Josh Doan Sparks Sabres’ 4-2 Win in Game 1 — Sabres Game Tonight
sabres game tonight started with Josh Doan scoring the series’ first goal, and Buffalo finished with a 4-2 win over Montreal in Game 1 at KeyBank Center. The Sabres now lead a six-game series that already looks built on speed, youth and very little playoff mileage.
Doan Opens, Buffalo Closes
Doan said both groups had a concern about youth heading into the playoffs, and the first period fit that reality. He scored the opener, then Buffalo protected the lead long enough to take control of the series opener on Wednesday night.
The Sabres had six players with only six career playoff games entering this round: Peyton Krebs, Tage Thompson, Jack Quinn, Zach Benson, Doan, Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin. That limited résumé ran through the lineup, but Buffalo still handled the moment against a Canadiens team with a little more edge in some spots and just as much inexperience in others.
Ruff Sees Youth And Skill
Lindy Ruff said the matchup starts with the ingredients both teams bring. “The first thing you mention is the youth, and the energy that both teams have,” he said. He added, “High-end skill, Montreal’s got a couple of dynamic defensemen, a good part of our offense is driven by the top four from our defense, goaltending on both teams has been good. I think that’s a winning recipe.”
That recipe showed up in Game 1 because neither side arrived with a deep postseason footprint. Montreal had Juraj Slafkovský and Ivan Demidov with 12 career playoff games before the series, Zack Bolduc with 14 and Kirby Dach with 16, while Kaiden Guhle and Lane Hutson each had 12. Joe Veleno also made his first career playoff appearance Wednesday night.
Suzuki Sets The Division Tone
Nick Suzuki framed the series as part of a larger Atlantic Division shift. “It’s always been the toughest division, for me,” he said. “A lot of organizations that know what winning’s like and know how to do it. All of us, we were missing the playoffs while Tampa and Florida, all those guys were going to the Cup finals, and you’re just rebuilding and trying to go to that level.”
He added, “Now both of us are really good teams in the league.” That is the friction in this matchup: Buffalo had not made the postseason for 14 years, Montreal had already been through a five-game playoff series with Washington last spring, and both clubs are still learning how to survive rounds like this in real time.
Doan said the Sabres took a useful lesson from the way both teams got here. “Credit Montreal for beating Tampa, who have a lot of experience,” he said. “We handled ourselves well against Boston, who had good experience.” If these teams keep crossing paths, Game 1 looked less like an outlier than the start of a rivalry built on young legs and playoff reps.
