For a moment, the Buffalo Sabres’ game against the New Jersey Devils was going to turn into the Jack Hughes show. The superstar center was returning from an 18-game injury absence in front of a lively pre-holiday home crowd. When Hughes scored 8:51 into the game, the Devils had the crowd into the game and the Sabres, who were playing the second game of a back-to-back, on their heels.

But that lasted for only a period. The Sabres went to the first intermission down 1-0. The game was that close only because of a few clutch saves from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. From there, the rest of the team got going.

And on a night the Devils got Hughes and a few other key contributors back in their lineup, it was Josh Norris who continued to show his impact in his return from injury. In the second period, Norris wrestled for some space in front of the net and slid a rebound into the back of the net to tie the score. In the eight games he’s played since returning from injury, Norris now has points in seven of them. And the one game he failed to record a point, Saturday night, he scored the shootout winner.

This is the player Lindy Ruff emphatically said he viewed as a potential No. 1 center when the Sabres acquired him at the NHL trade deadline last season. The ability to score from anywhere, the smarts to handle the defensive responsibility of the position and the speed to transition the puck as well as any player on the team.

Benny with a BEAUTY! 😮‍💨#LetsGoBuffalo | #sabrehood pic.twitter.com/85VxZby7aG

— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) December 22, 2025

Zach Benson added a no-look goal later in the second period to give the Sabres a 2-1 lead. Then the team played a defensively responsible third period and got an all-out-effort empty-net goal from Peyton Krebs to skate away from New Jersey with a 3-1 lead. With that, the Sabres have their first six-game winning streak since December 2022.

The question of Norris’ health will continue to linger, but it’s tough to ignore what he’s brought to this lineup. When the Sabres were practicing in Calgary two weeks ago, Norris was speaking about his lengthy injury absence early in the season and got a bit emotional.

“Rehabbing is not fun,” he said. “There’s a lot of days where you’re just kind of by yourself, especially when the team is on the road. Even when the team is back, you feel like you’re not really in the thick of things. Just missing out on hanging out with the guys. Whether you’re winning or losing, you want to be there with them. You don’t really feel part of that. I was hard on myself. I felt like I let the guys down.”

Norris knows how much this version of the Sabres was counting on him being the 35-goal player he was in 2021-22. He showed up to camp looking like that player, too. Norris missing 24 games was a big reason the Sabres struggled to find their footing early in the season. But he’s making up for lost time now, and all of a sudden, the Sabres are slowly climbing the standings. With this six-game winning streak, they have a 17-14-4 record, which puts them three points out of a wild-card spot and three points out of third place in the Atlantic Division.

On this date last year, the Sabres had a winless streak hit 13 games and sink their season. What a difference a year makes.

Here’s what else we saw in Buffalo’s latest win.

Quick hits

1. Luukkonen played his first game in 13 days, and it might have been his best of the season. He made an incredible glove save early in the game on a two-on-one that kept the score 1-0.

After that, he needed to be rock solid throughout the game as the Sabres clung to a lead late. Alex Lyon is a big reason the Sabres are on this winning streak, but every good team needs two goalies capable of delivering games like this. This should be something for Luukkonen to build on. The Sabres’ goalie rotation has been a frustrating one this season for the coaches and players, but Luukkonen delivered the type of performance the team needed despite difficult circumstances.

“The message was the way he played tonight,” Ruff told reporters after the game. “He stayed ready, he took his opportunity, and I love it. He played one hell of a game.”

His teammates loved it, too.

brb, making this our new ringtone. 🔊 pic.twitter.com/t7zL3MTpgH

— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) December 22, 2025

2. After a lengthy goal drought to start the season, Benson has three goals in the last five games. The one he scored in New Jersey was the type of goal he’ll need more of given the way he plays. Benson is constantly around the net and making plays in tight areas. On his goal, he looked toward Jack Quinn as if he was going to pass and made a no-look shot that beat Devils goalie Jake Allen. That deception can be a real asset for Benson, who is known for his playmaking. He doesn’t have a top-end shot, but that’s one way to beat goalies. The Sabres could certainly use more goals from Benson, too.

3. In a streak such as this one, you need contributions from all over the lineup. On Sunday, Krebs came through with an incredible effort on the empty-net goal. He beat out an icing call and then got rewarded with an easy finish. That was Krebs’ first goal of the season, and you can bet his teammates were thrilled to see him rewarded.

Krebs is routinely one of the team’s hardest-working players on a nightly basis. While he’s playing higher in the lineup than his ideal placement right now, nobody can question the way he’s competing. And that empty-netter was an example.