Game 51: By a razor's edge

It wasn't exactly the beautiful game between two teams buried in the NHL standings, but it was a 4-3 win for the Sabres on the back of two Jiri Kulich goals.

BUFFALO — On the night the Sabres enshrined Rob Ray into the team’s hall of fame, it would’ve been proper to expect, perhaps, an ode to the legendary enforcer with a fight or two.

While throwing fists isn’t in vogue these days, and certainly not with any recent iteration of the Sabres, playing a good ole, hard-working game and doing your job is also something Ray was known for. It’s also something the current Sabres could stand to do more of and even though it was a bit touch-and-go in the second period, they pulled it off in a 4-3 win on Friday night.

Jiri Kulich scored a pair of laser beam goals including the game-winner with 2:04 left in the third period after a superb pass from Tage Thompson to set it up. The rookie is up to 11 goals on the season and after having so many bumps in the road throughout the year, seeing him take steps forward in his game is turning into one of the brighter spots of the season.

“I mean, he’s unbelievable,” Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin said. “I think he’s going to be one of the best in the league. At that age he is right now and doing the stuff he’s doing out there, it’s pretty special. It’s fun to watch, honestly. He’s unbelievable.”

Having Dahlin be your hype man is a pretty good thing, no?

More ahead on an enjoyable night for a team legend and a game that didn’t bring the party down.