Sabres wrap: Comeback falls short as win streak ends with 4-2 loss in Dallas
Luukkonen gave up the game-winning goal with 8:28 left in the third period and the Dallas Stars held on to beat the Sabres, 4-2, Tuesday night in American Airlines Center.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen's heroics in goal weren't enough to give the Sabres their first four-game win streak in nearly two years.
Luukkonen gave up the game-winning goal with 8:28 left in the third period and the Dallas Stars held on to beat the Sabres, 4-2, Tuesday night in American Airlines Center.
Buffalo Sabres left wing Jason Zucker scores a goal against Dallas Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith as Sabres right wing Alex Tuch and Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen (4),
look on, during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Dallas, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2024. Michael Ainsworth/Associated Press
Luukkonen was exceptional in goal for the Sabres, delivering 29 saves to give his teammates a chance to complete a comeback. Wyatt Johnston redirected Thomas Harley's pass over Luukkonen's shoulder to put the Stars ahead for good. Dallas added an empty-net goal with 1:37 remaining to end Buffalo's comeback attempt.
Buffalo dropped to 14-20-4 and failed to win four games in a row for the first time since January 2023, when the Sabres won five straight under former coach Don Granato.
The Sabres rallied from a one-goal deficit twice against the Stars. Jason Zucker scored 31 seconds after Roope Hintz gave Dallas a 1-0 lead in the first period, then Beck Malenstyn made it 2-2 less than three minutes after Jason Robertson put the home team ahead by a goal.
The Stars (22-13-1) have won 11 of their last 15 games against the Sabres dating to January 2017.
First period
• Jiri Kulich's line with Zach Benson and Peyton Krebs earned the Sabres' first scoring chance of the game. Kulich, a rookie center, sent a backhand shot toward Stars goalie Casey DeSmith but neither Benson nor Krebs could get to the rebound.• Luukkonen made consecutive, impressive saves, the second on Stars captain Jamie Benn as Dallas kept cycling the puck around the offensive zone.
• DeSmith snared Sam Lafferty's shot during a 2-on-1 for the Sabres with 14:41 remaining.
• Wyatt Johnston carried the puck toward the right corner of the Stars' offensive zone, then passed to the slot where Benn challenged Luukkonen with a shot that the Sabres goalie stopped 14:05 into the first period. The scoring chance occurred a few minutes after Luukkonen had to stop Matt Duchene during a 2-on-1 for Dallas.
• Stars center Roope Hintz split the Sabres' defense at Dallas' offensive blue line, collected a pass from Johnston and snapped the puck on net to force Luukkonen to make a save.
• The Sabres blocked three shots and allowed only one on goal while Connor Clifton was in the penalty box for cross-checking. The successful penalty kill kept the score 0-0, preserving Luukkonen's perfect first period.
• Dallas outshot Buffalo 12-8 during the first period and created three more 5-on-5 high-danger scoring chances (6-3), according to Natural Stat Trick.
Second period
• Benn cut across the Sabres' crease and his shot near the far post was stopped by Luukkonen only 50 seconds into the second period.• Esa Lindell dropped the puck back to Hintz, whose shot from the slot was stopped by Luukkonen at 1:35.
• Benson missed Alex Tuch with a pass to the far post that could have been a tap-in goal. The Stars outshot the Sabres, 5-1, through five minutes of the second period.
• Luukkonen shuffled to his right and extended his blocker to stop Logan Stankoven's shot from the slot. Benson then stickhandled around DeSmith to create an open net but could not get the puck over the goal line before it was cleared by the Stars.
• Hintz gave Dallas a 1-0 lead with a snap shot from the left circle that went off Bowen Byram's stick and past Luukkonen at 9:49 into the second period. It was only the 16th time this season that Buffalo allowed the first goal.
• Zucker tied the score 1-1 with his 11th goal of the season 10:20 into the second period. Tage Thompson tipped Byram's shot to cause the puck to leak through DeSmith, allowing Zucker to swipe it into the net.
• DeSmith took an aggressive angle to stop Lafferty's point-blank chance with under seven minutes left in the second period.
• Consecutive outlet passes by Tuch and Zucker sprung Thompson for a rush chance, but the Stars closed quickly to prevent the Sabres center from getting a shot on goal.
• Dylan Cozens misfired a pass to Beck Malenstyn during a Sabres rush late in the second period. They allowed only two shots on goal in 9:49 after Hintz made it 1-0.
Third period
• Stars winger Colin Blackwell collected the puck after it ricocheted off the end boards and tried to jam it past Luukkonen at the post.• Benn hit the crossbar with a shot from the left circle 59 seconds into the third period.
• The Sabres were hemmed in their own zone against the Stars' top line until Jack Quinn's pass went directly to Robertson, who scored on a shot from the slot to give Dallas a 2-1 lead 2:35 into the third period.
• Lafferty's pass to the crease went off Malenstyn's skate and past DeSmith to tie it 2-2 at 4:57 into the third period.
Lineup
Nicolas Aube-Kubel was scratched again but skated with the team for the first time since an illness kept him out of multiple practices. Dennis Gilbert and Henri Jokiharju were also healthy scratches in Dallas, as Lindy Ruff opted to use the same lineup:Jason Zucker - Tage Thompson - Alex Tuch
Jack Quinn - Dylan Cozens - JJ Peterka
Zach Benson - Jiri Kulich - Peyton Krebs
Beck Malenstyn - Ryan McLeod - Sam Lafferty
Rasmus Dahlin - Bowen Byram
Mattias Samuelsson - Owen Power
Jacob Bryson - Connor Clifton