Written by John Wawrow, AP’s Hockey Writer.

BUFFALO, N.Y.

The Buffalo Sabres addressed some of their ongoing issues during Sunday night’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes, as Casey Mittelstadt scored in the fourth round of the shootout to secure a 3-2 victory.

The Sabres’ win extended their modest streak to three games, which is their longest since winning three in a row from April 6-10 last year. This victory marks their second win in seven home games and brings their overall record to 27-27-4. This is the first time since November 27 that the Sabres have had an equal number of regulation wins and losses, with a record of 10-10-2.

The Sabres, who have a history of losing when behind after the first period, showed improvement with a record of 5-20-2 after coming back from two one-goal deficits.

“We’re not pressuring anyone. We’re currently working as a cohesive team,” stated Rasmus Dahlin, a defenseman. “This is a significant achievement, particularly on our home turf. Let’s use this as a foundation and continue to push forward.”

Owen Power, a defenseman who had been absent for six games due to a left arm injury, tied the game and sent it into overtime by scoring with 4:05 remaining in regulation.

Jeff Skinner was also able to score. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 30 saves during overtime and did not let any goals in during the shootout.

Martin Necas recorded a goal and an assist while Tony DeAngelo also scored for the Hurricanes, who were playing in back-to-back games after a 2-1 defeat at home against Dallas.

Spencer Martin made 30 saves during overtime and successfully defended three out of four shootout attempts. This brought his record to 3-0-1 in four games since being acquired by Carolina through waivers last month.

The coach, Rod Brind’Amour, admitted that our team’s performance was subpar due to playing six games in the span of 10 days.

“I had a feeling this would happen. Mentally, we weren’t in the game. That’s exactly what happens,” he stated. “I could sense it from the sidelines. We were just off our game. Luckily, the one player who had some rest, Martin, was the deciding factor tonight.”

Mittelstadt scored the game-winning goal by skating across the front of the goal and pausing before taking a shot that went in on the left side. Luukkonen secured the victory by catching a shot from Necas with his glove.

Mittelstadt’s frustration was lifted when he achieved the goal, despite being stopped twice, having two shots blocked, and missing the net twice during the outing.

“I believe Cozy may have assisted me six times. Therefore, I owe him a few favors, perhaps a dinner or something,” Mittelstadt mentioned, mentioning Dylan Cozens. And he may also have to treat Power to dinner, as he admitted to borrowing the hesitation move from his teammate for the game-winning goal.

The Sabres’ success this season has been attributed to their ability to establish some momentum, as they face the possibility of extending their 13-year playoff drought – the longest in NHL history.

In the third period, the teams scored goals within 73 seconds of each other. Necas scored a power-play goal with 5:18 remaining by taking a one-timer from the left circle. The Sabres then matched it with Power scoring and tying the game by moving in towards the slot and shooting a pass from Peyton Krebs into the left post.

Jordan Staal, the captain of the Hurricanes, reached a milestone of playing in his 800th game with the franchise. He joins his brother Eric, who has played 909 games with Carolina. The Staals are among four sets of brothers who have each played at least 800 games with the same team, alongside Maurice and Henri Richard (Montreal), Bobby and Dennis Hull (Chicago), and Henrik and Daniel Sedin (Vancouver).

UP NEXT

There is a game between the Hurricanes and the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night.

The Sabres will be playing against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.

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Source: wralsportsfan.com