It's been a long time coming, but the Buffalo Sabres offense finally went off last night as they blew out the Los Angeles Kings 7-0. Buffalo took a 3-0 lead after the first period, then scored twice in the second, and twice in the third to preserve the victory. JJ Peterka got the scoring started as he found the puck behind the Kings goaltender and put it into the net.
Jordan Greenway made it 2-0 after Drew Doughty passed it right to Greenway, and he made the Kings defenseman pay. In the final minute of the period, Sabres captain Kyle Okposo scored to make it 3-0 Buffalo on the power play as he tipped a shot from Dylan Cozens.
A few minutes into the second period, Rasmus Dahlin scored on a beautiful shot to make it 4-0. Before the period ended, Zach Benson scored, giving Buffalo a 5-0 lead heading into the third. Alex Tuch made it 6-0 before Greenway scored again to extend the lead to seven goals. After a tough two games, the Sabres swept Los Angeles in the season series.
I know what you're thinking: where has this team been all season? Trust me, I said the same thing. For the first time all year, we saw the talented offense Sabres fans know and love from last year. Not only did they win by a large margin, but they didn't take their foot off the pedal. Buffalo has a tendency to stop scoring and take a step back, but that was not the case last night.
One more thing, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was absolutely fantastic once again to get his fourth shutout of the season. You didn't think I wasn't going to talk about him, did you? He made some big saves to not only preserve his shutout, but to keep the momentum going for the Sabres.
Since Dec. 30th, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen ranks 1st in the NHL in Goals Saved Above Expected pic.twitter.com/SNG1WsuM6D
— The Sabre Report (@TheSabreReport) February 14, 2024
UPL delivered once again, and personally, I'm very happy for him. I was one of his critics, so it's great to see him prove people wrong. Hopefully he can keep it rolling into the second half of the season, regardless of how the Sabres finish. Buffalo will take on the Florida Panthers tomorrow night, so hopefully, they saved some goals for the Panthers because it's going to be a daunting challenge.