National Hockey League
Buffalo 6, Calgary 3
When: 7:00 PM ET, Thursday, March 3, 2016
Where: First Niagara Center, Buffalo, New York
Referees: Marc Joannette, Justin St. Pierre
Linesmen: Greg Devorski, Devin Berg
Attendance: 18651

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres finally got the secondary scoring they were searching for on Thursday.

Six different players scored to lead the Sabres to a 6-3 victory over the Calgary Flames. Marcus Foligno led the Sabres with three points (one goal, two assists).

Jack Eichel, Johan Larsson, Evander Kane, Rasmus Ristolainen and Nicolas Deslauriers also scored for Buffalo (26-31-8).

"It seems like we've been a little snake-bit with the goals lately," Eichel said. "So it's good to see guys find the back of the net."

With the six-goal output, the Sabres scored more than their previous four games combined (four goals).

"You've got a couple guys that don't get on the scoresheet very often and they start to total," Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said. "We haven't scored a lot recently."

Robin Lehner made 26 saves for Buffalo.

Mikael Backlund, Dougie Hamilton and Sean Monahan scored for the Flames (26-34-4), who lost seven straight games. Jonas Hiller made 29 saves.

The Flames had issues with penalties all night and finished with eight.

"It's been the same thing the past seven games now," Hamilton said. "We've been taking too many penalties and gave up a lot of momentum and they score on the power plays. We've just got to tighten up. I think we've been talking about it and nobody's really changed anything."

Larsson scored the game-winner with 10:29 remaining. Sabres captain Brian Gionta found Larsson wide open with his back to the Calgary net and the winger lifted a backhand into the top of the net. It was his fourth goal of the season.

Eichel gave Buffalo some insurance with a power-play goal with 7:14 remaining. Shortly after a 5-on-3 opportunity came to an end, Eichel's long shot from the point made it through traffic to make it 5-3. It was his 18th goal of the season.

"Just trying to get pucks on the net and usually good things happen," Eichel said. "I haven't been scoring much lately. It's a great screen by (Sam Reinhart)."

Backlund opened the scoring 3:28 into the second period. Backlund pounced on a rebound to the left of the Sabres net and flung the puck into the short side of the net.

Ristolainen evened the score midway through the second on a low one-timer from the right circle. It was Ristolainen's first goal since Jan. 12, ending a goal drought that lasted 21 games.

The floodgates opened late in the second. Foligno made it 2-1 with a highlight-reel goal with 4:03 remaining as he swept past Flames defenseman T.J. Brodie for a breakaway and ripped a high wrist shot into the top corner of the net.

The Flames tied it up 15 seconds later on Hamilton's 10th goal of the year. The defenseman lifted a hard wrist shot past Lehner.

Deslauriers made it 3-2 with 2:46 remaining in the second in similar fashion. Deslauriers beat Hiller with a hard wrist shot high to the glove side.

Monahan evened the score 3:56 into the third by driving hard to the net. Monahan tucked a forehand shot past Lehner's left pad for his 21st goal of the year.

Buffalo dominated the third period, outshooting Calgary 13-9 and scoring three times. Kane scored an empty-net goal with 1:31 remaining.

"Lots of goals on both sides," Flames coach Bob Hartley said. "They were very opportunistic. It's not like we gave them a lot but they took advantage of their chances. They have some great shooters. You look at Eichel's goal on the power play from the blue line, that was labeled for the top corner. I think we again had a few defensive mistakes, a few turnovers and they made us pay."

NOTES: Sabres D Cody Franson (neck) was scratched. Coach Dan Bylsma said earlier Thursday that Franson recently suffered a setback. Bylsma said there were "some other issues" going on with Franson in addition to the neck issue. "I would say it kind of has gone the wrong way for him," Bylsma said. "When he skated in Anaheim (last week), he felt real close to being ready to go." ... G Niklas Backstrom was scratched for the Flames. Backstrom was acquired from Minnesota at the trade deadline. ... This was the second and final meeting between the teams this season.
Top Game Performances
 
Calgary   Buffalo
Dougie Hamilton 2 Points Marcus Foligno 3
Dougie Hamilton 1 Goals Marcus Foligno 1
Garnet Hathaway 2 Assists Marcus Foligno 2
Dougie Hamilton 1 Power Play Goals Jack Eichel 1
N/A Short Handed Goals Marcus Foligno 1
Jonas Hiller .853 Save Percentage Robin Lehner .897
Jonas Hiller 29 Saves Robin Lehner 26
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Calgary 29 3 1-3 7-8 16 31
Buffalo 35 6 1-8 2-3 6 29
Upcoming Games
  • Buffalo will play their next game at home against Minnesota. The Sabres have a W/L % of .360 after a win and .425 after a loss.
  • Calgary will play their next game on the road against Pittsburgh. The Flames have a W/L % of .462 after a win and .368 after a loss.