Sabres earn a point but lose to Carolina on Necas overtime winner
Sabres earn a point but lose to Carolina on Necas overtime winner
The Buffalo Sabres hoped to build on a win over archrival Toronto on Saturday against the Carolina Hurricanes, but the Sabres played catch-up for most of the night in a 3-2 overtime loss at PNC Arena on Tuesday.
Tony DeAngelo scored the opening goal for Carolina in the first period, but Alex Tuch tied the game in the middle frame. The game remained knotted into the third until Sebastian Aho set up Brady Skjei for his second of the season. The Sabres took advantage of a Jordan Martinook tripping period shortly after the Hurricanes took the lead and tied it on Rasmus Dahlin’s third of the year.
In overtime, Carolina gained control after Tuch nearly ended the game on a short that beat Antti Raanta and after an extended possession, Aho set up Martin Necas for the game-winning deflection past Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
Here are three takeaways from Buffalo’s 3-2 loss to Carolina:
Luukkonen Steady and Solid
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen gave the Sabres a performance in goal that gave them a chance to win the game, but their offense had difficulty piercing the stingy defense of the Canes. Luukkonen made 24 saves, including a sprawling stop on Jesperi Kotkaniemi. The DeAngelo power play goal was from long range through a partial screen, while the Skjei and Necas goals were from close range.
Seven Years And Counting
The PNC Arena now qualifies as a house of horrors for Buffalo, as their loss on Tuesday extends their losing ways in Raleigh to seven years. The Sabres last victory in North Carolina was on March 22, 2016, by the score of 3-2, with Chad Johnson (not Ocho Cinco) in goal, and with Carlo Colaiacovo, Evander Kane, and Johan Larsson providing the offense.
Testing Johnson
After playing under nine minutes in his NHL debut, Sabres head coach Don Granato gave rookie defenseman Ryan Johnson a big test, playing the right side with Dahlin on the top pairing. Playing his off-side did not seem to phase the 22-year-old, who played nearly 20 minutes on the night and was a +1.
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