In Buffalo, the Sabres took a first period, 2-0, lead over the Calgary Flames in a Saturday matinee.
They promptly surrendered four goals in the middle frame and another three in the third to lose, 7-2.
Jacob Markstrom closed the door after the first period and got the win on 21 saves, and assist.
The Flames improved to 25-18-10.
Tage Thompson (power play) and Casey Mittelstadt scored in the first period to seemingly give the Sabres a commanding two-goal lead.
“I felt like we were pretty disconnected out there in the second and the third,” Thompson said. “Not a lot of support, whether it was on the forechecks or coming out of our own end. I think if you don’t support your teammates, it’s going to make you feel like you’re chasing the game.”
Buffalo dropped to 26-21-4.
“They came out and just punched us in the face,” Sabres captain Kyle Okposo said. “They just played better than us. I didn’t think we played great in the first, just a little bit rusty, but maybe a bit of a false sense of security being up two goals after the first period. Probably should’ve talked about it a little bit more after the first and try to get to our game. We just got pounded in the second period.”
Calgary’s Jakob Pelletier (first NHL goal) and Mikael Backlund scored 20 seconds apart in the middle frame to tie the game, 2-2.
“I think [Jonathan Huberdeau] passed to ‘Naz’, it was a great play,” Pelletier said. “And then ‘Naz’, it was like a 2-on-1, was like, ‘Come on ‘Pelltz,’ come on man, let’s go.’ So, I skated … and then I shoot and score.”
Dennis Gilbert and Nazem Kadri added goals in the period for a 4-2 lead headed to the third period.
“It was just a good breakout and then it got squirted over to ‘Dubes’ and I just jumped up in the play and I was yelling at him to drop it,” Gilbert said. “Probably could’ve maybe walked in a little bit, but just tried to hit it hard. I’ll tell my kids one day that it went bar down. They don’t ask how.”
Tyler Toffoli added a double in the third for a 6-2 advantage.
“I think we’ve all kind of been there and felt something like that, where it just feels like everything’s going right,” Toffoli said. “We were doing all the little things, we were forechecking really well, and good sticks, and honestly, just doing all the little things. And we could tell that they were getting frustrated, and we just capitalized on our opportunities.”
Toffoli’s second was scored off the power play.
The Flames’ Dillon Dube scored at 17:11 for the 7-2 final.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 33 saves in the Sabres loss.
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