Ottawa – Ryan Miller wasn’t going to let anything end the Buffalo Sabres’ season – not a cheap bounce nor Joe Corvo’s snap shot from the slot.
He stopped 31 shots, including 15 in the third period, to preserve Buffalo’s 3-2 victory Wednesday night and prevent the Ottawa Senators from sweeping the Eastern Conference finals.
“When things weren’t going our way at the end of the second period, we could’ve packed it in there, and said, ‘Ah, you know, it’s too tough,”‘ Miller said. “But we battled through some tough situations.”
The Sabres survived after nearly squandering a 3-0 lead, and forced Game 5 of the best-of-seven series, which will be played at Buffalo on Saturday.
Chris Drury and Derek Roy – who scored nine seconds in – had a goal and assist each, and Maxim Afinogenov also scored for Buffalo. But it was Miller who saved the Sabres.
After allowing the Senators to cut the lead to 3-2, when Dean McAmmond and Peter Schaefer scored on consecutive shots late in the second period, Miller took over in the third.
He stopped 10 shots during a 4:30 stretch when Ottawa enjoyed consecutive power-play chances. It’s a span when Miller produced his biggest save, waving his glove up to bat down Corvo’s snap shot from the slot.
“It’s always a relief to see the goalie make the save, big or small, but that was a huge one,” defenseman Toni Lydman said. “He was amazing.”
Roy’s goal was set up by a turnover when Andrej Meszaros’ clearing pass ticked off Roy’s skate, directly to Drury just inside the Ottawa blue line.
Drury immediately fed a pass to Roy who, standing to the right of the net, redirected the puck over Ray Emery.
The goal was the fastest in Sabres playoff history, breaking the mark set last year when Henrik Tallinder scored 33 seconds in against Ottawa on May 13, 2006. It was still three seconds shy of the NHL playoff record, set by Los Angeles’ Don Kozak on April 17, 1977.
Drury’s goal stood up as the winner, the co-captain converting Tim Connolly’s pass into the right circle and sneaking in a shot that beat Emery inside his right arm. It was Drury’s 15th career playoff game-winner, moving him into second place on the active list – three behind his former teammate, Colorado captain Joe Sakic.
