Roy, Pominville push Sabres to win over Flames
Last Updated: Saturday, November 14, 2009 | 1:08 AM ET
By Justin Piercy, CBC Sports
The scoring may have started quickly but the game went the distance as the Sabres topped the Calgary Flames in a shootout in Buffalo on Friday night, snapping the Flames winning streak at four.
Derek Roy and Olli Jokinen each scored as second shooters for their respective teams, but it was the No. 4 shooter for Buffalo (11-4-1), Jason Pominville, who put his team in position for the win with his quick snap shot between the legs of Flames' goalie Miika Kiprusoff.
Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller sealed it by stopping Rene Bourque's attempt. Miller made 25 saves in regulation and overtime, plus three shootout chances.
Kiprusoff made 32 saves in the loss.
"They're two elite goalies and two of the best in the league," Pominville said. "They both made big saves. That's what you expect when you play guys like [Kiprusoff], and that's what we expect in Ryan as well. He's been huge for us all season, and it's only the start. I can't wait to see what it's like later on."
The Flames' Daymond Langkow opened the scoring just 1:04 into the game when Bourque gained the zone and took the puck below the goal-line. The winger tried to centre the puck to linemate Nigel Dawes but it deflected off the skate of a Sabres defenceman.
Dawes scooped up the pass and alertly spun a backhand pass to Langkow, who cruised into the slot untouched and fired the puck past Miller.
Just a few plays later, Calgary (11-4-2) came close to making it 2-0 when Dustin Boyd and Murray Nystrom had a 2-on-1 chance, but Nystrom's backhander skipped wide after deflecting off the post.
Prust and Mair drop the gloves
Soon after that chance, the Flames' Brandon Prust and Sabres' Adam Mair set the tone for the game from there on out with a spirited fight that lasted over a minute. And the fight seemed to cut what offensive momentum Calgary had built.
Buffalo enjoyed a hefty advantage in shots on goal in the first (18-5), keeping Kiprusoff on his toes as he tried to keep his team in the game.
The Sabres tested the Flames netminder 15 times before Roy scored a power-play marker to tie the game before the end of the opening period.
But even then, the Finnish goaltender couldn't be faulted — the goal came off a funny rebound of a shot from the point by Sabres defenceman Tyler Myers. Kiprusoff made the first save, but the puck hopped across the front of the slot and when he attempted to gather up the rebound, the puck skipped on the ice. That left Kiprusoff sprawled on the ice, while Roy coolly chipped the rolling puck over him.
"It was a close game," Kiprusoff said. "They came hard from the first period, but in the second and third we played better. They were just better in the shootout."
Kiprusoff gets help in 2nd
The Flames were able to take some of the pressure off their goalie in the second period, limiting the Sabres to just three shots and posting 15 of their own.
Bourque had the best chance of the second period when he was sprung on a short-handed breakaway. Buffalo's Miller was up to the task and denied Bourque his second goal on the penalty kill this season by closing his pads on the five-hole attempt with 5:39 to go.
Paul Gaustad and Dion Phaneuf tussled after a faceoff in the Calgary end before meeting again in the corner, where they chucked knuckles and earned themselves a place in the penalty box to close out the period and start the third.
"It was physical, and it was a fun game to be a part of," Flames captain Jarome Iginla said. "We were looking forward to this challenge to keep our string going because the Sabres have a good record. Unfortunately, it didn't end the way we wanted it to."
Dawes had the Flames' greatest opportunity to break the tie about eight minutes into the third period but missed his chance to deposit the puck into a wide open cage.
Calgary's Jokinen was sent off for tripping Myers with 2:31 to go in the extra period, but his team killed the infraction and may have mounted the best scoring chance. Mark Giordano picked up a sloppy pass through the neutral zone by Buffalo's Tim Connolly, sending Giordano and Craig Conroy on a 2-on-1, but Miller swallowed up the shot from Giordano and surrendered no rebound.
With files from The Associated Press
