SUNRISE, Fla. – Jaycob Megna was so focused on Rasmus Dahlin that the Florida Panthers defenseman forgot about the Buffalo Sabres player ready to shoot from his spot in the right circle.
Dahlin stickhandled down the slot and, as Megna closed in to try to prevent a shot, the Sabres captain passed to JJ Peterka, who snapped the puck by Vitek Vanecek to tie the score in the third period Saturday night.
Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin aims to score against Panthers goaltender Vitek Vanecek on Saturday.
The defending Stanley Cup champions were reminded why it’s imperative to not give Dahlin too much space to operate with the puck. He burned them with a goal and an assist for his 17th multiple-point performance this season.
The highlights from his 28 minutes, 20 seconds of ice time could have been used by the Sabres to campaign for their 24-year-old defenseman to receive votes for the Norris Trophy. But their 3-2 shootout loss in Amerant Bank Arena was another setback that will prevent Dahlin from getting the leaguewide recognition that he’s earned in his seventh NHL season.
“I don’t know what to say, really,” said Dahlin. “We’re out of a playoff spot. It [stinks]. I’m just trying to build toward next year and play as good as I can here at the end of the season and points come when the team is playing good.”
The outcome was disappointing to Dahlin. Although the Sabres earned a point on the road, they’ve dropped two games in a row and their record is 35-37-7 with three games remaining this season. They have scored only four goals in their last two games after piling up 25 during a season-high five-game win streak that ended Thursday night.
Dahlin was proud, though. His teammates weren’t intimidated when Panthers fourth-line winger Jonah Gadjovich leveled Sabres rookie Jiri Kulich with a blindside hit in the second period. Zach Benson, their smallest forward, immediately went after Gadjovich. Later, Alex Tuch fought one of the toughest players on arguably the toughest team in the NHL.
Florida (47-29-4) kept antagonizing the Sabres. Benson swarmed A.J. Greer after the enforcer punched Dahlin. The scrum led to a 5-on-3 power play for Buffalo, which gave Peterka the opportunity to score the tying goal with 7:42 left in the third period.
“It was a real team effort out there,” said Dahlin. “Good special teams and guys were stepping up when we needed. On the road, one point, it’s always important, and I’m happy we got it today.”
The Panthers rested two of their best forwards, Sam Reinhart and Aleksander Barkov, while two others, Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett, were out because of injury. The Sabres had their own issues, though.
In addition to Josh Norris and Jordan Greenway, they lost defenseman Owen Power to a lower-body injury in the second period. His absence in the third period and overtime forced coach Lindy Ruff to lean on Dahlin, who gave Buffalo six shots on goal with 10 shot attempts. He has 15 shots on goal over his last four games and five goals with 14 points in his last 11 games.
Back spasms kept Dahlin out of the lineup for eight games in December and bothered him for months, but he’s been in top form for some time. He ranks top five among NHL defensemen in goals (17) and points (66), while his 43 points in 43 games since Dec. 27 were second behind Norris Trophy favorite Cale Makar.
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“He was a beast, honestly,” Tuch said of Dahlin. “He was controlling the game tonight, defensively and offensively. … He showed tonight why he’s one of the best defensemen in the world.”
Here are other takeaways from the game:
1. Progress
Panthers center Anton Lundell used a low wrist shot in the first shootout round to score the deciding goal, but it shouldn’t overshadow Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s performance. The Sabres goalie made 32 saves between regulation and overtime. He allowed two goals on 11 high-danger scoring chances, according to Natural Stat Trick.
It was arguably one of Luukkonen’s best performances in weeks. He had an .854 save percentage in 14 appearances since the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
“I thought he gave us a solid game,” said Ruff. “Probably a game that, looking over the last month or so, might have been one of his best.”
2. Brutal mistake
The officiating crew Saturday night should be embarrassed.
Gadjovich was initially called for a major penalty after he leveled Kulich, who did not appear to touch the puck. The play was reviewed and, eventually, it was announced that there was no penalty.
It’s understandable if the league determined that Kulich put himself in a vulnerable position by having his head down, which contributed to the ugly collision. He wasn’t close to possessing the puck, though. The officials told Ruff that it touched Kulich’s stick before the hit.
“Debatable whether it was clean or not, but tough hit,” said Ruff.
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3. Role player
Every time you think Beck Malenstyn may be knocked out of the game because of a blocked shot, the Sabres winger returns a few minutes later.
Malenstyn appeared to be in distress after he was hit by a high slap shot during a first-period penalty kill. He didn’t fall to the ice immediately, either. He staggered and blocked another shot before he finally fell, causing an official to whistle the play dead. Malenstyn left briefly, but he was back on the bench after a few minutes.
Malenstyn is a minus-12 at 5 on 5 this season, but he’s second on the team in limiting opponents’ shot quality, according to Evolving-Hockey’s expected goals allowed per 60 minutes. He’s also second on the team in hits (188) and provides a skill set they didn’t have.
“He’s a warrior,” said Tuch. “The guy will jump in front of any puck.”
4. Stepping up
The Sabres didn’t need a 34-goal scorer to be the one to fight Gadjovich, but Tuch doesn’t care.
He’s proven since arriving in Buffalo that he will always stick up for a teammate. Tuch issued the challenge and traded punches with Gadjovich before losing his balance. It was Tuch’s third fight this season – the others were in response to hits on his teammates – and fifth in the past two seasons. The Sabres need to add someone else to protect teammates, however, it was important for them to have a collective response after the Kulich hit.
“It’s a brotherhood here,” said Tuch. “We’re family here. If one guy gets taken out, I know that there was four or five of us that, given the opportunity, would have went after a pretty tough customer. No one in here is labeled as a fighter, but we’re ready and willing as a team to step up when needed.”
5. Still out
Ruff wasn’t ready to declare that Norris and Greenway will be out of the Sabres’ lineup the rest of this season.
Neither joined the team for the road trip, so Ruff didn’t have the latest update on how they are progressing in their recovery from injuries. He stated the obvious, though, that it’s becoming more likely that Norris and Greenway have played their final game this season.
“I’d like to give you an answer,” he said. “I don’t know, but I would probably say (they’re done for the season) not knowing the exact answer. We’re running out of time, obviously.”
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