Skinner wins the game, Sabers defeats Sharks 4-2

(WBEN Buffalo, NY/AP) Jeff Skinner scored the winning goal and the Buffalo Sabers defeated the San Jose Sharks 4-2 on Saturday night.

Sabers forward Dylan Cozens extended his scoring streak to three. Alex Tuch and Owen Power also scored for Buffalo. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen celebrated his 14th win of the season with 33 saves.

“I think (Luukkonen) obviously kept us early in the game. He made some really big saves, especially the ones at the end of the first ones,” Skinner said.

Evgeny Svechnikov and Alexander Barabanov scored for San Jose while Kaapo Kahkonen made 27 saves for his 12th loss of the season.

“Steve (Lorentz) came to my rescue in the corner. The puck went from low to high and I went to the net and luckily I got a tip,” said Svechnikov.

Skinner received a pass from Tage Thompson midway through the third period for his 21st goal of the season.

At 3:01 of the first period, Cozens went coast to coast, beating Kahkonen through the legs for his 20th goal of the season.
“I looked at a few options, but I think they all kind of came off the bench (and) were flat-footed, so I just had to get her out there and just throw her on, and she found a way in,” Cozens said called.

Svechnikov deflected a shot late in the first for his sixth of the season, leveling the game with one.

Just like Cozens’ goal, Power was able to beat the Sharks goaltender with a five-hole shot for his fourth goal of the season.

The Sharks dominated the game during the second half, beating the Sabers 9-2 midway through the third. At 8:02 of the second round, Erik Karlsson made a shot that rebounded off the back boards straight at Barabanov to slide home.

Early in the third period, Sabers forward Peyton Krebs received a penalty but was stopped.

“(Kahkonen) played well. I’m sure he’d love to have that first goal back, but he made some great saves after that,” said Sharks coach David Quinn. “He played very well. He looks like the number one goalkeeper we know is capable of.”

Tuch scored his 26th goal into the empty goal to end the game in the third.

“We were much, much better in the third period. We finally decided to kick a puck and we didn’t get past two thirds,” Sabers coach Don Granato said. “We put in a lot of work because we weren’t ready to shoot a puck.”

NEXT

Sabers: host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night.

Source: www.audacy.com