Top Five Moments of the Buffalo Sabres’ Season So Far
Dec 27, 2014; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres left wing
Tyler Ennis(63) celebrates with goalie
Jhonas Enroth(1) and right wing
Chris Stewart(80) after defeating the New York Islanders 4-3 in a shootout at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
4. Third-Period Rally Against NYI
Skipping around in the season, let’s move forward to December 27, 2014. The struggling Buffalo Sabres were on a four-game losing streak, hosting the New York Islanders.
Things didn’t start off well for the Buffalo Sabres. Nick Leddy gave the Islanders a 1-0 lead less than five minutes into the game. The Islanders then scored two goals in 3:09 – both from the hands of John Tavares – to take a demanding 3-0 lead in the second period.
When the teams hit the ice for the third period, things didn’t look great. A team that had just lost four games in a row was facing a 3-0 deficit with just twenty minutes remaining in the game. Would they make it five losses in a row?
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The outstanding answer to that: NO.
For just the second time in franchise history, the Buffalo Sabres overcame a 3-0 deficit with three goals in the third period. Nicolas Deslauriers kicked things off before Zemgus Girgensons and Chris Stewart notched two goals in 1:50. Before you knew it, things were tied up at three.
And the Buffalo Sabres completed the comeback, forcing the game to overtime and then to a shootout.
Tyler Ennis notched the only goal of the shootout, and the Buffalo Sabres a) killed a four-game losing streak b) completed the comeback and c) shocked many, particularly because the win came against a hot Isles team that had a record of 23-11-1, compared to the Sabres’ record of 14-19-3.
Next: A Pair of First NHL Goals