Despite being grossly outplayed in the middle of the game, the Bruins had complete control up 2-0 in a quiet building with less than eight minutes left.
And then all hell broke loose.
The Bruins stopped playing offense and left everything up to a very sharp Jeremy Swayman, but then the dam broke. Swayman was barely beaten on a skilled Tage Thompson play behind the net, and then the onslaught was on. Thompson would bang another one home, and then Mattias Samuelsson put the Sabres on top. They’d add an empty-net goal.
That one is going to very much sting. We’ll see if it lingers into Game 2. It usually does.
WHO: First round, Game 1 – Bruins at Sabres
WHEN: 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: KeyBank Center, Buffalo.
TV: NESN/ESPN
RADIO: 98.5-FM The Sports Hub
Game 1: Today at Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
Game 2: Tuesday at Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
Game 3: Thursday at Boston, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Sunday at Boston, 2 p.m.
Game 5: Tuesday, April 28 at Buffalo, TBD
Game 6: Friday, May 1, at Boston, TBD
Game 7: Sunday, May 3 at Buffalo, TBD
Geekie-Lindholm-Pastrnak
Mittelstadt-Zacha-Arvidsson
Hagens-Minten-Khusnutdinov
Jeannot-Kuraly-Kastelic
Aspirot-McAvoy
Lindholm-Lohrei
Zadorov-Peeke
Krebs – Thompson – Tuch
Zucker – McLeod – Quinn
Benson – Norris-Doan
Greenway – Dunne – Malenstyn
Dahlin-Samuelsson
Byram-Power
Stanley-Timmins
Injured: Carrick, Danforth, Kulich, Ostlund
Scratched: Kesslering, Kozak, Ellis, Pearson, Schenn
• The Bruins visit the Sabres tonight for Game 1 of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This marks the start of the ninth all-time playoff series between the two clubs, with Boston holding a 25-20 advantage in 45 postseason games.
• Boston (45-27-10) posted a 3-1-0 record in the club’s four regular-season games against Buffalo (50-23-9). Boston recorded two home victories with a 3-1 win on Oct. 11 and a 4-3 overtime win on Oct. 30, a 4-1 loss at Buffalo on Dec. 27, and a 4-3 overtime win at KeyBank Center on March 25.
• The Sabres are 5-5 in their last 10 playoff matchups with the Bruins; 8-2 at home. Buffalo is 13-8-0 at home against Boston in the playoffs all-time.
• The Sabres and Bruins last met in the playoffs in 2010, when the Bruins won the first-round matchup in six games.
• Buffalo has a record of 30-20 in Game 1s all-time, including a 5-3 record over Boston in the first game of a series.
• Tage Thompson led all Sabres skaters in points against Boston in 2025-26 (five, 0+5). Thompson has registered 17 points (9+8) in his last 16 games against Boston dating back to Jan. 1, 2022. He has registered four multi-point performances in his last seven meetings with the Bruins.
• Three Sabres skaters (Thompson, 1.25; Mattias Samuelsson, 1.00; Jason Zucker, 1.00) recorded at least one point per game played against the Bruins this season. Zucker’s three goals against Boston were the most among all Buffalo skaters in 2025-26. In his career, Zucker has recorded more goals (10) and points (19) than any Sabres skater against the Bruins.
• Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen posted a 1-0-1 record, a .907 save percentage and a 2.49 goals-against average against the Bruins this season.
• Luke Schenn (four games) and Alex Lyon (three games) are the only Sabres players who have appeared in a playoff game against Boston in their career. In those games, Lyon recorded a .902 save percentage (83 saves on 92 shots).
• The Bruins have five players making their playoff debuts: James Hagens, Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, Jonathan Aspirot and Mark Kastelic.
