Sabres end 18-game skid with 6-1 win over Flyers
Buffalo Sabres celebrate a goal by center Curtis Lazar (27) during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers in Buffalo, N.Y., Wednesday, March 31, 2021. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)BUFFALO, N.Y. โ Embarrassment for Brandon Montour and the Buffalo Sabres turned into relief on Wednesday night. The Sabres ended their 18-game skid โ the NHLโs longest in 17 years โ with a resounding 6-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. AdThe Sabres also snapped a 0-9-2 home skid, one short of matching a franchise record set during the 1990-91 season. After Philadelphiaโs Ivan Provorov scored 3:50 into the second period, Buffalo responded by closing the period with goals from Fogarty and Casey Mittelstadt.
The Latest: Sabres to have limited number of fans at 4 games
The Sabres added another option of proof of a negative antigen COVID-19 test within six hours of the doors opening. The Sabres had fans in attendance only once this season. No other players or coaches were affected by the coachโs positive test. ___Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis are headed back to work after being cleared from the NHLโs COVID-19 protocol. Ad___The Michigan Wolverines are out of the NCAA Division I men's hockey tournament because of positive COVID-19 test results within the team's Tier 1 testing group.
The Latest: Sabres coaches placed in NHL COVID protocol
(AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis have been placed in the NHLโs COVID-19 protocol. The development leaves general manager Kevyn Adams taking over behind the bench for Buffaloโs game at Pittsburgh on Thursday night. This marks the second time the Sabres have been hit by COVID-19 in two months. Buffaloโs season was paused for two weeks in early February after nine players and then-coach Ralph Krueger were placed in the protocol. The university said the team went through seven rounds of testing in the seven days leading up to its departure for Albany on Wednesday.