NEWARK, N.J. — The Buffalo Sabres haven’t had an optimal goaltending situation to start the 2023-24 season. They kept three goalies on their roster, starting Devon Levi in four straight games before he suffered a lower-body injury. That paved the way for Eric Comrie and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to get in the net, and the pair strung together three decent starts during a 2-1 stretch for the Sabres.
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Then Friday night in a back-and-forth, 5-4 loss to the New Jersey Devils, the Sabres’ goalie situation took another turn when Comrie left the game with a lower-body injury in the second period. He was pushing off the post and made a right pad save before dropping to the ice. He managed to skate slowly off the ice with teammates by his side, but Luukkonen had to enter the game. Shortly after he came in, Luukkonen faced a breakaway after Erik Haula got behind Rasmus Dahlin for a breakaway penalty kill goal that put the Devils up 3-2.
Eric Comrie injured and has to leave the game. UPL comes in #LetsGoBuffalo #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/AgYAMkgeVa
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) October 28, 2023
It was that kind of night for the Sabres, who stuck with one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference but couldn’t come away with a win because of untimely mistakes and some bad breaks that were outside of their control.
“I don’t think there’s anything that’s going to waver our confidence,” said Sabres center Tage Thompson, who scored his fourth goal of the season in this game. “Everyone in this room knows we’re a good team, whether we have a full lineup or have guys injured. That’s the character of our group. We have a lot of guys who want to win for each other. We battled hard tonight and a couple of unfortunate penalty kills, but that happens.”
Don Granato did not have an immediate update on Comrie after the game and said he’d know more when the team is back in Buffalo on Saturday. The Sabres have been without Levi for a week, but Granato said before the game if the Sabres didn’t have three goalies, he would likely be in. Because they have three goalies, the team decided not to rush him back. Whether that means Levi will be able to either start or back up when the Sabres host the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday remains to be seen.
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But goaltending wasn’t at the front of Granato’s mind after this loss. He said Luukkonen’s performance in relief was “the least of my concerns.” He thought the 24-year-old was adequate in stopping 18 of the 21 shots he faced. The first goal was a breakaway. The second came on a Devils power play when Luke Hughes beat him clean, and the third goal was a deflection in front by Haula.
“It’s been a different season until this point and I just have to be ready for it,” Luukkonen said. “There’s not much else to think about. I’ve said it before, it doesn’t matter when the chance or game comes, you have to be ready for it. Whatever now happens I have to embrace the moment.”
If Levi isn’t ready to back up, the Sabres’ best option is Devin Cooley, who started Friday night for Rochester in the AHL.
Even with a midgame goalie change and playing short a defenseman after Connor Clifton was ejected for an early hit to the head of Nico Hischier, the Sabres were still tied 3-3 entering the third period.
That’s when the Devils defenseman put a puck over the glass but didn’t get called for delay of game. Moments later, Luukkonen got called for delay of game, and Granato was furious. Hughes scored on the power play that was just the start of a third period in which the Sabres were outshot 17-4. Still, Dylan Cozens managed to tie the score late with an odd-angle goal to make it 4-4 before Haula got the game winner. Even the game winner was a weird bounce. The play started because a puck hit the lineman in the neutral zone and caused a turnover to get the Devils started in the offensive zone.
“You can be frustrated with that and you can hear in my voice there is frustration, but the thing you need to focus on is more consistency,” Granato said. “We have to work to that initiative.”
Quick hits
1. The Sabres have been outscored 14-5 in third periods this season. Even in two of their wins against the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Ottawa Senators, late goals made things more interesting than they needed to be. Friday, the lopsided third period is why Buffalo ended up coming up just short against the Devils.
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2. Clifton is already scheduled for a hearing Saturday for his hit on Hischier. There’s a chance he’ll get suspended, which would create another roster need for Buffalo. Granato said he’s sure there was no intent to injure on Clifton’s part. The play immediately sparked a fight that resulted in a 10-minute penalty from Ondrej Palat for instigating.
“The hit was a shot to the head,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said. “That’s something they’re trying to eliminate. It’s something they have to take a look at. It was a dangerous play in a game.”
Clifton hit on Hischier. match penalty assessed #LetsGoBuffalo #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/DwKDcMvLGA
— Buffalo Hockey Moments (@SabresPlays) October 27, 2023
The Sabres had to skate with five defensemen for the rest of the game, and Dahlin finished with more than 26 minutes of ice time. Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson logged more than 23 minutes of ice time as well.
3. All five of the goals the Sabres allowed came on high-danger chances. Comrie had a .600 save percentage on five high-danger shots against and Luukkonen had a .500 save percentage on six high-danger shots against. Meanwhile, Devils goalie Vitek Vanecek wasn’t perfect in this game but stopped nine of the Sabres’ high-danger shots. That proved to be a difference-maker.
What’s next? The Sabres head home to play the Avalanche on Sunday at 1 p.m. The injuries to Comrie and Levi along with Clifton’s suspension hearing are items to watch heading into the weekend.
(Photo: Vincent Carchietta / USA Today)
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