Sabres Move Closer to Sweeping Victory

Michael Peca wasn’t sure who it would be when he looked down the bench for somebody to win the Buffalo Sabres another playoff game. He should have grabbed a mirror.

Peca’s goal 1:24 into the second overtime gave Buffalo a 5-4 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night and moved the Sabres within one game of sweeping their Eastern Conference semifinal series.

“There hasn’t been any doubt in this locker room in I don’t know how long,” said Peca, who finished with his first two playoff goals in 23 career games. “Guys were talking about how they were going to dance when they scored.”

Dixon Ward set up the game-winner when he grabbed control of the puck in the left circle and found Peca alone in the high slot. Peca took a hard slap shot that beat Jose Theodore to the glove side to give the Sabres a 3-0 series advantage.

“The middle of the ice and the high slot was open all night,” Peca said. “I wanted to find that hole. Dix got it to me, [defenseman] Jason Woolley set up a great screen, and the far side was wide open.”

Buffalo has won six consecutive playoff games going back to Game 3 against Philadelphia in the first round.

Game 4 will be played Thursday night at the Molson Centre.

Peca also scored in the first period, his first two goals in 23 playoff games. Curtis Brown, Vaclav Varada and Geoff Sanderson scored for Buffalo. Dominik Hasek made 42 saves and kept the Sabres in the game after they were outshot, 18-2, in the third period.

Turner Stevenson had two goals in the first period for the Canadiens. Saku Koivu and Vladimir Malakhov also scored for Montreal.