Owen Power delivered the finish, and the Buffalo Sabres delivered the comeback.
Power scored 4:22 into overtime Tuesday night as Buffalo erased a two-goal deficit and knocked off the Minnesota Wild 3-2. It was the Sabres’ second straight win after trailing entering the third period, following Saturday night’s 4-3 home-opening victory over Chicago.
Buffalo got the equalizer from Noah Ostlund at 3:55 of the third, then tied it for good when Tage Thompson scored at 9:38. Power then ended it in overtime after Thompson missed wide on a drive to the net, Jiri Kulich gathered the puck and fed Power, and Power snapped it inside the left post.
Thompson’s goal carried extra weight. It was his 400th career point with Buffalo, making him one of nine Sabres and the first since Thomas Vanek to reach that mark in 491 or fewer games.
Minnesota looked in control after Danila Yurov and Maxim Shabanov scored 1:45 apart late in the second period to build a 2-0 lead with 4:22 left in the frame. The Wild also had a chance to put it away in regulation, but Jesper Wallstedt made 25 saves, including a glove stop on Thompson’s shot from the slot with 3:28 remaining.
Colten Ellis held Buffalo in it long enough for the rally to take shape. Making his season debut as Buffalo’s third-string goalie, with co-starter Alex Lyon still recovering from a shoulder injury, Ellis stopped 18 shots and turned aside three more in overtime.
The Sabres also continued to search for answers on the power play. They went 0 for 2 and fell to 0 for 10 to start the season. Buffalo entered the night as one of 10 NHL teams without a power-play goal.
Minnesota missed its shot to start 3-0 for the first time since 2021-22 and for just the sixth time in franchise history.
Up next, the Wild visit the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, while the Sabres host the Dallas Stars on Thursday.
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The forward group has taken its own hit with Nick Foligno leaving the Buffalo game with an upper-body injury and landing on the day-to-day list. To help steady the roster, the Wild brought up Tyler Pitlick from the Iowa Wild, giving the bench a little more flexibility at a time when every healthy body matters. [Read more 🡒]