Observations: Sabres drop fifth straight, show they're 'still learning' in loss to Bruins

“We made them earn everything they got,” Anderson said to reporters with an expression of pride on his face.

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The Sabres were left wondering what could have been. They held a one-goal lead over the Atlantic Division’s first-place Boston Bruins for over 32 minutes in front of a sold-out crowd, and there was an opportunity to earn at least a point with a strong third period.

Yet, the Sabres allowed two goals in the final 20 minutes, including the game-winner by defenseman Jakub Zboril, to lose to the Bruins, 3-1. Buffalo has lost five games in a row and its 7-8 record is worse than six of the other seven teams in the division.

There was a sense of cautious optimism around the Sabres, though. Four of those five losses were to some of the best teams in the league: Boston, Vegas, Tampa Bay and Carolina. And their defeat Saturday night was Buffalo’s finest performance during this eight-day-long skid.

Tage Thompson was the best player on the ice, scoring his team-leading 11th goal with a remarkable display of skill. The Sabres’ defense, led by the top pair of Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power, made the job difficult for the Bruins (13-2). Buffalo’s other forwards, including those with less experience, made fewer mistakes than previous games.

“The last two nights, if we play like that moving forward, we’re going to win a lot of games sticking with it,” Thompson said.

A matchup against the top two offensive teams in the league, the Sabres’ first meeting with the Bruins’ this season didn’t feature run-and-gun, faced-paced hockey. Buffalo’s coach, Don Granato, didn’t want his players to try to trade chances with a team that features decorated forwards like Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand, David Pastrnak and Taylor Hall.

A cleaner performance was needed for the Sabres to avoid the defensive miscues that caused them to fall in the standings. They allowed an average of 5.25 goals per game in losses to Carolina, Tampa Bay, Arizona and Vegas. A simpler approach was needed and more responsible play away from the puck, particularly by the forwards, led to an early break through.

Most of Thompson’s goals this season have been highlight-reel quality, from rocket one-timers to impressive drives to the net. His goal at 5:17 into the first period Saturday might be his best work yet.

With the Sabres on the penalty kill, Pastrnak moved across Buffalo’s blue line, only to be met by multiple defenders. Thompson stripped Pastrnak of the puck, created separation from three Bruins with his first few strides through the neutral zone and skated around Boston center David Krejci to get to the net.

Thompson shielded the puck from Krejci by keeping only his left hand on the handle of his stick and placed his right forearm against the opposing forward while driving to the net. As goalie Keith Kinkaid prepared for the shot, Thompson quickly moved the puck back to the forehand of his stick blade and finished for a 1-0 Sabres lead. Thompson has 10 goals and 16 points in his last eight games.

“When we’re on our game, I think we have the ability to frustrate any group,” said Granato. “And I think that was the case. I think we were skating. We were playing as a group of five and a unit of five. It did appear that way. Credit to them, they’re very disciplined and lots of experience. That experience pulled them through in this case.”

The Sabres couldn’t add to their lead, though. Their power play failed to score in three opportunities against the league’s top-ranked penalty kill. Kinkaid, the Bruins’ third-string goalie, made a point-blank stop on Thompson 14 minutes into the second period.

A brief unraveling shifted momentum for the Bruins. After Sabres defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin was called for a roughing penalty, Bergeron scored his first of two goals Saturday on a scramble in front of Anderson to make it 1-1 with 2:09 left in the second period.

The Sabres almost regained the lead early in the third, when Jack Quinn earned a shot from in tight. It was the Bruins, though, who made it 2-1 when Zboril sailed a shot through traffic to beat a screened Anderson with 7:29 left in regulation.

There was still time for the Sabres to rally. Lawrence Pilut hit the post. Victor Olofsson challenged Kinkaid with two shots on goal. Alex Tuch had another. But the Bruins were ready when the Sabres made a mistake.

