Tuch Hat Trick Powers Sabres 4-1 Win Over Kings

Buffalo, N.Y. Alex Tuch recorded his fourth career hat trick to lead the Buffalo Sabres to a 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night at KeyBank Center.

Tuch's three goals powered Buffalo's offense, while goaltender Alex Lyon stopped 37 shots to secure his 10th consecutive win, breaking the franchise record previously held by Gerry Desjardins from December 1976. The Sabres improved to 31-17-5 with the win, marking their 20th victory in the last 24 games, the most in the National Hockey League during that span.

The scoring began early in the first period when Tuch opened the game with a power-play goal at 7:14. His shot deflected off Los Angeles defenseman Cody Ceci and past Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper. Mattias Samuelsson extended the lead to 2-0 at 11:17, firing a one-timer from just inside the blue line that trickled through Kuemper following a faceoff win.

Los Angeles nearly answered in the second period, but an apparent goal by Alex Laferriere was disallowed at 5:10 due to goaltender interference. Moments later, Tuch made it 3-0 at 6:29 by tipping a shot from defenseman Bowen Byram. The Kings responded on the power play when Adrian Kempe redirected a pass...