After securing seven out of a possible eight points on a four-game road trip, the Buffalo Sabres were back home in the first of four straight home games. The first game was against division rival Boston Bruins, who are desperately trying to stay in the playoff picture as they entered the game in the first wild card spot but only one point ahead of the Senators.
The Bruins seemingly controlled the flow most of the game and the Sabres weren't as crisp as they have looked at times. Entering the third period, the Bruins had a 2-1 lead, but that quickly changed in less than a minute as Zach Benson scored, and Jason Zucker scored a power play goal just over 30 seconds later.
Unfortunately, the Sabres were not able to hold the third-period lead again after the Bruins took a shot wide that took a weird bounce off the boards, and Casey Mittelstadt was able to score the tying goal. Similar to the Ducks game, it would go to overtime, and the Sabres once again came up short as Pavel Zacha scored the game-winner.
Conor Timmins plays in first game since middle of December
The last time Conor Timmins was on the ice for the Buffalo Sabres was on December 18th against the Philadelphia Flyers. He would suffer a broken leg towards the end of the game after blocking a shot, and plenty has changed since he was on the ice.
That game was their fourth straight win, which would end up being a 10-game win streak and was the first game since Jarmo Kekalainen was named general manager for the recently fired Kevyn Adams.
On Wednesday, Timmins would be activated from injured reserve and made his return on the third pair alongside Logan Stanley. He would replace Zach Metsa in the lineup and finished with over 15 minutes of ice time and led the team in penalty kill time with 2:17.
It was certainly surprising to see Metsa come out of the lineup with how well he has been playing. However, the thought process for Lindy Ruff was probably to try and get Timmins ice time with an extended absence. The remainder of the regular season might see some line shuffling as the coaching staff tries to get an idea of what their best lines are for the playoffs.
Zach Benson extends his goal streak to three games
For the first time in his career, Zach Benson has a three-game goal streak after scoring the tying goal in the third period against the Boston Bruins. In the past two games in particular, Benson has had goals at critical points in the game.
In the Sabres' last game against the Ducks, Benson scored in the third period, which gave Buffalo a 5-4 lead. The goal against the Bruins was a huge momentum swing as Benson would score the tying goal and then get cross-checked into the net after scoring.
It would result in a Sabres' power play that they would then convert into a goal and take the lead. The former first-round pick is playing some of the best hockey of his career with seven points now in the last six games.
Bounce back performance for the Sabres' special teams
The Buffalo Sabres came up short in sweeping their four-game road trip with the overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks. One of the big reasons for the loss was the Sabres' special teams, both their power play and their penalty kill.
The Ducks would have four power play chances against the Sabres, and they would score on three of them. Meanwhile, the Sabres had three power play chances in that game but were unable to convert any into goals.
On Wednesday against the Bruins, the Sabres got back on track as they scored two power play goals on three power play chances. Meanwhile, the Bruins were shut out and unable to score on their two power play chances.
It wasn't enough to secure the win, but it was good to see this part of the Sabres' game bounce back with the performance they had against the Bruins.
Upcoming Buffalo Sabres' schedule
The Buffalo Sabres next game is on Friday night against the Detroit Red Wings, which will have huge playoff implications as the Red Wings are currently just outside the playoff picture with 84 points. They will then have a quick turnaround with a game against the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.