Sabres beat Canadiens in Game 1

Buffalo didn’t win Game 1 with one viral prospect moment. It won with structure, depth, and a power play that suddenly looked alive again. The Sabres beat the Canadiens 4-2 on Wednesday, May 6, at KeyBank Center and grabbed a 1-0 lead in their second-round series. That matters because this wasn’t some chaotic steal — Buffalo got out front early, answered Montreal’s pushes, and looked like the more settled team. (apnews.com) ### What actually decided this game? Special teams did. Buffalo scored twice on three power-play chances after going just 1-for-24 on the man advantage in its first-round series against Boston. Ryan McLeod scored the first one in the opening period, then Bowen Byram added another in the second. That swing (apnews.com)ave turned the building nervous. (apnews.com) ### How did Buffalo take control so fast? The Sabres got contributions from everywhere. Josh Doan opened the scoring at 4:31 of the first period, McLeod made it 2-0, and Buffalo kept stacking pressure even after Nick Suzuki got Montreal on the board late in the period. Jordan Greenway then restored the two(apnews.com)abres had already built the kind of margin that lets a team play downhill. (espn.com) ### Who stood out besides the goal scorers? Zach Benson quietly drove a lot of this. He finished with two assists and was named one of the game’s stars. McLeod had a goal and an assist. Doan had a goal and an assist too. Byram’s goal was his fourth of the playoffs, which matched the Sabres’ franchise record for goals by a defenseman in a (espn.com)s how many different Buffalo players were involved. (espn.com) ### What about Montreal? Montreal had the puck plenty and won 62.7% of the faceoffs, so this wasn’t a no-show. Nick Suzuki and Kirby Dach scored, Juraj Slafkovsky and Ivan Demidov each picked up assists, and the Canadiens outshot Buffalo 28-16. But the catch is that Buffalo was more efficient in the dangerous moments — especially on the p(espn.com) cleaner damage. (espn.com) ### Why does the power-play rebound matter so much? Because it fixes the most obvious weak spot from Round 1. Buffalo got through Boston while barely converting with the extra skater. That can work for a series if goaltending and five-on-five play carry you, but it’s a bad long-term bet. In Game 1 against Montreal, the power play finally (espn.com) of the easiest reasons to doubt it. (apnews.com) ### Did home ice show up? Yes, but not just as noise. The building had 19,070 fans, and Buffalo looked comfortable from the opening shift. The Sabres had extra rest after beating Boston in six, while Montreal had just come off a seven-game series against Tampa Bay. You can’t prove fatigue from one box score, but Buffalo’s early jump fits that read. That’s an inference, not an official explanation. (sportingnews.com) ### So what changes now? Game 2 is Friday night in Buffalo, and the pressure shifts to Montreal. The Canadiens can point to the shot edge and faceoff edge. But Buffalo now has the more important thing — proof that its depth and special teams can tilt this matchup. One game doesn’t settle a series, but this one gave the Sabres a cleaner blueprint than the score alone suggests. (nhl.com)