BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Rasmus Ristolainen had another busy night. A clutch goal made everything all right.
“I feel great right now and go again tomorrow night,” the defenseman said.
Ristolainen scored from the left circle 57 seconds into overtime, and the Buffalo Sabres beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 on Tuesday.
Ristolainen played almost 30 minutes in a 3-2 overtime loss at Washington on Monday night and then logged a similar number against Edmonton. But he finished off the Oilers with his first goal of the season.
“He’s carrying the load for us back there,” coach Dan Bylsma said, noting the Sabres are missing three of their regular defensemen due to injuries. “He’s had some tough shifts. He’s had some tough battles. And it got a lot lighter when he scored that goal.”
The Sabres scored twice in a span of 86 seconds, with Evander Kane forcing overtime by scoring with 29 seconds left in regulation. Kane had two goals and Brian Gionta also scored as Buffalo rallied after squandering a 2-0 first-period lead.
Ristolainen, who also had two assists, scored with Edmonton’s Adam Larsson serving a holding penalty.
Playing give-and-go with Ryan O’Reilly just inside Edmonton’s blue line, Ristolainen was parked atop the left circle when he blasted a shot that banked in off the far post.
Anders Nilsson stopped 34 shots, closing his legs to foil Edmonton star Connor McDavid on a short-handed breakaway in the third period.
Leon Draisaitl, Milan Lucic and Jordan Eberle scored for the Oilers, who are 3-0-2 in their last five road games. McDavid had two assists, and Cam Talbot finished with 22 saves.
The five-game point streak is the Oilers’ longest on the road since going 5-0-2 from March 6 to April 1, 2012.
“I didn’t think we sat back. I thought we played and continued to play the same game,” Oilers coach Todd McLellan said. “It comes down to them pulling their goalie and executing. And we have to live with that.”
What troubled McLellan was Larsson’s penalty, which he called senseless, and how flat the Oilers were in falling behind 2-0.
That wasn’t supposed to happen given that Edmonton had more rest than the Sabres. Edmonton arrived in Buffalo on Monday a day after a 2-1 overtime home loss to Minnesota.
Eberle and Lucic scored 105 seconds apart to tie the game in the second period. Then the Oilers appeared to take control midway through the third when McDavid’s hard pass from right point was deflected in by Draisaitl with Kane serving a cross-checking penalty.
Kane was pleased to make up for that miscue.
“The refs make calls through the course of the game, whether they’re right or they’re wrong,” Kane said. “But you’ve got to find a way to respond.”
It was the second meeting between McDavid and Buffalo’s Jack Eichel, the first two players selected in the 2015 draft. Eichel had an assist on Ristolainen’s goal.
In their first meeting on March 1, McDavid scored the opening goal 22 seconds in and then sealed the 2-1 win 3:48 into overtime.
NOTES: Sabres D Dmitry Kulikov has chance to return on Friday after missing 12 games with lower back injury. … McDavid missed last season’s game against Eichel at Edmonton because of a broken collarbone. Eichel was sidelined with a sprained ankle in Buffalo’s 6-2 win at Edmonton in October. … McDavid snapped a two-game point drought. The NHL’s points leader this season has never gone without a point in three straight in 73 career games.
UP NEXT
Oilers: At Philadelphia on Thursday night.
Sabres: Hosts Washington on Friday night.
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