The Buffalo Sabres have gotten off to a solid start that’s put them in a position to potentially end one of the most ignoble streaks in NHL history.
The New York Islanders are getting to the point where they’re having a hard time imagining anything other than recent painful history repeating itself.
The Sabres will look to remain entrenched within the middle of the Eastern Conference while the Islanders will again attempt to snap their third-period doldrums on Saturday night when the teams meet in Elmont, N.Y.
Both clubs will be completing a back-to-back set after suffering overtime defeats on Friday. The host Sabres dropped a 4-3 decision to the Vancouver Canucks, while the visiting Islanders squandered another third-period lead in a 5-4 loss to the Washington Capitals.
A second straight loss was accompanied by plenty of optimism for the Sabres, who have gone 7-3-1 in their past 11 games and are one of five teams within two points of the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots. Buffalo hasn’t made the playoffs since the 2010-11 season.
The Sabres assured themselves a point Friday by overcoming a two-goal deficit in the third period against the Canucks, whom they outshot 34-22 overall.
The Sabres previously outshot the Minnesota Wild — who have the second-most points in the Western Conference — by a 39-29 margin in a 1-0 loss Wednesday night.
“We played with desperation and that’s what this team has,” said center Dylan Cozens, who scored the Sabres’ first goal in the third period. “We don’t have any quit, we’re going to battle until the last buzzer and we’re going to keep fighting until the game’s over.”
Losers of eight of their past 10 games (2-4-4), the Islanders are growing increasingly desperate to find some answers for the third-period woes that are threatening to derail their season. New York, which led 4-2 entering the third period Friday, has lost seven games this season in which it held a lead in the final 20 minutes.
The Islanders surrendered three unanswered goals in the third period of a 6-3 setback to the Boston Bruins Wednesday night. They were outshot 9-3 in the third period and overtime Friday.
New York didn’t generate a shot during a power play that began with 3:50 left in regulation, when Nic Dowd was whistled for slashing.
While the Islanders are only three points out of a wild-card spot, they are tied for last place in the Metropolitan Division with the Pittsburgh Penguins. They are ahead of only the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens — both of whom have two games in hand — in the East.
“Same story,” Islanders left winger Matt Martin said. “We continue to find ways to lose. It’s not good enough. I think we just shoot ourselves in the foot a lot. We’re just not taking advantage of big moments in games.”
–Field Level Media
