Buffalo Sabres geared for a win, then shot down by Flyers
By Nick McAdam
As usual, the Buffalo Sabres lost at the game of hockey. The Swords traveled to the Wells Fargo Center and got sent home with a 4-1 defeat to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Sean Couturier and Michael Neuvirth led the way as the Flyers handed the Buffalo Sabres their fourth-straight loss. The standings pretty much don’t matter at this point, but Buffalo has moved to 10-23-9 and are last in everything except the actual NHL standings.
The Swords started off decent for the most part, but Neuvirth stayed cool and collected between the pipes for the orange. Ryan O’Reilly set up Kyle Okposo in the low slot, who eventually sent a crisp pass to Sam Reinhart. Reinhart’s shot was absolutely robbed by the glove of Neuvirth.
Buffalo out-chanced the Flyers throughout the first period, and it would stay that way for parts of the second frame. Jack Eichel fed O’Reilly, who took a ripper of a slap shot that beat Neuvirth top shelf.
Shayne Gostisbehere broke up a very ugly Sabres transition into the neutral zone and then skated all the way up into the counter to beat Robin Lehner with a wicked wrist shot.
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The Buffalo Sabres cannot afford to go to the box in crucial moments. But of course, they took a penalty which led to Claude Giroux feeding an unmarked Couturier to give Philly the lead.
Lehner occasionally pulls out an eye-opening save in some contests. Jakub Voracek fed a streaking Wayne Simmonds, but the Swedish keeper made a stunning save with his left pad and glove.
The Flyers eventually scored two empty net goals from Couturier and Ivan Provorov, to continue the overall embarrassment of this season for the Buffalo Sabres.
Key Stats
Buffalo Sabres
- 31 shots
- 1/3 on the man advantage
- 8 turnovers
- Best Player: O’Reilly continues to give the Flyers nightmares with another goal
Philadelphia Flyers
- 29 shots
- 8 PIM
- 21 hits
- Best Player: Neuvirth with a .968 save percentage
Three Stars
3rd – O’Reilly
2nd – Couturier
1st – Neuvirth
The Buffalo Bills didn’t get any production from their offense in their playoff matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. Similarly, the Sabres couldn’t produce offensively either, but that’s been the case all season as the Buffalo News points out:
"Don’t look for some glowing report about offense here. Wasn’t any on the ice either.What did #OneBuffalo stand for Sunday? Few dents on the scoreboard, no chance to win."
It’s a real struggle to watch the Sabres this season. Fans, and probably the team too, are just counting down the days until the disastrous campaign finally ends.
Next: Sabres need to take inspiration from the Bills
Overall thoughts on the game? Any prospects you think will be an interesting fit with the Buffalo Sabres? How many days is it until the end of the season? Let us know in the comments below.