Sabres, Lightning combine for 15 goals, 102 penalty minutes

The Buffalo Sabers and Tampa Bay Lightning entered Sunday’s matchup as two of the best teams in the NHL’s Eastern Conference and their battle lived up to the hype.

Both teams scored a total of 15 goals and earned over 100 penalty minutes as fights and goals littered the ice. It was the Sabers who ultimately got the better of the Lightning, winning the game 8-7.

Buffalo winger Josh Doan broke the tie with 4:17 remaining, scoring his 21st goal of the season. The Sabres’ victory was their seventh in a row and pushed them to within two points of the Lightning for the Atlantic Division lead.

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Buffalo Sabers right winger Josh Doan (91) celebrates his goal with center Josh Norris (9) during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Buffalo, New York. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

“It’s obviously exciting, but at the same time I had an opportunity to be successful here and help our team win,” Doan told reporters via NHL.com. “…It’s a great accomplishment, but we’ve got 18 or 19 games left and hopefully we can continue to put together some wins.”

Tampa Bay had a 6-4 lead in the third period when Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point scored. Even though Sam Carrick cut Buffalo’s deficit to one goal, Brandon Hagel restored Tampa Bay’s lead to two with about 10 minutes left.

Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin cut the lead to one and Jason Zucker tied it with about 5:30 left. Then Doan scored on assists from Zucker and Dahlin.

Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) celebrates his goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabers, Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Buffalo, New York. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

“I think the group has become very tight, and it showed tonight,” Sabers head coach Lindy Ruff said. “They answered every call, they were there on every play. … How hard we worked to get back in the game. There was no giving up. The desire to finish this thing the right way, I thought all the guys agreed.”

The game featured several fights throughout the play. Buffalo had seven power play chances and converted four of them. Tampa Bay had two and scored on one.

The teams totaled 102 penalty minutes.

Buffalo Sabers center Sam Carrick (10) and Tampa Bay Lightning right winger Scott Sabourin (46) fight during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Buffalo, New York. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

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Buffalo is 39-19-6 with 18 games remaining and Tampa Bay is 39-19-4 with 20 games remaining. The Sabers have 84 points and the Lightning have 82 points this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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