Alex Tuch scored his first career NHL hat trick while Vinnie Hinostroza added 3 assists as the Buffalo Sabres snuffed out the Calgary Flames 6-3 Thursday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
The Flames were the first to get on the scoring log via a goal by Andrew Mangiapane, his 2nd of the season at 4:21 into the first period giving Calgary a relatively early 1-0 lead. However, it would only last a couple of minutes before Dylan Cozens' first of the year to tie things at 1. This kicked off a total of 3 unanswered goals by the Sabres by the end of the first 20 minutes, the other tallies coming from Rasmus Dahlin (4) at 10:49 and Casey Mittelstadt (1) shorthanded at 13:10. Buffalo took that 3-1 lead into the 2nd period.
The Sabres had a quick start to the 2nd frame, as Tuch got his first of the night, his 3rd of 2022-23 to increase the Buffalo lead to 4-1. Calgary eventually mustered one goal back with 3 seconds left in the period to cut the Sabres lead in two with Trevor Lewis (1) getting the puck past Sabres netminder Eric Comrie. In the 3rd period, Calgary had their own fast start, as Nikita Zadorov (1) needed only 1:09 to put the Flames back within 1. However, it would be the last goal Calgary scored, and Tuch scored 2 straight to complete his hat trick, first at 5:41 on the power play for his 4th of the season and then his 5th of the year on an empty Calgary cage at 18:35.
Calgary both outshot and outhit the Sabres, holding 43-32 and 29-11 advantages in those statlines. Meanwhile, Buffalo won more faceoffs than the Flames, winning 33 circle duels to Calgary's 25. The Flames, on the other hand, led in PIM 10-2.
Both teams remain at 3-1-0 despite this and other results. Next up for Buffalo is a trip to Vancouver to face the Canucks in their 2nd-to-last game in a 4-game road trip mostly in Canada. They've beaten both Alberta teams with tonight's result, picking up a 4-2 over Edmonton this past Tuesday. After the Canadian trip, the Sabres finish up in Seattle with the Kraken next Tuesday at 10 pm before heading back home to face the Canadiens next Thursday at 7 pm. Calgary, meanwhile, stays at home through the end of this month in the middle of an 8-game homestand. The loss tonight was their 2nd of the 8 after beating Vegas 3-2 three days ago. They face Carolina tomorrow night at 10 pm before facing Pittsburgh on the 25th at 9 pm and provincial rival Edmonton on the 29th at 10 pm for the final game of the opening month of play this season.
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