In Buffalo, the Sabres season took another hit on Sunday afternoon in a 7-0 thumping at the hands of the Boston Bruins.
Jeremy Swayman made 26 saves in his second straight shutout.
“It’s special,” Swayman said. “I haven’t done that before. But again, just a quick memory. Forget about it as soon as I leave the locker room and just want to put myself in a position to perform next game. And again, it wouldn’t be possible without the guys taking initiative in the defensive zone and blocking big shots all the way to the end. That’s special to see with a group like this.”
Seven different skaters hit for goals for the Bruins.
Boston improved to 53-11-5.
“A little more concerted effort being five people connected,” Boston coach Jim Montgomery said. “When we’re playing connected like that, we all know where each other are in our spots. It’s fun to watch them go.”
Boston scored three in the first period to take control of the game.
Patrice Bergeron opened the scoring with just 15 seconds gone in the first period.
Garnet Hathaway and Jake DeBrusk extended the lead to 3-0 headed to the middle frame.
“A lot of times you cannot have those good starts and you kind of play a little too loose,” Boston defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. “But we wanted to make a priority to do that and not necessarily score off the shift. But it’s always nice when you do that, but do it the right way, get rewarded right off the bat, and we kind of rolled from there.”
The Sabres are six points back of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second wild card spot.
“We believe we’re still in it, but we’ve got to actually go out and play,” Sabres forward Dylan Cozens said. “It’s not going to be easy games. Everyone wants to win at this time of the year. It’s just unacceptable by us this last stretch.”
Buffalo dropped to 33-30-6.
“We’re in a situation where there’s a lot more stress on guys for the first time,” Sabres coach Don Granato said. “… Stress going into the game and maybe a little anxiety going into the game, whatever it is. You have to deal with it and make sure you don’t react differently. … It may be stress of the grind or stress of fatigue or stress of playing through some things that can inhibit you from playing to your full capacity.
“But adjusting the right way. And again, we’re in a very heightened situation, more of a microscope. What they’ve done to this point in the season has earned them that unfortunate pressure. Now it’s learning to manage it and deal with it better.”
In the second period, Hampus Lindholm ballooned the lead to 4-0 at 7:48.
“We’re giving too much time to players, and with all that time they get in the defensive zone they’re making plays,” Cozens said. “Guys are too good to have that much time 
and make plays off it. We need to pressure them more.”
It was no easier for the Sabres in the third period when the Bruins tacked on three more for good measure.
David Pastrnak hit off the power play midway through the period, and Charlie Coyle, and McAvoy scored for the 7-0 final.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 18 saves in the loss.
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