Sabres flip the switch, move into first in Atlantic Division after 5-3 win against New York Rangers
Jason Zucker scored the game-winning goal to help the Buffalo Sabres to a 5-3 win Wednesday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Alex Tuch didn’t like how his team convoluted its own game in the first two periods.
Ryan McLeod didn’t like the sluggishness or the sloppiness of his team.
The Sabres went into the third period on Wednesday against the New York Rangers, trailing by a goal. Something had to change if the Sabres wanted to maintain the pace in a three-team sprint for the top of the Atlantic Division.
The Sabres simplified in the final 20 minutes of a 5-3 win against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) protects the net from Buffalo Sabres left wing Jason Zucker (17)
during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
“We were complicating things in the first couple of periods,” Tuch said. “I thought we were able to capitalize on a couple of opportunities, but we got back to it in the third period, our game. Simple. Fast. Direct. A little chaos in front. Ended up with two net-front goals, so that’s good.”
With his team trailing the Rangers 3-2 early in the third, Tuch tied the game when he deflected Ryan McLeod’s shot from the point past Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin at 5:51. Less than 90 seconds later, Jason Zucker scored his second game-winning goal in as many games when he picked up a puck that bounced off Shesterkin’s left pad, and put a backhand shot past the Rangers goalie, who was sprawled on the ice, at 7:14.
“We decided to play our game,” said Zucker, who combined with linemate McLeod to score two goals and two assists against the Rangers.
“The first two periods, we were messing around with pucks too much in our zone. We were throwing pucks right through the middle of our slot, coming out of the ‘D’ zone. Very uncharacteristic of us. And they made us pay for it. So, we got back to our game.”
It helped the Sabres take the lead in the Atlantic Division. The Sabres finished Wednesday in first in the Atlantic with 104 points, ahead of Montreal and Tampa Bay, each with 102 points. The Canadiens and Lightning were idle on Wednesday, and the Sabres have three regular-season games left.
“Two wins (Monday and Wednesday) is huge,” Tuch said. “It’s a tight race, right there, for first in the Atlantic. We want to do whatever we can to try to increase our lead, now. We’re in first now, but obviously, two really good teams are chasing us. Just want to stack up some wins, get some points, and continue to push and get ready for the playoffs.”
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff made a droll comment about his team’s playoff chase, too.
“It feels like we’ve been in a tight race since December,” Ruff said, with a chuckle. “A tight race to get into the picture and then a tight race to move up in the standings. Now, it’s a tight race to stay up in the standings. Our division has been incredibly tough. The string of games that Montreal put together. Tampa Bay had a real nice run, and we’re all sitting there together.”
Ruff liked his team’s net-front presence in the third period – in fact, that’s been Zucker’s bread and butter all season, creating chances and picking up loose pucks in the hot zone immediately around an opposing goalie. Zucker's persistence continues to pay; he scored his second game-winning goal in as many games.
The Sabres finished with 15 high-danger scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick, with nine in 5-on-5 situations, including the first of Zach Benson’s two goals.
“In the third period, we executed almost every zone, and we got rewarded for getting to the net,” Ruff said. “The Zucker goal is an example of that. The Tuch goal. Those are the types of goals, you’re going to win a game in the playoffs.”
Breaking a drought
McLeod scored his first goal since March 5, when he gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead at 4:40 of the first. The center beat Shesterkin on a shot from the right circle at 4:40, off an entry pass from Zucker in the neutral zone.How did McLeod work through a span of more than a month between goals?
“Play my game, every night,” McLeod said. “It’s tough when they don’t go in for you for a while. It feels like they’re never going to go in. Just try to get back and shoot some more pucks, and luckily, one got by today.”
How did McLeod beat Shesterkin?
“Just saw the lane, shot it, and it went in,” McLeod said.
Special teams woes
One area where the Sabres need a late-season reversal of fortunes: The power play. The Sabres’ power play is 0 for 15 in the last four games and finished 0 for 4 on the power play against the Rangers, and couldn’t convert a 5-on-3 opportunity late in the second period, with New York’s Vincent Trocheck penalized for slashing at 16:31 and Vladislav Gavrikov penalized for cross-checking at 17:35.The Sabres' penalty kill was also less-than-stellar at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers finished 1 for 3, as Alexis Lafreniere and Adam Fox scored power-play goals; Fox’s goal with less than six minutes left in the second gave the Rangers a 3-2 lead.
“Just giving them in-zone time is tough,” Tuch said. “They’ve got a lot of weapons over there and a lot of good players, and they’re going to capitalize on opportunities. We’ve got to be better than that way. The power play, we’ve definitely got to bear down. Both units weren’t good enough.”