Hockey is back in Western New York.
The Buffalo Sabres opened the 2021 Sabres Prospects Challenge on Friday night with a 3-0 win over the New Jersey Devils at Harborcenter. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen shut the door on the Devils with a 22-save shutout, while Buffalo got some major contributions from some of their other top prospects in the win.
The scoring opened for the Sabres at the 13:58 mark of the opening period as Buffalo went to work on a power play.
After a shot from the point by defenseman Oskari Laaksonen found its way to the net, forward Brett Murray was in perfect position at the top of the Devils' crease to cash in on the rebound opportunity. Jack Quinn was credited with the secondary assist on the power play tally.
While Murray's goal was the only marker of the opening period, the Sabres did generate a few good scoring chances; two of which came off the stick of winger Linus Weissbach.
The former seventh round pick (193rd overall) of the Sabres in the 2017 NHL Draft got his first chance earlier in the first period when a nice pass from linemate Arttu Ruotsalainen allowed him to go all alone on Devils goalie Nico Daws. However, Weissbach's breakaway attempt was stopped by the right pad of the New Jersey netminder.
Later in the first, Weissbach was able to break free for another breakaway in an attempt to put the Sabres up by a pair of goals. However, once again, Weissbach's attempt was kicked away by Daws.
Luukkonen also faced a tough challenge in the opening period, as the Devils came back the other way on a 2-on-1 offensive rush. As a pass went towards the goal crease to Devils' 2017 third round pick Fabian Zetterlund, Luukkonen was able to slide across and make a stellar save.
While the energy from both teams was present from the get-go, the physicality really started to pick up from both teams in the second period. Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson got in on the action with a couple of hits, while forward Matej Pekar did what he does best - getting under the skin of the opponents.
After a strong push by the Devils in attempt to tie the hockey game at 1-1, the Sabres took advantage of a turnover in the neutral zone to go up by two.
As the Devils looked to carry the puck through the neutral zone, Murray did a nice job to break up a pass and create a 3-on-1 rush with Quinn and J-J Peterka. Murray was patient with the puck and then thread a pass to Peterka, who was streaking to the net and elevated his shot just over an out-stretched Daws for the goal.
New Jersey continued to press in the third period, trying to get back and close the gap on the scoreboard. However, Luukkonen was not giving anything to the Devils, as he stopped all of the 10 shots he faced in the final 20 minutes of action.
Buffalo was able to put the game on ice with less than a minute remaining in regulation thanks to an empty net goal from defenseman Peter Tischke. The Amerks defenseman this upcoming season blocked a shot from the point while on the penalty kill, and then proceeded to fire a shot all the way down the other way.
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GAME SUMMARY
Goal Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 13:58 - Brett Murray (1) PPG (Oskari Laaksonen, Jack Quinn)
NJ: NONE
Second Period:
BUF: 18:07 - J-J Peterka (1) (Brett Murray)
NJ: NONE
Third Period:
BUF: 19:08 - Peter Tischke (1) EN/SH (Unassisted)
NJ: NONE
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Penalty Summary:
First Period:
BUF: 2:06 - Tyson Kozak (Boarding - 2 min.)
NJ: 13:34 - Jason Masonius (Hooking - 2 min.); 16:10 - Nikita Okhotyuk (Roughing - 2 min.); 16:10 - Nikita Okhotyuk (Interference - 2 min.)
Second Period:
BUF: 12:42 - Clay Hanus (High Sticking - 2 min.)
NJ: 0:19 - Reilly Walsh (Hooking - 2 min.)
Third Period:
BUF: 6:21 - Matej Pekar (Tripping - 2 min.); 18:31 - Brett Murray (High Sticking - 2 min.)
NJ: 3:25 - Dawson Mercer (Boarding - 2 min.)
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Goalies:
BUF: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen - 22 saves
NJ: Nico Daws - 23 saves
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Shots:
BUF: 26 (8, 9, 9)
NJ: 22 (4, 8, 10)
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What's Next:
The Sabres will play host to the Boston Bruins for the second and final game of their 2021 Sabres Prospects Challenge. Faceoff is set for 3 p.m. ET at Harborcenter with pregame coverage starting at 2 p.m. ET on WGR with a Sabres Roundtable with Brian Koziol, Paul Hamilton and Brayton Wilson.