Mikko Rantanen had a goal and an assist as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Thursday night at Raleigh, N.C., winning for only the second time in the past seven games.

Mikko Rantanen had a goal and an assist and the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Thursday night. Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Taylor Hall and Seth Jarvis also scored for Carolina, which had lost its first two games after the league break for the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Where do the Buffalo Sabres go from here? Heading into a Thursday night game against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Sabres have won six of their last seven games and seven of their last 10. But their playoff chances are still hovering around 2 percent,

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Expert recap and game analysis of the Florida Panthers vs. Buffalo Sabres NHL game from March 8, 2025 on ESPN.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning lost top defenseman and captain Victor Hedman to injury during Thurdsay night’s wild 6-5 victory over the Buffalo Sabres at Amalie Arena; he managed to play less than three total minutes in the first period,

The Hurricanes scored three first-period goals in a span of 3:32, and though the Sabres had opportunities to rally, their power play failed them in a 5-2 loss at Lenovo Center.

Immediately after the opening puck drop in the first period, Buffalo Sabres forward Dylan Cozens and Carolina Hurricanes center Jesperi Kotkaniemi dropped their gloves and began exchanging some big punches.