Thompson scores 40th, Sabres defeat Lightning in shootout

BUFFALO -- Tage Thompson scored his 40th goal of the season for the Buffalo Sabres in a 3-2 shootout win against the Tampa Bay Lightning at KeyBank Center on Saturday.

Jack Quinn and Alex Tuch each scored in the shootout to win it for the Sabres.

“I thought we played well all night, really,” Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said. “Started with a great first period. I thought we left a lot of opportunities out there to increase the lead, get the lead, played a heck of a third period, and got rewarded for playing well away from the puck and managing the puck.”

Jason Zucker scored the tying goal early in the third period for the Sabres (33-36-6), who have won six of their past seven games (6-1-0). James Reimer made 22 saves and has started in each of those six wins.

“First off, you’re just trying to stay in the moment,” Reimer said of his six-game winning streak. “Every game’s going to be different. I’ve played I don’t know how many games, and no two have been the same. So, you prepare leading up to the game, and then when it comes to game time, you just trust the work you put in and the talent the good Lord gave you. And then you go from there.”

Brayden Point and Gage Goncalves scored for the Lightning (44-26-6), who clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the eighth consecutive season earlier Saturday with the New York Rangers’ 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils. Jonas Johansson made 36 saves.

“One of the toughest jobs in sports is to be the backup goaltender, and when called upon when you don't get to play a ton of games in a row and get into rhythm, and 'JJ' has been fantastic for us and gave us every opportunity to win that game,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “It's too bad we left that one off there for him because he played a heck of a game.”

Tampa Bay is second in the Atlantic Division, four points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs and two ahead of the Florida Panthers. Each team has six games remaining this season.

“It's exciting (to clinch a playoff spot),” Point said. “It's a great reward for the hard work that this group's put in. Now it's about trying to build our game here. We don't have many left. It's really about trying to build it so that we're ready for our first playoff game.”

Point gave the Lightning a 1-0 lead at 1:35 of the second period. Nikita Kucherov’s shot was blocked and bounced to Point in the left circle for a wrist shot that beat Reimer under his left arm.

Thompson tied it 1-1 at 4:47 when he received a pass from Zach Benson in the slot and one-timed it past Johansson glove side.

It’s the second time Thompson’s reached the 40-goal mark after scoring a career-high 47 goals in 2022-23.

“It’s nice,” Thompson said. “Obviously, you set personal goals for yourself before the season starts. For me, that was one of them. Obviously, the individual stuff is always second, the team stuff’s always first, and I think individual success is a byproduct of how you play as a group. I’ve been fortunate enough to play with a lot of skilled players that have made my life a lot easier and help me get to that plateau."

Goncalves put Tampa Bay back ahead 2-1 at 13:01, taking a feed from Oliver Bjorkstrand at the right hash marks and putting it over Reimer’s blocker.

Zucker tied it 2-2 on the power play at 5:07 of the third. He picked up the loose puck and scored from the right post after Tuch was unable to control the rebound of Rasmus Dahlin’s point shot.

“I think we’re just trying to buy into the right things and do the right things consistently, and when you do that, you give yourself a chance to have success,” Zucker said. “… You look at all the best teams in the League, they do the simple things really well and when they have the chance to make plays, they do it. I think that’s what we’ve been doing lately.”

NOTES: The Lightning have reached the postseason in 11 of the past 12 seasons; they did not qualify in 2016-17. … Zemgus Girgensons played his first game back in Buffalo after signing with the Lightning as a free agent following 10 seasons with the Sabres (2013-14 to 2023-24). … Thompson is the eighth player in Sabres history with multiple 40-goal seasons, and the first since Thomas Vanek (43 in 2006-07 and 40 in 2008-09). … Noah Ostlund, selected by Buffalo in the first round (No. 16) of the 2022 NHL Draft, played 8:37 in his NHL debut. “I thought he played well. I would have liked to get him out there a little bit more,” Ruff said.