BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabers have had a strange season, and Wednesday’s 4-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes may have been their strangest moment yet.
The Sabers were running out of play in the third period after taking a 3-0 lead over the Hurricanes. The Hurricanes scored twice in the third inning to make it 3-2. With just a few minutes left, they pulled the goalkeeper and brought in an extra attacker. Tage Thompson took a shot into an empty net, but the shot hit the post. Sabers center Ryan McLeod charged toward the loose puck and had a clear look into the empty net, but Brent Burns dove and slashed him, breaking his stick in the process. The referee called a penalty and awarded the Sabers a goal. This gave the Sabers a 4-2 victory.
What’s strange is that league officials couldn’t seem to determine who scored the goal. On the league’s media site, the goal switched between McLeod and Thompson multiple times as McLeod never actually touched the puck. The league settled on McLeod because he was the one who drew the penalty that caused the referee to award the goal in the first place. The ruling on this goal was significant as it was McLeod’s third goal of the game and his first career hat trick.
But what’s even stranger about this situation is that McLeod scored without getting credit for the shot on goal. The Sabers finished the third period with zero shots on net, but they scored a goal and won the game. The Sabers became the first team to go 20 minutes without taking a shot on net since they began recording shots per period in the 1965-66 season. And they will accept the way this season is going.
This is the first time it has happened within 20 minutes, as last time both games went to overtime.
— Martin Biron (@martybiron43) January 16, 2025
“Obviously we had to make it interesting and tense, but we found a way,” Sabers forward Dylan Cozens said.
The Sabers’ inability to maintain leads has been a continuing theme of a disappointing season. The goal difference in the third period was -16. If you’re leading after two periods, you’ve lost four games; if you’re leading after one, you’ve lost 10 games. Saturday’s 6-2 loss to the Kraken was perhaps the lowest point in their struggles to finish games.
In that sense, the Sabers desperately needed this win, even if they could get it. And it wasn’t pretty. After the first period, the Sabers led 10-3 and 1-0 on 5-on-5 scoring chances. They scored two penalties in the period and scored two more goals in the second period, giving them a comfortable 3-0 lead heading into the third period.
But there’s nothing comfortable about this team. In the third period, the Hurricanes had an 8-0 advantage in shots and a 15-3 advantage in scoring chances. As the Hurricanes narrowed the lead to 3-2, Sabers coach Lindy Ruff called a timeout to ensure his team didn’t miss another game.
“I just told them, ‘Listen, we talked about this, we got through it, go ahead,'” Ruff said.
The Sabers received aggressive puck pressure from Jack Quinn and Peyton Krebs after the timeout, leaving the netters empty to finish the game. It didn’t fix any of his season-long issues, but it could be a step towards fixing the confidence issues that have surfaced when trying to protect leads.
“It’s nerve-wracking, especially when you’re under that much pressure,” Cozens said. “We’re obviously a little nervous because we’ve struggled to shut out games in the past. But we had a meeting and talked about how to maintain that confidence even if we give up one.” It’s okay, the team doesn’t have to change anything, even if they give up the goal.”
takeout
1. The Sabers needed Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to be great in this game. He stopped 34 of the 36 shots he faced, including four dangerous shots. After watching the game against the Kraken, Lukonen felt he needed a game like Wednesday’s.
“I feel like that’s something I have to improve on as well,” Lukonen said. “I’m a member of the team, but I’ve never been good at closing out games. That’s what we talked about before the season. I want to be part of the solution and help the team win. Today… We did a good job as a team, so I was happy to help the team get through this game.”
2. The third goal of McLeod’s hat-trick was strange. But his second goal was something the Sabers needed more of this season. Near the end of the second period, McLeod won a faceoff and found the net. Jason Zucker threw the puck into the net and McLeod finished the rebound.
Ruff recently said he would like to see McLeod get on the ice more often and score goals like that. In this game, McLeod was pushed to the top line between Zucker and Thompson and took full advantage.
3. On the injury front: Jiri Klich, who was sidelined with a lower-body injury, skated with the team Wednesday morning. Ruff said he’s a long way from playing Friday against the Penguins, but should be available when the team heads to Seattle and Western Canada for a four-game trip next week.
(Photo of Ryan McLeod celebrating his first career hat trick: Timothy T. Ludwig / Imagn Images)
