Johansson earns first win

Scoring1st2nd3rdTotal
Jets1001
Sabres1012

After a surprising win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, the Sabres defeated the Winnipeg Jets by a 2-1 score on Sunday at KeyBank Center.

Those two goals came from Kyle Okposo and that was all the offense the team would need, as they played sound defensively to frustrate the Jets and hold them to that one goal.

It was a very defensive-minded game all afternoon, but especially after that second goal from Okposo. The Sabres protected that lead, and they did so very well.

The team has been playing much better of late, winning five of the last six games. It makes the 7-4 loss to the Ottawa Senators look that much worse. But, the positive thing is that the Sabres have recovered from that and defeated two great teams on back-to-back days.

Per.TimeEVGoalAssistAssist
19:58Kyle Okposo (8)Zemgus Girgensons (6)Henri Jokiharju (11)
116:37Blake Wheeler (21)Jansen Harkins (5)Mark Scheifele (41)
37:47Kyle Okposo (9)Zemgus Girgensons (7)Brandon Montour (12)

With the win today, the Sabres are six points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs with a game in hand. Buffalo would also have to pass the Florida Panthers, who are four points ahead, and they’ll meet them once more in March.

A trip to the playoff remains highly unlikely, but the biggest thing that can dictate that is if the Sabres can continue to perform like this, they may actually have a shot.

They have a couple of days off to get ready for a four-game west coast trip. They’ll start with the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday as they seek revenge from a 6-1 loss earlier this month.

But before that, we will have to wait and see what Jason Botterill and the Sabres do at Monday’s Trade Deadline.

Kevin Freiheit
Kevin Freiheit
I founded Buffalo Hockey Central in 2008 and have poured hours and hours into this site. Luckily, we have a great team of writers and designers who have helped keep this up and running despite a ton of out-of-pocket costs. We do this because we enjoy it, and we're desperate to see the Sabres win the Cup someday, but they have to make the playoffs first.
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