Buffalo prepares for the Capitals Saturday night in Washington D.C.
By Chris Ryndak / Sabres.com
That was exciting. Marco Scandella put home the winner in overtime last night just before the final horn sounded. It was the third overtime goal of his career.
Ebvander Kane registered his 20th goal of the season on a wrap-around. Kane’s goal was challenged for goalie interference, inciting a lengthy review to check whether or not Jason Pominville had impeded Howard’s ability make a save. Coach Phil Housley and goalie Robin Lehner both had the impression that the goal would stand, but Kane said he was less certain given.
“I had a goal disallowed in Montreal where [Sam Reinhart] was about two feet outside the crease and they disallowed it,” Kane said. “I don’t know. I don’t think anybody does. I think it’s more of, if you’re the team who gets scored against you just call it and hope somebody makes a mistake.”
Buffalo is in Washington D.C. now as they get ready for a 7 pm game against the Capitals Saturday night.
Here’s what you need to know.
From the Lexus Postgame Report, live from Little Caesars Arena…
Johan Larsson summed it up best, standing in the visiting dressing room at Little Caesars Arena: “It’s a fine line,” he said, “between winning and losing.” Exactly how fine that line was against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night, he wasn’t sure.
Larsson began his drive as the final seconds dwindled off the clock in overtime, drew two defenders as he approached the net and made a quick pass back to Marco Scandella, who rifled a shot past Jimmy Howard with 0.2 seconds remaining to clinch a 3-2 win for the Buffalo Sabres.
Surely it took an acute sense of timing on Larsson’s behalf to pull off the buzzer beater. Right?
“No,” he said, smiling. “No idea. I heard it was pretty close.”
In any event, the victory was a show of resiliency for the Sabres, who gave up the game-tying goal to Detroit’s Justin Abdelkader with 1:25 remaining in regulation. The goal came with the Red Wings on a 6-on-4 advantage, with Howard pulled and Larsson serving a minor penalty for tripping.
It was fitting, then, that it was Larsson who came through with the late-game heroics.
“We didn’t throw in the towel,” Scandella said. “We didn’t give up. It just showed the kind of game we played tonight. We played 60 minutes. We played a simple game, but a hard game and everyone pulled on the rope.”
According to Elias Sports Bureau, Scandella joined Los Angeles’ Tyler Toffoli as the only players to score at the 4:59 mark in overtime this season.
New Beyond Blue and Gold coming Saturday
The newest episode of the Emmy-winning behind-the-scenes video series focuses on the work of our equipment managers during the NHL Winter Classic.
RJ Bobbleheads raise $74,000
Big news here and thanks to everyone who purchased a Rick Jeanneret Bobblehead to help support the Buffalo Sabres Foundation and Kevin Guest House.
The special edition talking bobblehead presented by John W. Danforth raised $74,000 that will be split in half and donated to Kevin Guest House and the Buffalo Sabres Foundation.
A check for $37,000 will be presented to representatives from Kevin Guest House on Sunday, Feb. 25, when the Sabres host the Boston Bruins.
“We would like to thank the fans and John W. Danforth for making this possible,” said Rich Jureller, President of the Buffalo Sabres Foundation. “With all the support, we are going to be able to use these funds to continue to make a difference in the Buffalo community and help a great organization in Kevin Guest House.”
After overwhelming demand from Sabres fans, all 1,900 talking bobbleheads sold out in a day and a half.
“The response from the community took me completely by surprise,” Jeanneret said. “I was flattered to see how many people wanted this bobblehead and stepped up to help support our community, proving once again that Buffalo has the best fans in the league.