In Boston, the Bruins needed two goals in the third period to erase a one-goal deficit to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday.
A loss to Buffalo would have been seismic.
“We obviously played a good game, a good hockey game,” the Sabres’ Kyle Okposo said. “A couple bounces end up in the back of our net and I just didn’t think we had enough looks in the third period there to really try and put them away and end the game. We’ve just got to find a way to keep pushing for offense.
“But it was a lot better without the puck, and I thought we did a good job to kind of limit their time and space and we did a lot of good things tonight, we just weren’t able to get the W.”
Nick Ritchie picked up the equalizer to tie it at 2-2 off a pass from Charlie McAvoy with 6:22 gone in the third .
“I was just trying to use kind of my momentum to just get skating. I know they’re a man-on-man team, so I was trying to get a step,” McAvoy said. “I was actually looking for [Smith] through a seam there, and then we were fortunate enough to get a bounce. But when guys are going to the net all game and working hard to get to those dirty areas, it’s nice to see them get rewarded.”
Craig Smith potted the game-winner about 10 minutes later.
“Some of the focus was put on getting to the front of the net and being a little bit more hungry,” Smith said. “And you see [Ritchie] banging one in there in the third and guys just creating a little havoc in front. It was just a lucky puck bouncing out.”
Dan Vladar made 25 saves to get the win for the Bruins.
“He responded well [after allowing the first goal],” Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy said. “You don’t know with a young guy if it’ll sort of get in his head or [he’ll] park it. I thought he did a good job parking it, made some good saves for us. I don’t think he had to make a ton of stops in there, but he made the ones you’re supposed to.”
Matt Grzelcyk also scored for the Bruins.
Okposo and Sam Reinhart scored for the Sabres, who had the 2-1 lead heading into the final frame.
 Linus Ullmark made 33 saves in his return to the Sabres’ lineup.
“It doesn’t really matter how you lose the game,” Ullmark said. “You know it’s unfortunate that we got some unlucky bounces and some calls against us there at the end when we’re pushing for that third goal. There’s nothing to say about that now, you’ve got to go home, recharge and then come back stronger for the next one.”
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