Okposo's shorthanded goal leads Sabres over Predators 5-3

Updated Jan. 14, 2023 10:58 p.m. ET
Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Jack Quinn scored a goal and added an assist to lead the Buffalo Sabres a 5-3 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.

Jeff Skinner, Dylan Cozens, Victor Olofsson and Kyle Okposo also scored and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 38 saves for the Sabres, which snapped a three-game losing streak.

Roman Josi, Jeremy Lauzon and Ryan Johansen scored and Juuse Saros made 28 saves for Nashville, losers of three straight.

Buffalo took the lead for good when Okposo scored a shorthanded goal at 6:43 of the third.

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Buffalo held a two-goal lead late in the second, but Lauzon and Johansen scored goals 40 seconds apart to draw Nashville even heading into the third.

Skinner scored the game’s first goal at 11:37 of the opening period. He has scored 12 goals and added nine assists in 19 career games played against Nashville.

The goal snapped a seven-game goalless stretch for Skinner, his longest of the season.

CAREER HIGH FOR COZENS

Cozen’s goal at 2:05 of the second was his 14th of the season, establishing a new career high in goals for the center. He scored 13 goals in 79 games played in the 2021-22 season for the Sabres.

POWER PLAY DROUGHT SNAPPED

Nashville entered Saturday with the NHL’s 28th ranked power play, clicking at just 16.7% and not having scored a man-advantage goal in the last four games. Josi scored a power-play goal at 15:23 of the first on Nashville’s first power play of the game, his team-leading sixth power-play goal of the season.

Okposo’s shorthanded goal was the fourth shorthanded goal allowed by the Predators this season.

CARRIER OUT

Nashville defenseman Alexandre Carrier missed Saturday night’s game due to an upper-body injury. The Predators indicated the injury is unlikely to keep Carrier out of the lineup long term.

Roland McKeown was recalled from Milwaukee of the AHL earlier Saturday and played on the team’s third defensive pairing.

WHAT’S NEXT

Predators: Host the Calgary Flames on Monday night.

Sabres: Host the Florida Panthers on Monday.

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