The Buffalo Sabres couldn’t recover from a costly stretch of penalties in a 5-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday at Xfinity Mobile Arena, opening their six-game, 12-day road trip on a frustrating note.
Buffalo struck first when Jason Zucker buried a power-play chance early in the opening period. But momentum swung sharply soon after, as Philadelphia scored three times in just 59 seconds, including two goals on the man advantage. Travis Konecny started the surge with a power-play tally that stood after an unsuccessful Sabres challenge for goaltender interference, keeping Buffalo shorthanded. Trevor Zegras then capitalized on the extended power play, and Bobby Brink added another seconds later.
It was the first time this season the Sabres’ penalty kill, which entered the night ranked second in the NHL, surrendered multiple goals in a game. Philadelphia added a fourth goal early in the second, moments after a Buffalo penalty expired.
The Sabres pushed back with a strong response, generating nine straight shots and cutting the deficit to 4-2 when Bowen Byram cleaned up a loose puck in the right circle. But the momentum was short-lived, as Owen Tippett answered less than a minute later. Zach Benson appeared to add his first goal of the season in the third, but it was erased following an offside challenge.
Colten Ellis finished with 30 saves for Buffalo, which also lost Rasmus Dahlin to a game misconduct late in the second period.
The road trip continues Friday in Winnipeg against the Jets at 7 p.m.
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Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].