Defenseman Jacob Bryson passed the puck along the boards to Jeff Skinner in the neutral zone, where two Bruins were waiting to forecheck. Skinner had trouble handling the pass. Boston entered the offensive zone, where its top three offensive threats – Bergeron, Marchand and Pastrnak – connected on the insurance goal.

Bergeron finished a backhanded centering pass from Marchand to make it 3-1, giving the Sabres only 1:49 to try to score twice.

“It’s one of those things where it’s a learning curve for us,” said Anderson. “We’re still learning. We’ve got a lot of young guys. We’re still trying to find our identity and find our way. Tonight was a step in the right direction.”

The Sabres had more shots on goal (31-30) and the same amount of shot attempts (5-5). They committed fewer mistakes with the puck and played better defensively, but the margin for error is thin against the Bruins. 

It's another difficult lesson during a challenging stretch in the schedule. The Sabres played well enough offensively to beat the Hurricanes, Lightning and Golden Knights. The issues were defensively, particularly with the forwards, and turnovers. 

The Sabres were sharper Saturday night, but they could only score once on Kinkaid and two of their few turnovers led to Bruins goals. 

“Bitter taste in their mouths," said Granato. "We’ve got a group that – I’ve said it before – they’re not happy. It (ticks) them off. That’s a really good thing for us, is we brought in competitive people.

"We know they’re young, but we brought in competitive people for that reason. When this stuff happens, they don’t like it. They want to fix it. And I think the silver lining is they know they can fix it."

Here are other observations from the game:

1. Standing tall

Anderson was strong again for the Sabres, including an impressive save on Marchand during a 2-on-1 early in the second period. There were also clutch stops on Jake DeBrusk and Charlie McAvoy in the third. Anderson, 41, has a .922 save percentage in four games this season.

2. Starting fast

The Sabres scored the opening goal for the first time in four games when Thompson converted on Pastrnak’s turnover in the first period. Over the previous three games, they only led for a combined 3:15 in their previous three losses. A strong start is important against Boston.

The Bruins entered Saturday with a plus-9 goal differential in the first period. They were 9-0 when scoring first and 10-0 when leading after one. The Sabres outshot the Bruins 10-5 in the first period, earning nearly twice as many 5-on-5 shot attempts (19-11) and had the significant edge in scoring chances (8-3), according to NaturalStatTrick.com.

3. Close call

The Sabres had another injury scare late in the second period when Dahlin limped down the tunnel and to the trainers’ room after blocking DeBrusk’s shot. Dahlin finished his shift after absorbing the puck, though he awkwardly skated around the zone as the Bruins threatened to tie the score. The sequence led to the brief unraveling and Lyubushkin's penalty.

Dahlin returned for the third period and finished with 28:08 of ice time, while Power led the team with 29:35. Granato said following the game that Dahlin is “fine.”

4. Around the boards

• Defenseman Henri Jokiharju (upper body) took another step toward returning to the lineup Saturday when he participated in his first contact skate. Jokiharju has practiced with the team four straight days, but he’s missed the past 10 games after being hit in the face with the puck in Calgary on Oct. 20.

• Winger Kyle Okposo (lower body) missed his first game of the season because of an injury suffered Thursday against Vegas and is considered day to day, according to the team. Okposo has one goal and nine points in 14 games. Defenseman Kale Clague was a healthy scratch for the Sabres.

• Former Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark led the pregame stretch for the Bruins following the morning skate but their coach, Jim Montgomery, opted to start Kinkaid on the first game of a back-to-back. Ullmark is 3-0 with a .958 save percentage against Buffalo since signing a four-year, $20 million contract with Boston in July 2021.

• The Sabres announced before puck drop that the club donated $60,000 to Roswell Comprehensive Cancer Center as part of Hockey Fights Cancer month. Players wore special purple jerseys during pregame warmups, and each had the name of a different person impacted by cancer.

5. Next

The Sabres finish their four-game homestand Tuesday night against the Vancouver Canucks at 7 p.m., then hit the road to play the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday.