Buffalo Bounces Back Big Time, Crush Chicago 9-3

Score: Buffalo Sabres 9-3 Chicago Blackhawks
Shots: BUF 30-23 CHI

Buffalo Sabres Goals: Doan 6th (Thompson, Tuch) Zucker 5th (Quinn, Dahlin) Byram 4th PPG (Tuch McLeod) McLeod 5th (Zucker, Timmins) Samuelsson 5th (Rosen, Bryson) Doan 7th (Dahlin, Tuch) Thompson 11th (Tuch) Quinn 4th (Byram, Zucker) Bryson 1st (Malenstyn, Greenway)
Chicago Blackhawk Goals: Bertuzzi 11th (Rinzel, Bedard) Vlasic (Greene, Rinzel) Bertuzzi 12th PPG (Bedard, Nazar)

Deep dish pizza vs. the Butter dish in this one.

Plus 1: Superior Sabres

Buffalo got away with an errant high stick early, then benefited from a tripping call on Chicago. The fortune of that opportunity was wasted though as the Sabres’ power play setup was kept mostly to the outside. Chicago killed it but Buffalo did get several shots. Just back after his severe illness, Jason Zucker took a slashing penalty soon after and the ‘Hawks now had the man advantage. The Sabres were up to the challenge as well, keeping the opposition without a shot.

Josh Doan then went to work. With tremendous speed on a rush up ice, he split the Chicago D but had to chase the puck to the wall. He then found a trailing Owen Power whose shot resulted in a good chance in tight. The Sabres continued the pressure, with Tage Thompson getting a close-in spinning shot away. Buffalo collected the puck behind the net right after as Alex Tuch dished it off to TNT who took a spinning shot/pass that Doan tipped on Chicago goalie Arvid Soderblom. Josh quickly collected the rebound and scored for a much needed 1-0 lead for the Sabres. That line was buzzing and they set the tone for the first 20 minutes. The goals would then come fast and furious.

The Blackhawks fumbled the puck on a breakout when pressured and Jack Quinn turned it around wide along the wall. He cut in, made a sweet pass outfront to Zucker who ripped one home for a 2-0 lead. It was his 5th of the year and we were reminded just how much Buffalo missed his secondary scoring. The Sabres made it 3-0 a little over 2 minutes later as Bo Byram snuck in from the point and took a perfect Alex Tuch pass for the PP goal. Good pressure was being put on before the goal. Just what the doctor ordered for this Sabres team. Unfortunately, Tyler Bertuzzi got Chicago on the board late in the period for a 3-1 score after one. A bit of a damper on an otherwise big period of play by the Blue and Gold. Especially after that Calgary collapse we saw the othernight where the effort wasnt there.

Shots were 15-6 in favor of the hometown team in the first. The worst faceoff team in the NHL was also 75 percent on the dot. (spoiler, the ‘Hawks are bad too)

Nov 21, 2025; Buffalo, New York, USA; Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard (98) controls the puck from Buffalo Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson (23) in the first period at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Plus 2: Three More Goals But Oh No, Bo!

Early in the second period, Bo Byram was defending against Frank Nazar. Bo spun out and hit the wall behind the net elbow/shoulder first. He was clearly injured, and not the miss a few games kind. Byram skated off and threw his stick in frustration, heading right to the dressing room. Already down Michael Kesselring, the Sabres’ defense just took another hit. And another team hit overall, after just getting Zucker back.

Speaking of Zucker, it really is nice having you back. He made a nice pass into the slot to Ryan McLeod after battling hard along the wall. Toothless fired it to the back of the net past Soderblom for his 5th of the year. Soon after, new found goal scorer Mattias Samuelsson then made it 5-1 as his blast from the point eluded the ‘Hawks goalie. The Sabres were cruising, even after the huge loss of…Bo?! Somehow, someway, Byram returned to the game after what looked like a major injury. He apparently had a severe stinger and came back for more action. Buffalo collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

Chicago interrupted the fun when Alex Vlasic scored but the Sabres got that one back when Josh Doan found twine again for his second of the game. On a 2 on 1 break, Josh just held on to the puck and ripped a wicked shot past Soderblom. Buffalo was rolling and firmly in control. Ukko Pekka Luukkonen only faced 13 shots to this point but he did have one huge stop on Connor Bedard. The score was 6-2 after two periods of play.

Plus 3: Third Three Goal Period a Charm!

The Hawks Kept coming though and scored early in the 3rd period. Bertuzzi got his 2nd of the game to cut the score to 6-3. But Tage Thompson would answer soon after. Alex Tuch had a nice steal and he dished it to TNT who dangled his way out front to bury it. It was his 11th goal on the year and puts him on pace for about 44 this season.

Buffalo continued on the attack, not letting off the gas and scored their 8th goal of the game when Jack Quinn finally cashed in. It was his 4th of the year and first in some time. Zucker and Byram both collected more points as the Sabres’ lineup continued to pad their stats. Late in the game, even Jabob Bryson got in on the action. He found himself in front of the Hawks’ net and juked and jived himself into a beauty of a goal that made Connor Bedard say “Whoa”. (in Keanu Reeves Matrix voice) The building was rocking and the fans were getting a treat for the ages.

9-3 is your final score in this wild one and Buffalo responded BIG TIME to their terrible performance last time out against the Flames. They tomahawked Chicago into oblivion and then some. All we ask is for the Sabres’ players to embrace this feeling, crave it MORE. Know what you are capable of! You are not going to score nine goals often, but damn it, play the game right knowing you CAN! Savor this moment fellow Buffalo fans, with this team it might not last long.

Final Thoughts:

It was GREAT to see the Sabres step on an opponent’s neck for once and win a game in convincing fashion. The Sabres played a complete game against the Oilers recently but this was a hammering. More killer instinct is needed from these players and this was a good sampling of that.

Alex Tuch has himself a whale of a night with 4 assists. Jason Zucker collected 3 points in his return. Many others, including McLeod and Dahlin and Quinn had two points. 14 Sabres in total had points in the game.

Josh Doan is just what this Sabres team needs. He has played even better than I anticipated, and I anticipated BIG things. The hustle, the tenacity is there every game. But his nose for the net is his specialty and he is being rewarded right now for his hard work. A nice two goal performance to lead the team tonight.

Buffalo plays next on Sun, Nov 23rd at 1pm against Carolina.

Enjoy the highlights.