The Sabres came up with two great wins this weekend.
On Friday, they beat the Florida Panthers in overtime. Thomas Vanek made some big plays in the crease, even though he wasn’t able to score on a penalty shot. He came up with two goals for the game, including the sudden death winner.
On Saturday, the Sabres also took Philadelphia into overtime. Martin Biron, still in net while Ryan Miller is injured, stoned the Flyers’ during a three-on-none breakaway late in the third. While Biron didn’t look terribly sharp in this game to me, this save made up for a lot.
It energized the Sabres enough for Daniel Briere to score on a one-timer at the other end with about two minutes left. Briere then notched the win during a man advantage (too many men on the ice!) in overtime.
The Flyers had 27 giveaways, which certainly didn’t help their cause. Overall, though, they look like a much better team than I saw in the playoffs last year. The lineup looked much different, and included Geoff Sanderson, the former Sabre.
On the postgame coverage Saturday, announcer Jim Lorentz noted that the Sabres were “only the second team in NHL history to win three consecutive overtime games.” The crew also noted that Buffalo is 9-0 on the road to start the season. This is getting more amazing to watch with each game.