BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Jack Quinn scored the tying goal and also connected in a shootout, Alex Tuch ended the tiebreaker and the Buffalo Sabres beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 on Saturday night to rebound from their first loss since the Olympic break.
Buffalo was coming off a 2-1 home loss to Washington on Thursday night that ended an eight-game winning streak. The Atlantic Division-leading Sabres stretched their advantage over second-place Tampa Bay to four points and remained two points behind Carolina in the Eastern Conference.
Toronto played its first game since captain Auston Matthews’ season-ending knee injury. Matthews tore the medial collateral ligament in his left knee Thursday night at home in a 6-4 victory over Anaheim on a knee-on-knee hit from Radko Gudas. Gudas was given a major penalty and ejected, then suspended five games for kneeing.
Defenseman Owen Power also scored for Buffalo, and Alex Lyon stopped 16 shots.
Max Domi scored for Toronto in his 800th NHL game. Dakota Joshua also scored, and Joseph Woll made 30 saves.
The Maple Leafs lost their first eight after the Olympic break before beating the Ducks.
Quinn tied it at 2 on a power play with 8:39 left in the second. He beat Woll with a wrist shot from the left side off a nifty pass from Noah Ostlund.
Power opened the scoring at 2:01 of the first with a wrist shot from the high slot off Zach Benson's feed from behind the goal. Joshua tied it at 7:09 of the period with a snap shot from the middle, and Domi put Toronto ahead at 53 seconds of second on a break with William Nylander.
Up next
Maple Leafs: At Minnesota on Sunday night.
Sabres: At Vegas on Tuesday night.
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