VANCOUVER – Ryan Miller, a franchise great whose No. 30 will be retired by the Sabres in January, stood at the entrance of the team's dressing room in Rogers Arena to greet and congratulate each player Saturday night following their 5-1 win over the Canucks.
Somehow, Miller was upstaged.
Mattias Samuelsson, a 22-year-old defenseman who recently received a seven-year contract extension, joined his teammates in the room to celebrate the perfect start to the road trip after he was forced to leave the game in the second period.
Wearing a soft brace over his right knee, Samuelsson had good news to share. He avoided a serious injury when his leg got tangled with Canucks forward Curtis Lazar after a hit along the boards.
The Sabres scored three goals in the third period to improve to 4-1.
People are also reading…
"We won’t know more (about the injury) until tomorrow, but I was holding my breath like everyone else and you’re wondering what type of news you’re going to get," said Sabres coach Don Granato. "So, much happier when I heard where he’s at."
Down to five defensemen for a third straight game, the Sabres' play began to slip after Samuelsson was helped to the bench by Victor Olofsson and Casey Mittelstadt only 3:03 into the second period.
Shorthanded against a desperate, winless opponent, the Sabres demoralized the Canucks (0-4-2) and spoiled their home opener when Olofsson scored his first of two third-period goals only 1:54 in.
Vancouver had only eight shots on goal in the third and coach Bruce Boudreau pulled goalie Thatcher Demko for an extra attacker with over three minutes to go.
Zemgus Girgensons quickly scored with the net empty, and Craig Anderson made 29 saves in goal to earn his second win of the season.
“This is a tough road trip and obviously a lot of talented players on every team we’ve played,” said Mittelstadt, who had two points for a second consecutive game. “We’re happy to be 3-0 to start the trip, and we still have one more.
"More than anything, we’re playing hard. Even if something doesn’t go our way or we make a mistake, forget about it and move on. Just keeps playing hockey. I think that’s the main thing.”
Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin extended his NHL-record, season-opening goal streak to five with his power-play marker in the first period, and Alex Tuch added his sixth of the season for an early 2-0 lead. Their confidence and attacking play evaporated in the second period after Samuelsson dropped to the ice and clutched his right knee on a routine check along the boards. He got tangled with Lazar as both fell to the ice.
Samuelsson is unquestionably the Sabres’ most reliable player in the defensive zone and averaged 22:02 of ice time while skating alongside Dahlin on the club’s top defense pair across the first four games.
They was already without Henri Jokiharju, a 20-minutes-per-game defenseman who was placed on injured reserve and returned to Buffalo to be evaluated by team doctors after being hit in the face with the puck Thursday in Calgary, though Granato said Jokiharju isn’t expected to be out “long.”
The Canucks began to roar back with Samuelsson out, forcing turnovers with a more aggressive forecheck and earning extended possessions around Anderson. Finally, at 13:27 into the second period, Conor Garland scored on the power play to cut Buffalo’s lead to 2-1.
“When we’re playing our game, controlling the puck, playing with that confidence, I think that would be it,” said Anderson, describing the common thread between the three wins on this trip. “Once we get that confidence, that’s the difference between our first and third period versus our second. We lost a little confidence there.”
Not for long, though. The Sabres bombarded the Canucks at the start of the third period with Jeff Skinner earning a chance in front and Vinnie Hinostroza hitting the cross bar on a shot from the slot. Then, Mittelstadt led a rush down the left wing when he kicked the puck through the neutral zone to create separation from the defenseman, regained possession and setup Olofsson with a perfect 2-on-1 pass that turned into a 3-1 lead.
The Sabres had eight high-danger scoring chances in the third period, while the Canucks had one, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
“Just stay calm,” said Olofsson. “I think we haven’t, even in those times where we don’t get the bounce, we just keep focusing on next shift and that’s the mentality we have right now.”
Here are other observations from the game:
1. Another accomplishment
Dahlin was remarkable again, finishing with two points, five hits and two blocked shots in 22:59 of ice time. The 22-year-old made it 1-0 at 5:35 into the game when his shot from the point went through traffic and between the legs of goalie Thatcher Demko.
Dahlin became only the third defensemen in the NHL with a five-game goal streak, joining Cale Makar (2021-22) and Roman Josi (2019-20).
Perhaps his finest moment will be overlooked because it came with the result decided, but Dahlin drove deep into the offensive zone and stickhandled around a Vancouver defenseman before passing in front to setup Olofsson for a 5-1 Buffalo lead.
“He’s confident,” said Anderson. “He’s making plays that kind of reminds me of – I don’t want to make this as much about another Swede, but when Erik Karlsson was at the top of his game, he was doing things with the puck you wouldn’t expect him to do because he had that confidence. Dahls is there in his own game.
“I’m not comparing him to Erik, but I’m comparing him to that confidence and swagger with the puck he has to be able to make those plays. He’s just playing loose and letting his skill and ability take over right now.”
2. Another promising game
Mittelstadt had another solid game with two assists, a plus-1 rating and eight faceoff wins in 13 attempts while skating 14:32 in the win. His line with Olofsson and Rasmus Asplund combined for two goals and four assists. Mittelstadt has one goal and five points in five games to start the season.
“Determination to make an impact,” said Granato, describing what he’s seen from Mittelstadt. “He’s a very competitive guy and now he has a lot more experience to go with that competitiveness and the drive. … When you’re surrounding him with a little bit more experience now as our players age and gain experience, that helps quite a bit.”
3. Stepping up
With Samuelsson out, Owen Power led all Sabres in ice time (25:27), while Ilya Lyububshkin (20:37) and Jacob Bryson (22:15) also logged over 20 minutes. Power had a plus-2 rating with two blocked shots, receiving five more minutes of even-strength ice time than any of his teammates.
“I think resiliency,” Anderson said of his defensemen. “Guys buckled down, weathered the storm in the second.”
4. Rotating
With 23 healthy forwards, and Jack Quinn sitting the previous two games, the Sabres rotated the rookie back into the lineup with Krebs a healthy scratch for the first time this season. Krebs, 21, had an assist with two shots on goal while averaging 12:11 of ice time across four games. We’ll see Granato deploy a similar rotation to give young forwards a breather during the grind of the season if the Sabres are healthy enough up front to do so.
Riley Sheahan and Lawrence Pilut were also scratched.
“We know these young guys that we have in our organization are talented and we know that they're going to develop through the course of the season,” said Granato. “Do they need to play every game and get into the grind of that? Is that helpful or not? Sometimes that's not conducive to development.”
5. Next
The Sabres complete their four-game road trip Tuesday night in Seattle against the Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena. Puck drop is 10 p.m., Eastern.
