At the Horn | Sabres 7 - Red Wings 3

Bowen Byram tallied a pair of goals and Zach Benson added a goal and two assists to lead the Buffalo Sabres to a 7-3 victory over the Detroit Red Wings inside KeyBank Center on Tuesday.

Alex Tuch, Jeff Skinner, Connor Clifton, and JJ Peterka also scored for Buffalo while Tage Thompson and Jordan Greenway each picked up a pair of assists.

Goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 22 of 25 shots in his 21st win of 2023-24. 

The Sabres held a three-goal lead at the end of the first period and never looked back, outshooting the Red Wings 38-24 to improve to 31-30-5 this season.

The win moved the Sabres closer to the second Wild Card spot as they sit five points out.

Ben Chiarot, Lucas Raymond, and Jake Walman recorded goals for the Red Wings. Alex Lyon made nine saves on 13 shots in 15:29 of action before James Reimer entered in relief, stopping 23 of 26 shots.

SCORING SUMMARY

Period 1, 1:07 – Alex Tuch, unassisted (1-0, BUF)

Buffalo held a 13-7 edge in shots in the opening period, closing out the first with a 4-1 lead.

Tuch opened the scoring for the Sabres after Luukkonen made a pad save on Joe Veleno. Veleno collected the rebound and attempted a pass to Ben Chiarot at the point, but Tuch tipped the puck away and outskated Chiarot to go on a breakaway. He went in alone on Lyon and tallied his 18th goal of the season with a backhand through the five-hole on Buffalo’s first shot of the night.

Period 1, 10:09 – Bowen Byram from Zach Benson and Jordan Greenway (2-0, BUF)

The Sabres scored again less than two minutes later with a goal from Tyson Jost, but Detroit used its coach’s challenge, and the goal was overturned after video review determined the play was offside.

Buffalo officially took a 2-0 lead with 9:51 remaining in the period as Byram picked up his second goal and third point in three games since being acquired in a trade last Wednesday. Benson wristed a shot on goal and Lyon made the blocker save on the puck before the rebound sailed into the left circle with Byram pinching in for a one-timer that beat Lyon.

Period 1, 12:37 – Ben Chiarot from Lucas Raymond and Jonatan Berggren (2-1, BUF)

Detroit had an answer with its second shot of the game with 7:23 left in the first, when Raymond found Chiarot in the slot for a quick shot on goal. Luukkonen slid over to make the save, but the puck deflected off his blocker and into the net.

Period 1, 13:00 – Zach Benson from Jordan Greenway and Rasmus Dahlin (3-1, BUF)

Benson extended the Sabres’ lead 23 seconds later, preventing the Red Wings from gaining any momentum. Dahlin initiated the play with a shot from the right circle before he grabbed the rebound beside the net and sent a pass into open space on the left wing. Greenway raced to the loose puck on the left wing and dished a no-look pass to Benson in the right circle for a one-timer.

Period 1, 15:29 – Jeff Skinner from Zach Benson and Dylan Cozens (4-1, BUF)

The Sabres made it 4-1 with 4:31 remaining in the first after Cozens won the puck along the right wall and fed Benson, who drew both defenders on him and passed to Skinner on his left. Skinner buried a shot from the left circle for his team-leading 21st goal of the season.

Following the goal, the Red Wings swapped goalies with Reimer entering in relief of Lyon.

Period 2, 4:27 – Connor Clifton from Tage Thompson (5-1, BUF)

Buffalo carried the momentum into the second, registering three shots on goal before Clifton scored on the Sabres’ fourth shot of the period. Thompson led the group on the rush and found Clifton in the left circle. He fired a one-timer short side to put the Sabres up 5-1.

Period 2, 9:05 – Bowen Byram from Tage Thompson and Zemgus Girgensons (6-1, BUF)

The Sabres entered the Detroit zone hard on the forecheck and capitalized as Girgensons came away with the puck after a battle along the wall. He fed Thompson for a wrist shot on Reimer with Alex Tuch and Byram crashing the net. Byram put the rebound away for his second goal of the night and fourth point in the last three games.

Period 2, 9:29 (PP) – Lucas Raymond from Robby Fabbri and Patrick Kane (6-2, BUF)

After Jost was called for interference, the Red Wings tallied a power-play goal nine seconds into the ensuing power play. Detroit won its offensive zone faceoff and passed the puck around to Fabbri, who was beside the net and backhanded a pass to Raymond for a point-blank shot on Luukkonen. Luukkonen made the initial save, but the rebound deflected off Owen Power’s stick and into the net.

Period 2, 13:49 – JJ Peterka, unassisted (7-2, BUF)

Peterka tied Skinner for the team lead in goals, tallying his 21st of the season with 6:11 remaining in the second to extend Buffalo’s lead to 7-2. He picked off a pass in the neutral zone and turned on the jets to take advantage of a clear lane to Reimer, picking the top right corner of the net for the Sabres’ seventh goal of the game.

Period 3, 17:32 – Jake Walman from Shayne Gostisbehere and Olli Maatta (7-3, BUF)

Walman tallied Detroit’s third goal with 2:28 remaining, ripping a shot from the point to beat Luukkonen glove side.

VICTORY SPEECH

POSTGAME COMMENTS

UP NEXT

The Sabres close out their three-game homestand when they host the New York Islanders at KeyBank Center on Thursday. 

Tickets are available here.

Pregame coverage on MSG/MSG+ begins at 6:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.