New York Islanders @ Buffalo Sabres Game Thread — March 31, 2026
Written by Pete Zehler on March 31, 2026
20:00 – The opening faceoff is won by Buffalo and the game is underway.
19:19 – New York’s Carson Soucy has been penalized two minutes for high sticking. We will get our first look at the Buffalo Power Play.
18:29 – Buffalo’s Josh Norris has been penalized 2 minutes for interference. It will be a 4 v 4 for 1:11 then a 49 second New York Power Play.
16:29 – Buffalo successfully kills the penalty.
13:12 – Nearly 7 minutes in and both teams have attacked each others zones fairly equally, neither team has been able to find a dangerous shot on net.
11:07 – Tage made some great moves to get in front of the net, but had no help. UPL with a nice save on the other end.
6:02 – New York’s Adam Pelech has been penalized 2 minutes for high sticking. We will get our second look of the night at the Buffalo Power Play.
5:41 – Jack Quinn scores on a slapshot between the circles. Buffalo leads 1-0…. their first time playing with a lead in 4 games.
5:01 – Malenstyn just misses on a backhand right in front of the net.
0:00 – At the end of the first period Buffalo leads 1-0. First period breakdown coming up.
1st Period Breakdown:
The first period wasn’t the most entertaining period of hockey, but with the Quinn goal and Buffalo outshooting New York 12 to 5 the Sabres have an edge. My biggest takeaway from the period is that Tage Thompson woke up feeling dangerous today, he’s made some really nice moves tonight with the puck on his stick and has overall been impressive. Buffalo is doing a good job of bringing the puck into the offensive zone, but are struggling to make the last pass in front of the net. Felt like there was multiple times that period where Buffalo was one pass away from scoring. On the defensive end they’ve done a great job of denying New York dangerous shots on net. If Buffalo can continue this play into the second period they will grow the lead.
2nd Period:
20:00 – The faceoff is won by New York and the second period is underway.
17:42 – New York’s Casey Cizikas has been penalized 2 minutes for a high sticking. We will get our third look of the night at the Buffalo Power Play.
15:42 – New York successfully kills the penalty.
13:26 – Andres Lee has been awarded a penalty shot for slashing on a breakaway by Jack Quinn. The attempt was no good, saved by UPL.
12:02 – Buffalo starting to really take control of this game.
7:57 – New York starting to press the issue but UPL is holding strong in net.
7:13 – Scott Mayfield denies Zucker on an ultra dangerous look in front of the net.
2:19 – Buffalo’s Mattias Samuelsson has been penalized 2 minutes for delay of game. We will get our second look of the night at New York’s Power Play.
2:03 – New York’s Calum Ritchie scores on the Power Play. The game is tied 1-1.
1:47 – Josh Norris goes down after getting slammed into a corner at the end of the bench in the boards hard, a fight ensues after.
0:00 – At the end of the second period the game is tied 1-1. Second period breakdown coming shortly.
2nd Period Breakdown:
The period started out with Buffalo continuing their play from the first period, however, somewhere around the halfway point in the period New York turned up the heat in the kitchen and started applying a lot more pressure. An unfortunate penalty for Buffalo turned into an immediate goal for New York. While New York outshot Buffalo 10 to 7 in the second, it felt like high danger shots on net were pretty equal, if not leaning slightly Buffalo. It’s unfortunate for Buffalo that this game is tied entering the third period, because both UPL and the offense have played well enough to be winning this game. But of course as has become the norm over the last 2 weeks, this game is going to come down to the wire in the third period.
3rd Period:
20:00 – Sam Carrick instantly drops the gloves with Andres Lee after his hit on Norris. Lee wins and Carrick is down hurt.
18:32 – New York’s Carson Soucy has been penalized 2 minutes for hooking. We will get our fourth look of the night at the Buffalo Power Play.
17:20 – Tage Thompson scores for Buffalo. Buffalo leads 2-1.
12:00 – Buffalo has had a few nice looks at the net, but just can’t find the last pass.
11:15 – Norris and Mayfield both go to the penalty box after they had a battle of the shoves. It’s a 2 minute minor on Mayfield for roughing and a 4 minute penalty on Norris. Quinn gets a 2 minute penalty for roughing.
9:15 – Buffalo successfully kills the penalty.
6:21 – Andres Lee scores for New York. The game is tied 2-2
3:01 – Peyton Krebs scores on a beautiful pass from Tuch. Buffalo leads 3-2
1:43 – Bo Byram scores on the empty net. Buffalo leads 4-2