Derek Roy and the Buffalo Sabres haven't let
success go to their heads.
``Right now we're a good team, but I think we can be a little bit
better,'' Roy said after getting two assists in Buffalo's 5-4
victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night, the Sabres'
seventh straight win to start the season. ``We have some work to do
and some errors to clean up.''
Despite Roy's feelings, it's hard to imagine the Sabres improving
on their early season showing.
The win over the defending Stanley Cup champions was Buffalo's
12th consecutive victory, setting a franchise record and surpassing
the 11-game winning streak that began at the end of the 1974-75
season. They are one win from matching their best start ever, set in
1975.
``We're confident and we know we have a good team,'' said Thomas
Vanek, whose fourth goal of the season broke a third-period tie.
``Hopefully we can keep it going.''
Vanek's quick shot from the slot squirted through goalie Cam
Ward's legs with 6{ minutes to go in the third and gave Buffalo a
4-3 lead. Jaroslav Spacek made it 5-3 nearly two minutes later.
Maxim Afinogenov had a goal and two assists, and Jason Pominville
and Dmitri Kalinin also scored for the Sabres, who haven't lost a
regular-season game since April 7, against Philadelphia.
``We know on the inside how good a team we are, but we're not
going to talk about it on the outside,'' Pominville said. ``We just
want to play hard every night and keep proving to everybody that we
are a good team.''
Scott Walker, Eric Staal, Eric Belanger and Mike Commodore had
goals for the Hurricanes, who had their three-game winning streak
stopped.
``You don't go 7-0 by showing up and not competing or not having
intensity,'' Carolina coach Peter Laviolette said of the Sabres.
``But we can play better than that.''
Five of Buffalo's seven victories have come after it has trailed,
including Friday night's intense rematch between the teams that
advanced to the Eastern Conference finals last season.
The teams traded goals in the first period before Staal gave
Carolina a 2-1 lead 8:37 into the second period with the Hurricanes
on a two-man advantage.
Kalinin answered for Buffalo with a short-handed goal, blasting a
high slap shot over Ward's right shoulder from the left circle.
Afinogenov gave the Sabres their first lead 58 seconds later,
banking a shot that went off the back of Ward's skates. Carolina
tied it at 3-3 just over two minutes later when Belanger's shot from
the side of the net ricocheted off goalie Ryan Miller's skates.
``It's not the style of game we want to get involved in,
especially with Buffalo,'' said Ward, who finished with 24 saves in
making his fourth consecutive start, and seventh overall. ``We're
better off not getting involved in a run-and-gun game.''
Commodore made it interesting with a short-handed goal with 1:15
remaining in the third, cutting Buffalo's lead to 5-4, but the
Sabres were able to hold on.
``We were so close last year, but when you get that close it
makes you want to get more and see what that next step is,''
Pominville said. ``Every time we play them they're a challenge ahead
of us.''
Miller improved to 6-0 by making 16 saves, including stopping
Staal on a breakaway 30 seconds into the game.
``They're a good team,'' Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said of
Carolina. ``They won the Cup. They're a heck of a test. They gave us
all we could handle.''
Notes: The Hurricanes wrap up their season-high seven-game road
trip on Saturday against the New York Islanders. ... Buffalo opens a
three-game road trip Saturday in Boston. ... Carolina F Ray Whitney
added two assists, and is one point shy of 600 for his career. ...
Carolina D Bret Hedican was back in the lineup after missing two
games with a hip injury. ... Kalinin and Commodore's goals were
their team's first short-handed scores this season. ... Only one
penalty was called in the first period, and that came with 48
seconds remaining.
