The Buffalo Sabres rallied late to defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning, 8-7, on Sunday night at KeyBank Center, extending their win streak to seven games and moving into sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division.
The teams combined for 100 penalty minutes in a heated divisional matchup that included five fights and a postgame scrum.
Josh Doan scored twice, including the go-ahead power-play goal with 4:17 remaining in the third period. Jason Zucker added two goals and an assist, while Rasmus Dahlin recorded a goal and two assists. Tage Thompson had a career-high four assists to extend his point streak to 11 games, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 21 saves for Buffalo.
The Sabres jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the second period behind power-play goals from Doan, Zucker and Alex Tuch, along with a short-handed goal from Tuch.
Tampa Bay rallied with three late goals in the second period to tie the game and added two more early in the third to take a 6-4 lead. Sam Carrick cut the deficit to 6-5 before Brandon Hagel pushed the Lightning ahead 7-5 midway through the period.
Buffalo responded with another surge. Dahlin cut the deficit to one at 11:03 before Zucker tied the game on a breakaway with 5:31 remaining.
Doan then scored the decisive goal on the power play, sweeping a loose puck across the goal line after it deflected off the crossbar.
The Sabres (39-19-6) continue their homestand Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks at 7 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].