Sabres beat Maple Leafs 5-3 to snap five-game skid against Toronto

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabres beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-3 on Friday night at KeyBank Center, snapping a five-game skid against the rival Leafs and handing Buffalo a hard-fought win before a rematch in Toronto on Saturday. Defenceman Mattias Samuelsson scored twice and Alex Tuch capped the victory with a shorthanded breakaway goal with 3:01 remaining after Sabres goalie Alex Lyon stopped a Matias Maccelli one-timer in front.

Tuch, Tage Thompson and Jiri Kulich each recorded a goal and an assist as Buffalo never trailed in the game. Lyon finished with 29 saves as the Sabres converted key opportunities and protected a late lead. The victory is Buffalo’s fourth in five games after an 0-3 start to the season, a stretch that suggested the team has begun to stabilize its early campaign.

Toronto got goals from William Nylander, Auston Matthews and Dakota Joshua, but the Maple Leafs dropped to 0-2-1 in their last three outings. Nylander, who entered the game on a five-game point streak, was forced to leave the ice with about five minutes remaining in regulation; the team did not provide an immediate update on his status. Anthony Stolarz finished with 25 saves for Toronto.