Buffalo Sabres center Peyton Krebs (19) and Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas (7) collide during the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Ducks goaltender Lukas Dostal (1) makes a pad save during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, right, celebrates after his goal with center Tage Thompson (72) during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Ducks, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Buffalo Sabres right wing Josh Doan reacts after a fight with Ducks center Ryan Strome during the third period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville, center top, looks on during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
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Buffalo Sabres center Peyton Krebs (19) and Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas (7) collide during the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Two teams headed in opposite directions squared off and produced the expected result, which meant more bad news for the reeling Ducks.
Jack Quinn scored twice, Tage Thompson had a goal and an assist, and the Buffalo Sabres defeated the Ducks, 5-3, on Saturday night for their 13th win in 14 games. The loss was the ninth in a row for the Ducks, who were playing the final game of a four-game trip.
Buffalo’s 14-game run is the best in franchise history. The stretch has elevated the Sabres (24-15-4) from last place in the Eastern Conference into a playoff position as the team tries to end the longest postseason drought in NHL history at 14 seasons.
Bowen Byram and Josh Norris also scored in Buffalo’s third consecutive victory and sixth in a row at home. Peyton Krebs and Zach Benson each had two assists, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 31 saves in winning for the fifth time in six starts.
Leo Carlsson had a goal and an assist, Olen Zellweger and Mason McTavish also scored and Lukas Dostal made 27 saves for the Ducks (21-21-3), who have dropped 13 of their past 15 games.
“We weren’t great to start the game. We got behind, but we were in the game,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville told NHL.com. “We’re down two, then it goes to three, and it looks like we had no chance. Then all of a sudden the pucks are going in.
“I think we had some good chances and the quality was probably enhanced at the end, but we didn’t get enough traffic on him, we didn’t get enough greasy stuff around the net, and when we shot, he was big. We got some by him because we started going a little bit up.”
The Ducks were without top-line forward Troy Terry, who sat out his second straight game with an upper-body injury, and defenseman Jacob Trouba was scratched so he could return home for the expected birth of his child.
The Sabres scored on the first shot of the game. Benson nudged the puck up the wall to Ryan McLeod in the neutral zone and he brought the puck into the Ducks’ zone down the left-hand side before centering a pass to Quinn, who beat Dostal short side from the bottom of the right circle just 2:03 into the game.
Benson was awarded a penalty shot at 7:27 when he was hooked from behind by Radko Gudas on a breakaway, but Benson hit the post with his backhand attempt.
The Sabres could not capitalize on a 5-on-3 power play that lasted 1:07 early in the second period. Dostal then made a stop on Alex Tuch on a short-handed 2-on-0 breakaway at 5:00, but Thompson made it 2-0 midway when he scored his team-leading 22nd of the season. Josh Doan set up the scoring chance on the forecheck, stealing the puck from the Ducks’ Tim Washe, and Krebs found Thompson for a tap-in at the edge of the crease at 7:22.
Byram matched his career-high with his 10th goal of the season, scoring at 7:09 of the third period on a one-timer from the high slot set up by Thompson’s pass from behind the net.
Zellweger spoiled Luukkonen’s bid for his first shutout of the season when he scored between his pads to make it 3-1 at 15:16, but Quinn came back with his second goal of the game 44 seconds later to re-establish the three-goal lead.
Carlsson scored from above the left circle when his wrist shot deflected off Rasmus Dahlin’s stick and went over Luukkonen’s glove. Just 1:10 later, McTavish scored off a feed from Carlsson with Dostal pulled for the extra skater to cut it to 4-3 with 48 seconds left.
Norris scored into an empty net with 11 seconds left to seal the 5-3 win.
“We gave away a lot of odd-man rushes, some bad pinches and stuff and not getting our feet back on the backcheck,” Carlsson told NHL.com. “Tough one.”