On Monday night, the Buffalo Sabres’ came from two goals back to beat the Toronto Maple Leafs by a score of 4-3. Alex Tuch’s return from injury – along with his two-goal game – led the Sabres to the win.
It also didn’t hurt that the oldest current player in the NHL – goalie Craig Anderson – came up big in the game. Two young burgeoning stars, 21-year-old Jack Quinn and 22-year-old Dylan Cozens also scored for Buffalo. And, Owen Power and JJ Peterka each added two assists.
It was the Sabres’ second strong game in a row. On Saturday, they had played the New York Rangers hard but lost 2-1 in overtime. Monday they clawed back for the victory over the second-place team in the Atlantic Division. Even when they were down two goals and outplayed badly, the team stayed patient, stuck to its game plan, and pulled out the win.
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Latest News & Highlights
In this edition of Sabres News & Rumors, I’ll take a look at the player news emerging from the game.
Item One: Alex Tuch Comes Roaring Off the IR
After being sidelined with a lower-body injury, Alex Tuch was a game-time decision for Monday’s game. However, he returned to practice on Sunday; fully participated in Monday’s morning skate; and, was activated off injured reserve ahead of the game against Toronto.
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Following his eight-game absence, it was like he had never been gone. Tuch had an outstanding game. He scored twice. His first goal tied the game 2-2 and the last goal was the game-winner with the man advantage.
What a career season the 26-year-old winger is having. On the season, he has now scored 30 goals and added 34 assists (for a career-high 64 points) in only 58 games played.
Item Two: Craig Anderson Seemed Ageless
In Craig Anderson’s 38th career game against the Maple Leafs, he put up a solid game to beat his long-time rival. He made good saves on a couple of chances for Auston Matthews, who had previously scored 13 goals in 16 games against the 41-year-old goalie.
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In the third period, Anderson made a great breakaway stop on William Nylander’s shot and also made a big save on Michael Bunting during a 2-on-0 chance coming in alone with John Tavares. Overall, he stopped 25…
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