Jonathan Huberdeau had a goal, two assists, and was a plus-four on Thursday to lead the Calgary Flames to a 5-2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres.
Nazem Kadri also had a goal and two assists while Jakob Pelletier had a goal and one assist for Calgary (23-16-7). Yegor Sharangovich and Mikael Backlund added empty-net goals.
Calgary Flames’ Jonathan Huberdeau, right, celebrates his goal against the Buffalo Sabres with Jakob Pelletier during first period NHL hockey action in Calgary on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Larry MacDougal
The Flames occupy the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference, three points up on the Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues.
Tage Thompson and Mattias Samuelsson scored for Buffalo (18-25-5).
Rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf had 32 saves to win his fifth game in his last six starts. He’s 17-7-2 on the season.
Ukko-Pekka Luukonen had 21 stops for Buffalo. His record fell to 15-15-4.
Tied 2-2 in the third, Pelletier gave Calgary the lead at 2:29 when he deflected in Brayden Pachal’s point shot.
Pelletier moved up to the club’s top line with Huberdeau and Kadri early in the second period.
Takeaways
Sabres: Thompson has scored in three consecutive games and leads the Sabres with 22 goals. He has recorded at least one point in his last seven games against Calgary.
Flames: Calgary entered the game with the 30th-ranked penalty kill in the league but went a perfect 6-for-6 against the Sabres.
Key moment
As the Sabres pressed for the tying goal, Wolf made a pair of standout saves while the Flames were short-handed in the third period. He got across the crease to stop JJ Peterka’s one-timer before he thwarted Alex Tuch from the top of the crease.
Key stat
Huberdeau, whose short-handed goal was the only goal in the opening 20 minutes, is tied with Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl for the NHL lead in first goals with seven.
Up next
Sabres: Wrap up their four-game road trip on Saturday against the Edmonton Oilers.
Flames: Play in Minnesota against the Wild on Saturday.