Buffalo's KeyBank Center was roaring on Saturday night with "SAM-MY" chants and an ovation for Matthews after he scored his 60th goal of the season.
Buffalo's KeyBank Center was roaring on Saturday night with "SAM-MY" chants and an ovation for Matthews after he scored his 60th goal of the season.
If you had watched the Maple Leafs' 3-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday with your eyes closed, you might've thought the game was being played inside Scotiabank Arena.
But as we all know, it wasn't in Toronto. It was down the QEW at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo.
Plenty of things occurred in Saturday's game, which made the trip worth while for Maple Leafs fans. Ilya Samsonov tallied his third shutout of the season. Auston Matthews scored his 60th goal of the year.
And, to wrap the game up, there was a massive scrum where all five of Toronto's skaters on the ice were handed misconducts and taken out of the game. All in all, it was an eventful game for the Maple Leafs and their fans in what some would call their second, or third home building.
"I've been to a couple. That one was definitely up there though," said Ryan Reaves on Monday morning when asked if he'd ever been to an away game that's felt more like a home game.
"Vegas travelled pretty well in Cali, Pittsburgh, and New York kind of travelled pretty well in some cities. But that one was wild in Buffalo. There was a lot of Sammy chants. Obviously, when (Auston Matthews) scored there, that crowd was going for a solid couple of minutes, so it was pretty cool to see."
Jake McCabe is in his second season with the Maple Leafs and has now been on both sides of playing in Buffalo. The 30-year-old was drafted in the second round (44th overall) by the Sabres in the 2012 NHL Draft and spent eight years inside the organization.
Saturday's game was the second time McCabe had played in Buffalo while with the Maple Leafs organization.
"It was nice to be on this side of it. I'll say that," McCabe said with a grin. "I spent six years there and got it the other way. It was awesome. Our fans are amazing and it was no different in Buffalo. It was rocking and it was fun."
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8LDpbpKNrU[/embed]
When looking back on those games with the Sabres, McCabe called it "deflating" when the home building didn't feel like their arena. But he also added that it's nice to see how well Maple Leafs fans travel.
"You go out on your home ice and it's not your home ice anymore. It's a cool thing that we get to enjoy on this side."
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