Colorado scores three goals in a one-sided first period that Buffalo was unable to rebound from
Colorado scores three goals in a one-sided first period that Buffalo was unable to rebound from
After three straight games of putting up more energetic and consistent efforts, the Buffalo Sabres returned to the usual modus operandi of starting slow and digging themselves a hole that they cannot climb out of. The Colorado Avalanche blitzed the Sabres in the opening 20 minutes of their 5-1 victory on Wednesday, registering the first 15 shots on goal and scoring three times on goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen before Buffalo began to show a pulse.
The Sabres got on the scoreboard late in the first on a goal from rookie Zach Benson and responded in the second with 15 shots, but could not close the gap on the Avalanche and beat goalie Ivan Prosvetov.
Colorado pulled away with two goals in the third to snap the Sabres three-game point streak. Luukkonen made 24 saves in the loss, which moved Buffalo’s record to 12-15-3 on the season.
Here are three takeaways from Buffalo’s 5-1 loss to the Avalanche:
First Period Coma
The defining feature of the 2023-24 Sabres has been their inconsistency and their inability to start games on time. Buffalo was practically unconscious in the first period, with Luukkonen under siege from a Colorado team that remembered being shutout 4-0 by Buffalo early in the season. The Avs outshot Buffalo 15-0 before the Sabres got a shot on goals, and Mikko Rantanen, Valeri Nichushkin, and Miles Wood put the Sabres in a spot they have been in too many times this season.
Fourth Line Outmatched
The line of Eric Robinson, Peyton Krebs, and Kyle Okposo was key in the Sabres 5-2 win over Arizona earlier in the week, but against the more talented Avalanche, they were outmatched. That line with the pairing of Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton was on the ice and responsible for Rantanen’s opening goal just over five minutes into the first period, and again for Wood’s goal that made it 3-0.
Skinner Slammed
Sabres were without forward Jeff Skinner for the second half of the game, as the diminutive winger was slammed with an open-ice check by Avs captain Nathan MacKinnon. Head coach Don Granato did not have any status on Skinner after the game.
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