Sabres rally with three third-period goals to defeat the Penguins in front of a sellout crowd
Sabres rally with three third-period goals to defeat the Penguins in front of a sellout crowd
The Buffalo Sabres got back to .500 with a 3-2 comeback victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins at Key Bank Center on Black Friday, as Alex Tuch’s game-winner capped off a three-goal third-period rally. Jeff Skinner and Kyle Okposo scored to erase a 2-0 Penguins lead built on tallies from Sidney Crosby and Lars Eller.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 31 saves for his fifth win of the season.
Here are three takeaways from Buffalo’s 3-2 win over the Penguins:
Pugilist Krebs
There just seems to be something that just annoys Peyton Krebs when he plays the Pittsburgh Penguins. During the pre-season, the Sabres center had a memorable bout with no one other than Sidney Crosby, and on Friday the 22-year-old tangled with Penguins defenseman Kris Letang.
After the game, Tuch commented on Krebs mixing it up with a couple of future Hall of Famers.
"He might be the most hated man in Pittsburgh right now. First, he got Sid in the preseason, then Letang. I don't know. What's next, is he gonna do Malkin now?" Tuch said. "It doesn't always show up on the score sheet. When a guy makes a difference, when the guy swings momentum our way, when he sacrifices when he gets under the skin when he's (providing) the intangibles."
Kyle Leads By Example
Both Tuch and head coach Don Granato indicated that the leadership displayed by Okposo during the second intermission provided the Sabres the motivation they needed to spur the comeback. That was helped by the team captain snapping his 19-game goalless skid with the tying goal.
Girgensons Leaves Sabres Short-handed
The Sabres played 11 forwards and seven defensemen for the second game in a row and an injury to veteran forward Zemgus Girgensons shortened the Buffalo bench even more. Girgensons played his last shift in the middle of the second period, and after the game, Granato could not provide an update on the extent of the winger’s injury.
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