The Boston Bruins improved to 3-0-0 to start the season for just the fourth time in the past 20 years, defeating the visiting Buffalo Sabres 3-1 on Saturday night.
Mark Kastelic led the Bruins with the game-winning goal and an assist. Boston never trailed, taking a 2-0 lead on Kastelic’s second-period tally while Pavel Zacha and Sean Kuraly bookended the home team’s scoring.
Jeremy Swayman made 21 saves in the victory, with 13 coming in the second period.
Jason Zucker netted the lone goal and Alex Lyon stopped 28 shots for Buffalo, which has dropped its first two games of the season.
Boston finished with a 31-22 shots on goal advantage, including a dominant 17-2 in the first period.
Boston’s start included a 6-1 edge in shots even before earning its first of two power plays halfway through the first. Zacha opened the scoring with 4:12 left, sending a one-time shot from the left circle through a screen after taking a feed from Massachusetts native Jordan Harris in the corner.
Lyon continued to play well and keep the Sabres in the game in the second. A few minutes after Swayman denied Peyton Krebs from close range, the Buffalo netminder made one of his best stops 8:52 into the period when he robbed Elias Lindholm with a glove save at the doorstep.
The Bruins doubled their lead less than two minutes later at the 10:21 mark. Kastelic got credit for scoring a shot from above the right wing circle that changed directions multiple times before beating Lyon five-hole.
Zucker ended Swayman’s shutout bid with 10:14 left in regulation. Bruins defenseman Andrew Peeke’s breakout pass was intercepted at neutral ice, and after a Mattias Samuelsson feed, Zucker skated to the top of the left circle and fired a shot that went in off a body in front.
In the third period, Bruins killed off a Charlie McAvoy tripping penalty with 9:53 left and survived a long extra-attacker flurry before Kuraly’s empty-net goal with 2.2 seconds left.
