For the first 5-10 minutes of this game, the Canucks were all over the Sabres’ breakout attempts. Their positioning was top-notch, and their hustle on the forecheck was noticeable, especially given that this was a matinee game.  One of the Canucks’ best chances of the period came after a solid shift from the Dakota Joshua-Pius Suter-Conor Garland trio ended in Joshua nearly setting Garland up for a tap in goal. More on Joshua and Garland later.

Bowen Byram went coast to coast and executed a nice little give and go with Zach Benson. Byram batted the puck down after the return feed from Benson to make it 1-0 Sabres.

This play was basically over the second Jake DeBrusk blew a tire and found himself sliding along the ice.

The Pettersson line created some good chances as well, but Buffalo was the only team that found the back of the net in the opening frame. Speaking of that line, the second period started with a silky move from Pettersson that Ukko-Pekka Luukonen stopped with the left pad while sprawled on the ice.

Kiefer Sherwood took the Canucks’ second penalty of the game when he was called for tripping on a Buffalo zone entry. Luckily for the Canucks, the best chance of the man advantage came off the stick of Danton Heinen. Unluckily for them, Heinen’s shot hit the post, and they remained down a goal.

Jiri Kulich cross-checked Erik Brännström in the face to give the Canucks their first power play of the game. Tyler Myers was in alone at the net front and missed a tap-in feed from Dakota Joshua, who had his best game of the season today.

That was the Canucks’ best chance of the power play, and the Canucks appeared as though they’d enter the third period without a goal.

Then Quinn Hughes got to work.

After Jake DeBrusk bobbled a puck at the Buffalo line, Rasmus Dahlin moved in on a 2-on-1, and the Canucks’ captain seamlessly broke up the play and jumpstarted his team’s effort the other way. Once in the Buffalo end, Brock Boeser carried the puck into the GOTI, setting up Pius Suter for a one timer that Luukonen managed to fight off. Jake DeBrusk was there to bury the rebound, however, and tied this one up at 1-1.

This one was all tied up heading into the third. 1-1.

Do you want to see the softest cross-checking penalty you may ever see? Cause that’s one of the first things we saw in the third period.

A slightly — um, harder — soft holding call was called on Dylan Cozens. Cozens was then assessed an additional two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct, giving the Canucks a four minute power play.

Quinn Hughes continued being incredible, and set up Jake DeBrusk for a quality chance early that DeBrusk found iron on. The Canucks stuck with it, though, as Brock Boeser rifled a pass to Conor Garland for a tap-in to make it 2-1. 

Boeser nearly scored on a breakaway as the Canucks remained on the power play, but was stoned by Luukonen. Elias Pettersson fell victim to overthinking and not shooting, as he looked for the perfect pass in the dying moments of the power play, which led to Buffalo getting a breakaway chance against. Thankfully, Kevin Lankinen stood tall in goal.

Alright, remember how I said you were going to see one of the softest cross-checking calls you’ve ever seen?

Now get ready to see one of the wackiest goals you’ll ever see, as Conor Garland stacks the pads to kick the puck up into the air and send Pius Suter in on a breakaway to make it 3-1 Canucks. 

Conor Garland is an absolute madman.

Kevin Lankinen needed to bail out Carson Soucy and Noah Juulsen right after the goal, but the next time the pair was on the ice, Lankinen couldn’t make the stop the Canucks needed after Soucy failed to get the puck out of the Canucks’ end.

Soucy’s falloff this season after being a solid #3 in 23-24 needs to be studied. 3-2. 

Smelling blood in the water (meaning Quinn Hughes wasn’t on the ice), the Sabres kept pressing, and scored after a double deflection off of both Cozens and Tuch. 3-3. 

This one needed overtime.

Quinn Hughes nearly scored immediately after Tuch and Tage Thompson got their wires crossed, allowing the Canucks’ captain to move in all alone. The Canucks refused to give up possession after the initial faceoff win, and spent almost all of overtime with the puck.

They eventually lost it after Erik Brännström tried to make a quick move to the middle that Tage Thompson picked up, giving Buffalo their chance to strike. Kevin Lankinen made an absolutely incredible save to keep the Canucks alive before Conor Garland scored at the other end to give the Canucks the overtime win.

Some more takeaways from today’s game:

-I’m really liking what I’m seeing from Max Sasson. He seems to always be in the right spot, makes the right play, and looks comfortable with the puck on his stick. He isn’t afraid to draw defenders in or get into battles along the boards. He really seems to have the tools to become a solid bottom-six forward.
-Nils Höglander had some good jump early in this game, playing higher in the lineup. He then made a mistake in the defensive zone where he got danced by Bowen Byram, and finished the night with just over six minutes of ice time. A career low 6:28. Just one shift after the Byram play, that I’m sure will be heavily featured in tonight’s edition of The Stanchies.
-It was good to see Brock Boeser get his shot playing with Elias Pettersson, as it felt like a bit of a waste to play Boeser in the bottom six. It was undoubtedly his best game since returning from injury today. The assist on the power play and almost a power play goal as well, along with his normal solid baseline level of play.
-We’ve all been waiting to see when Dakota Joshua would start to look like himself, and today seemed to be that day. He was quick, looking to make plays with the puck, and likely should have had an assist today. It’s a start!
-Conor Garland has brought it on this road trip, and the Canucks needed him if they were going to withstand the loss of JT Miller.
-It’s been one game without Filip Hronek, and as expected, the minutes without Quinn Hughes on the ice have gotten even more dreadful for this team. We’ll see how long it is until the Canucks pull the trigger on a trade for a defenceman.
-With the 310th assist of his career, Hughes ties Alex Edler for the most assists by a defenceman in franchise history. In 538 fewer games. Unbelievable to watch him work on a daily basis.
-31 saves on 34 shots for Lankinen tonight. He didn’t necessarily steal this one, but he certainly was a key part of the Canucks leaving Buffalo with two points.

What’s your instant reaction to tonight’s game? Let us know in the comments section below! Tune into Rink Wide Vancouver just moments after the final horn over on YouTube!