Game 10: An opportunity missed

The Sabres 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers looks lopsided on the score line, but it was a winnable game lost, instead.

BUFFALO — After building momentum with a three-game winning streak, the Sabres’ rematch against the Florida Panthers, a team they beat while they were without two of their top players and faced the backup goaltender, having to deal with them with Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, and Sergei Bobrovsky made for a stiffer, more ornery challenge.

Instead, the Sabres found themselves down 2-0 in the first period because of their own mistakes but rallied in the second period to knot it up 2-2. But mistakes were their undoing in dropping a 5-2 decision on Monday night.

Whether the mistakes were beyond obvious or more subtle in the moment but damaging in the end, they were enough to have head coach Lindy Ruff well agitated following the game.

“You can say we had a good start, but we gave them odd-numbered rushes,” Ruff said. “We missed our assignments and you a team like that, they made us pay dearly. Talked about odd-numbered rushes, if you’re going to hand a team that was just Stanley Cup champions odd-numbered rushes, you’re going to pay dearly, and they made us pay. That’s on us.”

More from a frustrating and disappointing night for the Sabres ahead.