On Tuesday the Buffalo Sabres had a two-goal lead with less than ten minutes remaining in the third period, only to see it vanish after the Nashville Predators tied things at four with 2:33 left in regulation. A late Predators penalty gave the Sabres an almost full two-minute power play in overtime, but Buffalo failed to capitalize. Less than a minute later Buffalo's fate was sealed when Predators forward Filip Forsberg scored, securing a 5-4 overtime win for Nashville.
#Sabres blow two goal lead and lose in overtime. pic.twitter.com/olZIFTwXP7
— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) March 1, 2017
Five observations from Tuesday's win:
Another blown two-goal lead
#Sabres blow a two goal lead in the third period......again pic.twitter.com/1t6HfwdLk0
— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) March 1, 2017
On Tuesday the Buffalo Sabres blew their second third-period two-goal lead in three days. For a team that's trying to make a playoff push that's simply unacceptable.
After stringing together three straight wins the Sabres have now lost four straight and their playoff hopes are on life support. It's amazing how different things looked just days ago.
To have a realistic shot at the postseason the Sabres will need to string together some wins, and with only 19 games left there's no room for error.
If the Sabres make it to 90 points they'll likely be in contention at the end of the year. After Tuesday the Sabres have 63 points with 19 games remaining. That being said, if the Sabres can win 13 (or more) of their remaining 19 games they'll have an outside chance. It's not likely, but it's not impossible either.
Second and third period woes.
After a great start, the Sabres looked lost for the majority of the second period. It was almost the complete opposite of the first period with Nashville outshooting Buffalo 16-6. In the third period things didn't get much better, getting outshot yet again 17-6.
Luckily for the Sabres, one of their six second period shots beat Pekka Rinne thanks to a great play from Evander Kane and one of their six third period shots found the back of the net, courtesy Jake McCabe.
After a nice start you can't get outshot 33-12 and expect to win games.
Helluva start
If it wasn't for one incredibly weird Nashville goal late in the period the Sabres would've played a near-perfect first period. When the final buzzer rang the Sabres had 16 shots compared to Nashville's 7.
To be fair, the Sabres also greatly benefited from a weird bounce on their second goal, so maybe that even things out a bit. After a slow first couple minutes, the Sabres applied constant pressure and generated some really pretty scoring chances. Despite giving up two goals, Predators goalie Pekka Rinne played a pretty solid first frame.
Jack Attack
With an assist in the first period, Jack Eichel has extended his point streak to seven games [1G, 7A]. In February only Jonathan Toews [18] has more points than Eichel [16].
That being said, in February Eichel has only two goals. No need to fret, where he's lacked in goals he's made up with assists, tallying 14 helpers in as many games.
It would have been nice to see Eichel seal the game off in overtime but only one of his shots got through. After the overtime man advantage ended Eichel set up Zach Bogosian perfectly, but the shot went high and wide.
I expect Eichel to start burying more chances, but even without the goal production, for my money, he's been the Sabres best player in February.
Eichel extends his point streak to seven games. Bust #Sabres
— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) March 1, 2017
Clock's ticking Murray
Every game there's a gentleman who sits in section 316 and yells "CLOCK'S TICKING MURRAY."
That man has never been more right. The trade deadline is looming and Tuesday's game could very well be the last time several players in Tuesday's lineup ever wear a Sabres sweater.
Who that will be is still unclear, but by the time of the Sabres next game on Thursday it's very likely there roster will have some changes.
Clock's ticking Murray guy yelled this again in the second period. If I had a dollar for every time this has been yelled this year I could probably buy two tickets to a game and a few cold beverages.
