Sabres make hockey feel important in Buffalo again with another dramatic win

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Hockey didn’t feel important earlier this week.

At least not in Buffalo, where the NFL team dealt with a life-threatening on-field injury to safety Damar Hamlin. The Sabres, who share ownership and other close ties with the Bills, acknowledged how unimportant hockey felt in the aftermath of Hamlin collapsing on the field. They played and won Tuesday but seemed to be in a fog for a few days afterward. Hamlin’s situation put a dark cloud over Western New York.

It lifted when the positive news started to trickle through Thursday morning. First, we learned Hamlin was awake and communicating in writing. Then we found out he was able to speak to his teammates via FaceTime the next day.

By Saturday, Hamlin was posting on social media and thanking everyone for their love and prayers. His progress was so dramatic that Tuesday when the Sabres played against the Capitals in D.C., there was a moment of silence for those in attendance to pray for Hamlin, who was intubated and sedated. By the time the Sabres hosted the Wild on Saturday night, public address announcer Jay Moran asked for a moment of celebration for Hamlin, his family and the first responders who saved his life.

And in the moments that followed, it felt like hockey mattered again. Because that’s the kind of place this is. The sports teams are a point of pride, a reason for gathering and sometimes a source of healing. On Saturday night, as the Sabres skated to a dramatic, 6-5 overtime win in front of a sellout crowd of 19,070, hockey mattered for all of those reasons and more.

“It felt that way for our guys,” Granato said. “There was lots of relief knowing how things are turning positive. It was a tough few days for all of the guys in that room. You do feel like hockey is insignificant when there’s events like that. I’m sure there’s some guilt to it, as well. Tonight from the start of the game it felt different.”

This was a crowd that wanted a reason to come together and celebrate but also one that is starting to trust that these Sabres could be different.

The Sabres started the scoring when Casey Mittelstadt slid a perfect pass to Victor Olofsson, who scored his 14th goal of the season on a one-timer. Buffalo ended up falling behind after Minnesota got two goals in the first seven minutes of the second period.

Right from Vic's office 👌#LetsGoBuffalo pic.twitter.com/6Qt9LHdmPp

— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) January 8, 2023

That’s when Tage Thompson got the party started. You’ve seen him score this goal before. He was parked in his usual spot near the faceoff dot on the power play. The pass came over, and Thompson unloaded a perfectly placed slap shot with the blistering velocity that’s become expected. After the goal, the crowd reached a volume it hasn’t matched often this season. The chorus of chants was clear.

“MVP! MVP! MVP!”

Thompson, who now has 31 goals and was named to the All-Star Game this week, is building a case. His goal sparked a run of three Sabres goals in a span of 3:25. Rasmus Dahlin joined in with a goal that started with a beautiful toe drag into the slot and ended with a quick wrist shot past Marc-Andre Fleury. Dylan Cozens scored moments later on the power play with a wrist shot off the rush.

But the Wild were intent on making this game a lot more interesting. They scored the next three goals to take a 5-4 lead in the third period. This has been a common theme for the Sabres. Against the Bruins last Saturday, they coughed up a late lead and had to fight back. Against the Capitals on Tuesday, the same thing happened. The Sabres came back to win both games in overtime. This was different, though. Both of those games were on the road. This one was in front of the best home crowd the Sabres have had this season.

“You have 19,000 people you might send home disappointed,” Granato said. “If you think that doesn’t affect the psyche of the team and as individuals … it’s a load to handle. The way they handled that, it didn’t affect them in any negative manner. They were dialed in and believed in their ability to come back, tie the game, and they never lost their ability and belief that they could win it.”

With 9:47 to play in the third period, a tweet appeared on the jumbotron. It was Hamlin, who earlier in the day wrote, “Putting love into the world comes back 3xs as much … thankful for everyone who has reached out and prayed. This will make me stronger on the road to recovery, keep praying for me!”

