Over the past two months, the Buffalo Sabres have been defined by their streaky play. Once again, they are stuck in a streak, losing 5-1 to the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center on Thursday, and have now lost four games in a row.
The Flyers used a four-goal second period to catapult themselves to the victory, getting goals from five different players en route to the win. They also did so on only 28 shots on net at Sabres goaltender Robin Lehner.
Buffalo certainly had their chances, too, with three power play opportunities in the first period. They failed to convert on those chances, and two additional man-advantage opportunities throughout the rest of the game.
By many accounts, the best Sabres player on the ice was rookie Justin Bailey, who made his Sabres and NHL debut on Thursday night. The 20-year old Buffalo-native put seven shots on net in 11:54 of ice time during his first regular season game.
Jamie McGinn had the lone goal for Buffalo, his 12th on the season.
A scary moment late in the game, when a defenseless Daniel Catenacci was hit by Philadelphia's Radko Gudas in open ice. Sabres players immediately rushed to Catenacci's defense, and Gudas was given major penalties for both charging and fighting. Catenacci skated off the ice with some assistance.
The Sabres return back to Buffalo for a home game against the Montreal Canadiens on Friday night. Opening face-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm.
