In Glendale Sunday, Radim Vrbata scored with less than 20 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Arizona Coyotes a 3-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres.
The win came just an hour after the Coyotes traded Martin Hanzal to the Minnesota
Louis Domingue made 31 saves in win over Buffalo – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
Wild taking a close friend from Vrbata.
“It’s not an easy day for everyone in the room and around the team. But we talked before that we still had to play the game and we need to show up and have a good effort,” Vrbata said. “Even when we got down two goals, we stayed with it and got a win.”
Ryan White was also traded to the Wild.
Louis Domingue made 31 saves to get the win.
“After the first goal, Louis was really solid and it’s a credit to the players that they worked hard tonight,” Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett said. “[Vrbata] is a smart player who’s had a really good season. For a guy who wasn’t sure how it was going to go (at age 35) and we weren’t sure how it was going to go, he’s come in and played very well. He’s a consummate pro who shows up and does his job every night.”
Max Domi and Jamie McGinn also scored for the Coyotes.
Jack Eichel and Evan Rodrigues scored for Buffalo as the Sabres dropped to 26-26-10.
“It’s tough to swallow,” Eichel said. “We’ve blown a lot of leads this year, and that’s one of the most frustrating things. It seems like we play good and we get the lead and then we decide we’re just going to sit back. … I don’t know if we played a little too passive, but we don’t push for that next goal, that third goal.”
WATCH: All Coyotes vs. Sabres highlights
Anders Nilsson made 26 saves in taking the loss.
“It’s a dagger that they score with 18 seconds left to take the lead. To come on a road trip and get no points is tough,” Eichel said of the late goal.
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