Putting love into the world comes back 3xs as much… thankful for everyone who has reached out and prayed. This will make me stronger on the road to recovery, keep praying for me! 🫶🏾3️⃣

— 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐢𝐧 (@HamlinIsland) January 7, 2023

The Sabres’ players looked up from the bench and started tapping their sticks. The fans in attendance went nuts.

“When things like that go on the jumbotron, no matter what game you’re in, that’s bigger than hockey and bigger than sports altogether,” Mittelstadt said.

The Sabres had the next five shots on goal. They continued to threaten in Minnesota’s end until Dahlin got the equalizer. He said he was just trying to get the puck on net, but it slipped by Fleury. When the Sabres had an offensive zone faceoff a moment after that goal, the crowd gave them a standing ovation and the volume increased.

“It was crazy,” Dahlin said. “I get chills every time I hear that stuff.”

Things got even crazier in overtime. The officials swallowed their whistles, and the Sabres and Wild traded chances in a frantic three-on-three overtime. The extra frame went almost the full five minutes before the Sabres ended it. Dahlin started the play, despite the fact he’d already been on the ice for a lengthy shift. He grabbed the puck and carried it into the offensive zone before dropping it to Peyton Krebs. When Krebs looked up, he saw Olofsson skating down the right wing. Krebs and Olofsson have both dealt with highs and lows this season. But it’s a reminder of this team’s potential when you realize Krebs passing and Olofsson shooting is one of the optimal scenarios for the Sabres in a spot like that. Krebs delivered a pass on the money, and Olofsson’s one-timer was in the back of the net in the blink of an eye.

His name is Victor Goalofsson. 😎 pic.twitter.com/gsxOVBvmwR

— NHL (@NHL) January 8, 2023

The play was only possible because of a dogged backcheck from Mittelstadt moments earlier and a huge save from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who stopped 39 shots for his sixth straight win.

“We’re pretty happy to get in back-and-forth games because we think we can score with anyone,” Mittelstadt said. “I mean, I think if you give our team that many chances, especially with a three-on-three there, we’re going to score one of them. And, obviously, we converted one of the later ones. But next time my money’s on we bury one of the earlier ones, for sure.”

When the Sabres are playing like they did Saturday, that’s a good bet. Mittelstadt had three assists for the second time this season. Olofsson had his fifth multigoal game of the season. The Sabres had 74 percent of the expected goals when Olofsson, Mittelstadt and Tyson Jost were on the ice at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick. It’s tough to overstate what a third line performing like that could do to boost Buffalo’s playoff push down the stretch.

But the reason the Sabres are in that conversation is because of their star players. Thompson had his 31st goal, and Dahlin was a superhero. He had five points, the most by a defenseman in a game this season. It was the third time Dahlin has had three points in a game this season and the seventh time he’s had a goal and an assist in a game. It was a well-timed performance as the NHL opened voting for the final All-Star spots this week.

“It’s crazy, I get to play with him every day, and, obviously, I’ve played with him for a while,” Mittelstadt said. “He just keeps doing things he didn’t do yesterday. In my opinion, pretty soon he’s going to run out of things. He’s so fun to watch, though, so fun to be out there.”

The Sabres are 20-15-2. They are four points behind the Islanders for the final wild-card spot and have four games in hand. The Sabres are 10-2-1 in their last 13 games and have a 13-4-2 record since the eight-game losing streak in November. They are also 5-0 in the red and black jerseys and have scored six goals in each of those games. This is a team more than worthy of the crowd support it got Saturday. It’s been a while since you could say that about the hockey team in Buffalo. Hockey has always mattered here, but the fans made it clear how important the Sabres are to them, too.

“It is more than crowd — you could feel passion in the building, I think all of us could,” Granato said. “Even before the puck dropped, you could feel the passion. The nights like this are opportunities to make memories for hockey fans, for hockey people.”

(Photo: Timothy T. Ludwig / USA Today)