Sabres erase early deficit, can’t outlast league-leading Avalanche

DENVER – The Buffalo Sabres overcame a slow start and hung with the NHL’s best team for 57 minutes, but they ultimately lost 6-3 to the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday at Ball Arena.

Buffalo has lost four straight games in regulation and remains winless away from KeyBank Center.

“We’ve got to win a hockey game; there’s no excuses,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “… We’ve been, in every road game, within a goal (late), and haven’t pushed through yet.”

The Avalanche looked ready to run the Sabres out of the building in a hurry, as Martin Necas scored on a breakaway 52 seconds in, and Artturi Lehkonen doubled the lead five minutes later. Lehkonen’s goal prompted Ruff to pull starting goalie Alex Lyon, so in came Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.

“Taking the goalie out was to buy me some time and talk to the team for a second, to get organized and say, ‘We’re going to get back in this game,’” Ruff said. “And I thought we did.

“… Had nothing to do with Lyon.”

Ruff’s move seemed to spark the Sabres, and Bowen Byram got them on the board less than two minutes later. Colorado’s Brock Nelson restored the two-goal lead, then Jordan Greenway answered back – thanks to a well-placed chip-in from Owen Power – with his first goal of the season.

“We did a good job on our breakouts, possessing the puck,” Tage Thompson said of Buffalo’s response to the early deficit. “I think we had some shifts where we were possessing in the O-zone, had bodies and traffic at the net and had some second opportunities. You see the first goal there, Bo’s: pretty simple shot from the point, and just whacking away and get a greasy one there.”

The action-packed first period ended with a 3-2 Colorado lead despite just six shots apiece.

Buffalo’s power play tied the game late in the second, with Isak Rosen – a new addition to the first unit, along with Noah Ostlund – feeding Thompson for a one-time blast from the top of the circle. It snapped an 0-for-13 drought for the man advantage, dating back to Oct. 30 in Boston.

“We changed things around, we moved the puck quicker, we were a lot more direct,” Ruff said of his power play. “That’s a lot of pressure on two young kids to play on the power play, but I thought they did a good job.”

Just 1:26 later, though, Gavin Brindley beat Luukkonen off the rush to pull the Avalanche back ahead, 4-3. Brindley’s shot ramped off the stick of a backchecking Owen Power, changing direction just enough to give the netminder trouble.

“It’s tough to read those, because you have a read on the guy where he’s shooting it, then it goes somewhere completely different,” Luukkonen said. “Unlucky. Lucky bounce for them, but of course you want to make a save there.”

The Sabres got another power play late in the third but couldn’t capitalize on a pair of scoring chances, and moments later, Necas buried his second of the game. Gabriel Landeskog added an empty netter with 1:49 remaining to secure a Colorado win.

As Ruff alluded to, Buffalo has stayed within reach during most of its recent losses. Without a win since Nov. 1, though, the team knows close isn’t good enough.

“We’ve been fighting it a little bit the past couple of games, so, yeah, two points would’ve been huge for us,” Greenway said. “Couldn’t find a way to do it, so we’ve got to move on to Detroit.”

Tage back at center

Ruff was unhappy with Ryan McLeod’s 7-for-19 showing at the faceoff dot Wednesday, so he slid Thompson over to first-line center. He won 11 of 17 draws and, all over the ice, possessed the puck more effectively than Wednesday at Utah.

Thompson has previously stated he’s fine playing whichever position, but he took a firmer stance after Thursday’s two-point effort.

“I felt like myself; felt way better in the middle,” he said. “I thought I was moving my feet really well.

“For me, I like being in the middle. You can carry the puck and kind of dictate the pace of the game, and I feel like it just gets me involved in the play more, being able to skate up the ice with the puck and make plays and find myself in pockets to shoot.”

Up next

The road trip wraps up Saturday night at Detroit. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m., with MSG's pregame coverage beginning at 6:30.