With eight minutes left in the third period of Game 1 between the Boston Bruins and the Buffalo Sabres, it seemed that the Bruins were on course for a road win and a 1-0 series lead.
The Bruins' 2-0 advantage came as a result of goals from Morgan Geekie and Elias Lindholm, while goaltender Jeremy Swayman had stopped all 31 shots he faced up to that point, even in the face of a valiant Sabres attack.
But shortly after, the Sabres offense cashed in, with Tage Thompson completing a wrap-around chance to halve the Bruins' lead.
What followed was yet another avalanche (sorry Kings fans) of scoring chances before Thompson scored the game-tying goal, while Mattias Samuelsson and Alex Tuch would record the remaining two goals for the Sabres to complete an almost unimaginable comeback. That come-from-behind victory marked the first time in Stanley Cup Playoff history where a team has rallied from down 2-0 with eight minutes to go to win in regulation.
A recent example of a similar comeback came during the 2024 first-round series between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Islanders. In Game 2 of that series, the Hurricanes would rally from down 3-1 with under 10 minutes to go, ultimately winning by a 5-3 scoreline. That said, Carolina's comeback differs from Buffalo's, as it started roughly two minutes earlier.
In Round 1 of Jeremy Swayman vs. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Swayman soundly claims victory despite Sabres' triumph
But even in victory, the Sabres were soundly defeated in the goaltending department on Sunday, as the experience of Swayman prevailed over the stoutness of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for large portions of Game 1. Among other on-ice battles, any screen that the Sabres mounted, if at all, was seen through by Swayman as if it were a window rather than a hockey move.
And Luukkonen himself looked shaky for much of the game. There was a moment in the first period where a seemingly harmless puck slid Luukkonen's way and remained slightly under his pad for a good few seconds before the Sabres netminder realized it wasn't frozen. Luukkonen was ultimately able to swat it away before any Bruin could get to it, but that was only one of the many instances where he looked off to some extent.
That said, it is necessary to ensure any post-game asssesment acknowledges that this was Luukkonen's first career playoff game, while Swayman has now played 21 total postseason games. It's therefore fair to assume that Swayman knows the ways of postseason hockey, having collected nine wins over his playoff career, and that such a knowledge was on display at times on Sunday. At the same time, one can look at Luukkonen's .850 save percentage on 20 shots faced and see room for improvement while acknowledging that he was also capable of keeping Buffalo within striking distance of Boston.
And Luukkonen was among the top goaltenders in the league during the regular season. His 2.52 goals against average was good for ninth in the NHL, while his .910 save percentage was the sixth-best in the entire league. So we know what he is capable of, it's now a question of him getting acclimated to the postseason.
Swayman fell short of the win, but the Bruins spotlight is firmly on him
If not for a furious comeback attempt, Monday morning's sports headlines would probably have read "Playoff drought over, but Swayman delays Buffalo's long-awaited playoff win."
Even then, Swayman did well to take some of the spotlight off the Sabres' playoff return, which was arguably the biggest storyline heading into the night (and probably of all the Stanley Cup Playoff action thus far).
And at the end of the day, we're talking about the same netminder that conceded just nine goals against the Toronto Maple Leafs during a first-round series in 2024 and then strummed away on his guitar like it was no one's business.
Where the series could go next in this regard is twofold.
On one hand, Swayman could easily prove that his Game 1 performance wasn't a fluke and that he is the most important player in this series. A strong performance in any of the next three games at minimum will only allow for Swayman to build off of his performance in Game 1 and to continue to prove that he is capable of dragging his Bruins team to wins.
On the other hand, the Sabres prove that the last eight minutes of Game 1 weren't a fluke and that their offense is the most important part of this series. If the Sabres keep outshooting the Bruins to this degree, they will win three more games. They might not earn a sweep, especially considering the experience that Boston has on display, but they will win the series.
Either way, Game 1 not only proved that we are in for a thrilling series, but it also set up what could be an incredibly enticing goaltender battle.
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