabres weathered the storm, asserted their own game plan as the contest wore on and finished off a 5-2 victory at KeyBank Center to the tune of fans chanting, "3-and-0!"
Indeed, the Sabres are 3-0-0 for the first time since 2008. The vibes are good. Okposo acknowledged all of this while still directing the focus to the larger picture.

"It's nice starting 3-0," he said. "But we're gonna come and show up tomorrow and go to work."

The work is what has brought them this far. Players have described intense practices that demand execution under pressure. The Sabres have leaned on their first three opponents with relentless checking in both directions and have allowed a combined four goals as a result.
The leaders are setting the tone. Okposo and fellow alternate captain Zemgus Girgensons scored Buffalo's first two goals against Vancouver to erase deficits of 1-0 and 2-1, respectively. The Sabres held a 7-2 edge in shot attempts with the line of Girgensons, Okposo, and Cody Eakin on the ice at 5-on-5.
The rest of the team has followed suit. Craig Anderson turned in another solid performance with 32 saves. Jeff Skinner buried a rebound for the winning goal at 3:33 of the third period, which Tage Thompson followed by cleaning up another rebound 23 seconds later.
Rasmus Asplund, a two-way force through the first three games, was rewarded with an empty-net goal that traveled the length of the ice.
"We just know how we want to play, and we believe in it and it's a way that allows us to make plays and be confident with the puck," Okposo said.
"It's something that I think's been missing here. I've found that in the past when we give up a goal we get on our heels, we stop making plays, we start shooting the puck around and it becomes jagged and not connected and it seems like now, everybody wants the puck."

Granato lauded the Canucks for their effort out of the gate and pointed out how his team benefitted from early breaks, a Justin Dowling shot off the post among them.
Still, the Sabres generated decisive edges in shots (43-34), shot attempts (65-44), and scoring chances (28-18) by the time the final horn sounded. Canucks coach Travis Greene said his team had trouble handling the Sabres' speed.
"There is a reason why they are 3-0," Greene said. "You can see how fast they are."
Speed is one reason. The others are a confident identity on the ice and a group of players wanting to succeed for each other, along with a coach and veteran leaders keeping their focus on the big picture.
"You just take the points and move on," Granato said. "You take the points where you can get them, when you can get them and you know that you got to work the next day. I think our guys have that perspective. They enjoy being around each other."

Party in the 716

Skinner scored the winning goal in his own acrobatic fashion, spinning off a defender in front of the net before roofing the rebound of a Colin Miller shot from his knees.
Watch the goal below.

"Not many guys in the world that can spin around like that and tuck it top shelf," Okposo said. "We were all extremely excited for him to get that one."

Perfect on the PK

The Sabres killed off all three Canucks power plays to improve to 9-for-9 on the penalty kill this season. The last time they were perfect through three games was 2017-18.

Up next

The Sabres conclude their four-game homestand against the Boston Bruins on Friday. It will be the first "White Hot Friday" of the season at KeyBank Center, with the team wearing white on home ice.
The game will be broadcast exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu.