In the month of February, the Buffalo Sabres had some thrilling wins. However, their best win in February came against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Sabres were playing some good hockey during the month and as a result; they were in the thick of things regarding the playoff race.
For this game, Buffalo was getting good news as Owen Power made his return to the lineup after missing some games because of an injury. This matchup against the Hurricanes was not going to be easy as Carolina came into the game as one of the best teams in the league.
There was only one goal scored in the first period and it came from Tony DeAngelo of the Hurricanes as he scored a couple of minutes into the opening frame. Just like the first 20 minutes, one goal was scored in the second period, but this time it came from the Sabres as Jeff Skinner continued his scoring ways against his former team.
In the third period, that's when the intensity rose. After a very controversial penalty given to Buffalo, Carolina scored on the power play thanks to Martin Necas. Just about a minute later though, Power tied the game at 2-2 after an exceptional pass from Peyton Krebs.
Both goaltenders put on a show in overtime after the Sabres and Hurricanes had great chances respectively to end the game, but a shootout was needed to determine a winner. Casey Mittelstadt was the only player to score in the shootout as Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made one more save, giving Buffalo the 3-2 victory.
Even after the brutal call from the referees, the Sabres did not get rattled and emerged victorious in the end. Thanks to Luukkonen, Buffalo was able to beat a team who has always given them a hard time. It also gave them some momentum heading into the final two months of the regular season.