TORONTO (AP) — Rasmus Dahlin had the first hat trick of his NHL career to go along with two assists and the Buffalo Sabres beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-4 on Tuesday night.
Tage Thompson, with a goal and an assist in his 500th NHL game, Josh Doan, Alex Tuch and Jack Quinn also scored for Buffalo, which has won four straight.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed two goals on five shots before leaving with a lower-body injury in the first period. Colten Ellis made 16 saves in relief. Mattias Samuelsson added three assists.
Auston Matthews and Max Domi each had a goal and two assists for Toronto. Bobby McMann, with a goal and an assist, and Matthew Knies also scored. Joseph Woll stopped 24 shots.
The Maple Leafs came home last week off a successful road trip, but finished their disastrous five-game homestand with a solitary point (0-4-1) and have dropped seven of eight overall.
The club entered play six points back of the second wild-card spot and are now eight adrift of the Sabres in the Atlantic Division. The Sabres have an NHL-best 19-3-1 record since Dec. 9.
Former Maple Leaf Darryl Sittler was honored before puck drop in a ceremony marking 50 years since he set an NHL record with 10 points in a game. The former Toronto captain had six goals and four assists in an 11-4 victory over the Boston Bruins on Feb. 7, 1976.
Doan scored his first goal since signing a seven-year contract extension. Doan’s father, Shane, is a special adviser to Toronto general manager Brad Treliving.
Sabres: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday.
Maple Leafs: At the Seattle Kraken on Thursday in the opener of a six-game trip.
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