Kyle Okposo’s goal with 6:29 left lifted the Buffalo Sabres to a 2-0 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday in Elmont, N.Y.
Okposo broke a scoreless tie off an assist from Ilya Lyubushkin, while Jeff Skinner’s empty-net goal off assists from Dylan Cozens and Casey Mittelstadt secured the win with 31.8 seconds remaining.
The Sabres (35-31-6, 76 points) earned just their fourth victory in the past 14 games (4-8-2) and have won consecutive games for the first time since three straight victories from Feb. 23-26.
Buffalo backup goalie Eric Comrie made 26 saves to earn his second career shutout after allowing 10 goals in his last start, a 10-4 pummeling by the Dallas Stars on March 9.
The Islanders (37-28-9, 83 points), who own the Eastern Conference’s top wild-card spot, have dropped two straight games after falling at Columbus, 5-4 in overtime, on Friday to end a three-game winning streak.
Cozens had a golden opportunity to give Buffalo the lead just over a minute into the third period. But his backhander on a breakaway was stopped by Semyon Varlamov, who finished with 33 saves.
The Sabres dominated the opening period, outshooting the Islanders 13-7, but couldn’t get one past Varlamov, who made several saves from close range.
New York outshot the Sabres 11-9 in the second period, and neither team converted either of its two power-play opportunities in the first two periods. Buffalo also failed to score on its man-advantage chance in the third.
The Sabres outshot the Islanders 35-26 for the game.
The Sabres host the Montreal Canadiens on Monday before welcoming the New York Rangers on Friday and visiting the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.
The Islanders host the New Jersey Devils on Monday before a three-game road trip that includes games against the Washington Capitals on Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday and the Carolina Hurricanes on April 2.
–Field Level Media
