The Buffalo Sabres let three separate leads slip away Thursday night, falling 6-3 to the Montreal Canadiens in Game 5 of their second-round playoff series at KeyBank Center. Montreal scored four unanswered goals across the second and third periods to take a 3-2 series lead, pushing Buffalo to the brink of elimination for the first time this postseason.
Buffalo grabbed momentum early behind goals from Jason Zucker, Josh Doan and Konsta Helenius, building leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 through the opening half of the game. Each time, however, Montreal answered quickly before taking control with a dominant second-period surge.
Josh Anderson tied the game midway through the second before Jake Evans gave the Canadiens their first lead of the night minutes later. Nick Suzuki added another late in the frame as Montreal scored three times in a span of just over 10 minutes to pull away.
Doan’s second-period goal extended his point streak to six games, continuing a strong postseason run for the young forward. Helenius also found the back of the net, while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 18 shots over two periods before Alex Lyon entered for the third.
Buffalo had chances to regain momentum, including a Tage Thompson breakaway while leading 3-2 early in the second, but Montreal goaltender Jakub Dobes came up with one of his 32 saves to keep the Canadiens within striking distance.
Suzuki finished with a goal and two assists, while Juraj Slafkovsky added three helpers for Montreal. The Canadiens also capitalized on both of their power-play opportunities after struggling in Game 4.
The series shifts back to Montreal for Game 6 on Saturday at 8 p.m., with the Sabres facing elimination.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].