Buffalo 4, San Jose 1
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Where: First Niagara Center, Buffalo, New York
Referees:
Steve Kozari, Dean Morton
Linesmen:
David Brisebois, Greg Devorski
Attendance:
17435
By SportsDirect Inc.
Sabres 4, Sharks 1: Captain Brian Gionta scored his first two goals of the season and added an assist as host Buffalo continued its dominance of San Jose.
Brian Flynn scored and set up a goal and Nicolas Deslauriers added his second in as many meetings with the Sharks. Jhonas Enroth (19 saves) relieved an injured Michal Neuvirth (10 saves) to begin the second period for the Sabres, who have won eight in a row against San Jose and 16 of 17 at home while posting back-to-back victories for the first time this season.
After making 45 saves to record a shutout in his NHL debut, Troy Grosenick turned aside 10 shots as the Sharks finished 3-4-0 on their seven-game road trip. Defenseman Brent Burns scored and Joe Thornton notched an assist to extend his point streak to seven games.
Flynn entered the offensive zone along the right-wing boards and chipped the puck ahead to Gionta, who quickly wired a shot from the right circle inside the far post to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead at 11:54 of the second period. Gionta returned the favor by feeding Flynn on a 2-on-1 rush for an easy conversion with 11 seconds left in the session before sealing the win with an empty-net tally.
Grosenick's shutout streak ended at 5:25 of the second as Cody McCormick's wrist shot from along the left-wings boards was blocked, but Deslauriers jumped on the loose puck and wired a sharp-angle shot past the rookie netminder. San Jose answered five minutes later as Burns unleashed a blast past a screened Enroth.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Both teams had one goal disallowed in the first period as Buffalo C Zemgus Girgenson's backhand shot for a tally was negated after LW Tyler Ennis was whistled for goaltender interference. San Jose LW Matt Nieto's wrist shot from the right circle handcuffed Neuvirth, but Ennis made contact with Sharks D Justin Braun and sent the latter into the goaltender. ... Sabres RW Patrick Kaleta was unable to make it to First Niagara Center due to snow. Western New York received as much as six feet of accumulation in certain areas. ... Buffalo D Tyler Myers notched two assists.
Top Game Performances
| San Jose |
|
Buffalo |
|
Brent Burns 1 |
Points |
Brian Gionta 3 |
|
Brent Burns 1 |
Goals |
Brian Gionta 2 |
|
Logan Couture 1 |
Assists |
Tyler Myers 2 |
|
Brent Burns 1 |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
|
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
|
Troy Grosenick .769 |
Save Percentage |
Michal Neuvirth 1.000 |
|
Troy Grosenick 10 |
Saves |
Jhonas Enroth 19 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
| San Jose
|
30 |
1 |
1-4 |
2-2 |
6 |
34 |
| Buffalo
|
14 |
4 |
0-2 |
3-4 |
10 |
20 |
Upcoming Games
-
Buffalo will play their next game at home against NY Rangers. The Sabres have a W/L % of .250 after a win and .250 after a loss.
-
San Jose will play their next game at home against Florida. The Sharks have a W/L % of .300 after a win and .636 after a loss.
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