Panthers defeat Sabres in shootout, gain in Atlantic race

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Carter Verhaeghe had a goal and an assist, and the Florida Panthers gained ground in the Atlantic Division race with a 3-2 shootout victory against the Buffalo Sabres at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday.

Jesse Puljujarvi also scored, and Vitek Vanecek made 26 saves for the Panthers (47-29-4), who have won three straight. Anton Lundell scored the only goal in the shootout.

Florida tied the Tampa Bay Lightning in points for second place in the Atlantic but has played one more game. Both teams trail the Toronto Maple Leafs by four points for first.

“Just grinding and trying to build for the playoffs, and we’re all in that mindset right now,” Verhaeghe said. “We are trying to build for what’s to come.”

Rasmus Dahlin and JJ Peterka each had a goal and an assist, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 32 saves for the Sabres (35-37-7), who have been eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoff contention.

“With what was going on out there tonight, I thought there was a lot of good stuff,” Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said. “A lot of good. There was a lot of good to jumping in there as far as it came to jumping in there and keeping the team tight.”

Dahlin put the Sabres in front 1-0 at 19:41 of the first period with a power-play goal, finishing a give-and-go with Jason Zucker.

Verhaeghe tied it 1-1 at 5:00 of the second period. He gathered the rebound of Seth Jones’ shot off the end boards in the left face-off circle, worked around the front of the net and scored with a high backhand from the right side with Luukkonen committing low.

The Panthers took a 2-1 lead at 14:47. After Uvis Balinskis sent a wobbling point shot toward the net with traffic in front, Evan Rodrigues missed on a redirection attempt, but Puljujarvi tipped the puck with one hand on his stick while battling for position with his back to the goal.

It was Puljujarvi’s first goal in three games with the Panthers since signing a one-year contract with them on March 5.

“He is a very interesting player. He is big (6-foot-4, 216 pounds), and isn’t afraid to hit,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said of the forward. “There is some offensive instinct in him. We think there is an impactful player there.”

Peterka tied it 2-2 at 12:18 of the third period with one second remaining on a 5-on-3 power play, scoring with a sharp-angled one-timer from the bottom of the right circle.

“Good special teams, guys were stepping up when we needed,” said Dahlin, the Buffalo captain. “On the road, one point is always important. I am happy we got that today.”

Vanecek made three saves in overtime. He had lost his previous four starts.

“I felt really good in the game. My teammates played really well and that is always a big help,” Vanecek said. “The extra point is really important. I didn’t win a couple of games here, so I am really happy to get this one and I hope to keep going like that.”

NOTES: Verhaeghe reached 300 points (146 goals, 154 assists) in 409 NHL games. … The Panthers rested center Aleksander Barkov and forward Sam Reinhart. … Dahlin extended his road goal streak to three games, tying the longest such run of his career (2022-23). The only Sabres defenseman to score in four straight road games is Phil Housley (1987-88).