Not sure what to say about that performance.
The Sabres scored six first-period goals, Tage Thompson lit the lamp five times, and Buffalo absolutely embarrassed the Blue Jackets, winning 9-4 Wednesday at Nationwide Arena.
First period
The Sabres opened the scoring at 3:21 on the power play when Dylan Cozens fired a wrist shot from the right circle that got a piece of Joonas Korpisalo's pads.
#LetsGoBuffalo Cozens goal pic.twitter.com/K7G0tPjiMW
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
They added to their lead at 5:32 when Thompson scored on a backhand from the left doorstep that faked Korpisalo out and left the net wide open.
#LetsGoBuffalo Thompson goal pic.twitter.com/3kdUUhkAsD
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
Buffalo scored again at 7:28 after Erik Gudbranson turned the puck over and Rasmus Dahlin toe-dragged past a defender and fired a wrist shot past Korpisalo from the high slot. Korpisalo was replaced by Elvis Merzlikins after the goal.
The Sabres made it 4-0 at 7:50 when Thompson scored on a two-on-one rush from the right doorstep after receiving a feed from Alex Tuch.
#LetsGoBuffalo Thompson goal pic.twitter.com/OsIWEpKef6
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
Thompson completed his hat trick at 7:38 when he fired a one-timer from the left circle on the power play.
#LetsGoBuffalo Thompson goal pic.twitter.com/wfncgSSkou
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
| 1 | 2 | 3 | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLUE JACKETS | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| BUF SABRES | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
He scored on the power play again at 16:40 on a one-timer from the left dot.
The Sabres took a 6-0 lead into the first intermission with a 14-5 edge in shots on goal.
2nd period
Patrik Laine opened the scoring at 10:49 on a toe-drag wrist shot of his own from the top of the right circle.
#CBJ Laine (5) goal pic.twitter.com/C6C8bgxkN6
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
The Jackets cut the lead to four at 12:04 when Gustav Nyquist found the net from the right slot after receiving a nice feed from Johnny Gaudreau who was behind the net.
#CBJ goal: Nyquist (5) assisted by Gaudreau (19) and Jenner (10)
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
Thompson scored his fifth goal of the night at 16:07 when he fired a wrist shot from the left circle off the left post and in.
#LetsGoBuffalo Thompson goal pic.twitter.com/jtJKz0AokR
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
Krebs extended the lead to 8-2 at 17:19 after picking Laine's pocket and beating Merzlikins with the backhand.
Buffalo made it 9-2 when Tuch fired a wrist shot into the top shelf of the net from the left goal line with just 47 seconds left in regulation.
The Sabres took their 9-2 lead into the third period.
Third Period
Laine scored the opening goal for the second-straight period at 4:47 on a one-timer from the left-wing side.
#CBJ goal: Laine (6) assisted by Gavrikov (5) and Chinakov (8)
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
Nyquist scored his second of the night on a far-side wrist shot from the right circle at 15:49 to cut the lead to 9-4.
#CBJ goal: Nyquist (6) assisted by Bjork (4)
— Coby Maeir (@CobyMaeir) December 8, 2022
That 9-4 score would hold as the Jackets fall to 8-13-2 on the season.
Stats
- Shots on Goal: BUF 30-24 CBJ
- Faceoff %: BUF 40.4-59.6 CBJ
- Power play: BUF 3/5-0/2 CBJ
- Takeaways: BUF 3-7 CBJ
- Giveaways: BUF 4-5 CBJ
- Blocked shots: BUF 9-13 CBJ
- Hits: BUF 8-25 CBJ
-
5-on-5 stats (via naturalstattrick.com):
- Expected Goals (xG): BUF 1.14-1.94 CBJ
- Chances (CF): BUF 41-37 CBJ
- Shots (SF): BUF 23-19 CBJ
- Scoring Chances (SCF): BUF 16-21 CBJ
- High-Danger Chances (HDCF): BUF 6-7 CBJ
Injury Update
No players left tonight's game with injuries.
Next Up
Next up for the Jackets is a meeting with the Calgary Flames on Friday at 7 p.m. ET at Nationwide Arena on Bally Sports Ohio.
Columbus will continue its home stand on Sunday at 6 p.m. ET against the Kings at 6 p.m. ET on Bally Sports Ohio.
