Sabres Take Advantage Of Weary Blue Jackets In Bounce Back Win

The Buffalo Sabres adjusted their lineup after a sluggish, inconsistent performance against Ottawa on Wednesday and capitalized on a tired Columbus Blue Jackets squad in a 5-2 win at KeyBank Center on Friday. The Sabres jumped on the Jackets, who beat Dallas 2-1 in a shootout at Nationwide Arena on Thursday, registering the first six shots on goal, with Jack Quinn scoring the opening tally. 

Kent Johnson scored the tying marker for Columbus, but Josh Norris’s first of two goal late in the first seemed to sap whatever energy the Blue Jackets had left. Rasmus Dahlin, Norris, and Josh Doan scored in the middle frame, and the Sabres coasted to their fourth victory in the last five games. 

"With  them  in  a  back-to-back  game,  it  was  important  to  get  off  to  a  good  start,  and  knowing  that they  played  a  tough  contest  last  night. T here's  a  lot  of  times  you  don't  want  to  make  excuses,  but  they've  been  up  against  some  real  good  teams,  and  they've  won  some  hockey  games  against  good  teams.... we  really  wanted  to  play  a  good  first  period,  and  I  thought  we  played  maybe  one  of  our  best."

Other Sabres Stories

Mrtka Looking To Take The Next Step Towards The NHL

Norris finally broke out after registering just three points in 15 games, something that the Sabres are desperate for, as Tage Thompson and Quinn have accounted for nearly 40% of the club’s goals. 

“I thought (he) skated through the neutral zone better, possessed the puck better, (he)got rewarded.” Ruff said. “(He had a) great shot on the 4-on-4 goal, but the next goal, got himself around the front of the net. And when you’re struggling, you’ve got to get inside.”

Buffalo will have a difficult road this week, with a Sunday afternoon matinee against the Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights, and the finale of the homestand against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday, before heading out on the road for five games, starting with the second of back-to-back games in Chicago on Thursday and the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday. 

Follow Michael on X, Instagram @MikeInBuffalo