Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen records first shutout in Sabres epic upset win
Coming into Sunday’s matinee vs. the Colorado Avalanche, the Buffalo Sabres found themselves in a dire situation at goaltender.
Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen came into this game with an abysmal 4.78 GAA and a 0.881 save percentage. His backup was Devin Cooley, someone very few NHL fans know about as the Buffalo Sabres were forced to call him up from the AHL’s Rochester Americans.
Want more fun? The Black and Red were facing an aggravated Colorado Avalanche team that started the season 6-0-1. Problem was, the Avs were coming off an embarrassing 4-0 loss that handed them their first regulation ‘L’ of the season, courtesy of the Pittsburgh Penguins. So a revenge game for Colorado was in order against a struggling Sabres team.
Then Buffalo decided to do something it had a hard time doing all week: Show up defensively and do so for all three periods. And they did just that, with their stellar penalty kill stifling the Avs on six attempts. They also blocked an astounding 21 shots against a team that likes to shoot the puck early and often.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen capped off the Sabres shutout win
But the real story today was Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen who, despite seeing his defense playing well in front of him, still found himself tested at times. Yet he didn’t flinch, and the 24-year-old saved all 23 shots on goal.
Although the Sabres gave him little help against the New Jersey Devils, he also didn’t step up enough and make plays himself. The result was three goals allowed in 28:08 of ice time, which set the stage for a supposedly hopeless situation in today’s matinee vs. Colorado.
But the Black and Red pulled together as a team, shut down an Avs team that now hasn’t scored in seven straight periods, and has now allowed nine goals in the process. It was also a game where Buffalo scored four times, meaning they have now found the net 14 times in the last three contests, good for 4.67 goals per game.
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Now, it’s onto the next one, as they will face the Philadelphia Flyers this Wednesday on the road before seeing them again on Friday. Buffalo is still looking to rediscover its high-octane identity, but the consistency they’ve shown this week means they are trending in the right direction.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)