Buffalo wins its 1,000th regular season home game with the 4-3 victory.
By Chris Ryndak / Sabres.com
BUFFALO, N.Y. — That was fun. Buffalo scored on their first two shots of the game last night and then Sam Reinhart broke a tie with 4:14 left in regulation as Buffalo won 4-3 to pick up their 1,000th regular season home victory.
Here’s what you need to know.
From the Lexus Postgame Report…
For nearly a month, the Buffalo Sabres sat one victory shy of a milestone. They won their 999th regular-season game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Jan. 11 but had gone without a win at KeyBank Center since.
Playing the finale of a five-game homestand against the New York Islanders on Thursday, the Sabres finally got the job done. Sam Reinhart led the way with three points, including the go-ahead goal with 4:14 remaining in a 4-3 Sabres victory.
Buffalo led 3-0 in the second period on goals from Jack Eichel, Evan Rodrigues, and Ryan O’Reilly. The Islanders responded with goals from John Tavares, Ross Johnston and Anders Lee, the last of which tied the game just 1:03 before Reinhart scored the winner.
“It’s really small details and you have to stick with it,” Reinhart said. “It was a pretty ugly one but those are the ones you kind of have to find a way to win on a consistent basis in this league.”
Reinhart had already earned two assists prior to scoring the game-winning goal, when he buried the rebound of a shot by Rodrigues from out in front of the Islanders net. His three-point night gave him 13 points (4+9) in his last 10 games, matching the total he scored in the first 44 games of his season.
Coach Phil Housley acknowledged the fact that the team will need more wins to gain the trust of their fans. Getting that 1,000-win milestone out of the way is a start.
“To get a win in front of the home crowd is important,” Eichel said. “[We’ve] got to keep people coming to games. We’ve got to start winning here, we’ve got to start making this a tougher place to play.”