The Montreal Canadiens beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3 in a shootout at Bell Centre on Tuesday, with Cole Caufield scoring the deciding goal after Lane Hutson and Cole Caufield each found the net in regulation. The Canadiens erased an early deficit and survived a third-period rally by Buffalo before Zachary Bolduc added the clinching shootout tally.
Buffalo controlled large stretches of the third period, getting goals from Josh Norris and Olen Zellweger just over a minute apart to tie the game 3-3 and force overtime. Olen Zellweger finished with two goals for the Sabres, who got a 35-save effort from goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen despite the loss.
Key Moments: How The Canadiens Vs Sabres Score Came Together
Zellweger opened the scoring just 2:16 into the first period on a snap shot, assisted by Mattias Samuelsson and Beck Malenstyn. Montreal answered before the period ended when Hutson scored on a snap shot at 14:28, assisted by Juraj Slafkovsky and Caufield, tying the game 1-1.
The Canadiens took control in the second period. Caufield scored just 1:19 into the frame off assists from Slafkovsky and Nick Suzuki to make it 2-1. Josh Anderson extended the lead to 3-1 late in the period, scoring with 50 seconds left off assists from Hutson and Bolduc.
Buffalo answered in the third. Josh Norris cut the deficit to 3-2 at 4:24, and Zellweger struck again just over a minute later at 5:25 to tie it 3-3, setting up overtime and eventually a shootout. Caufield scored in the shootout and Bolduc converted on a backhand to seal it for Montreal, while Buffalo got shootout goals from Tage Thompson and Alexandre Texier.
Top Performers
Caufield led Montreal with two points on a goal and an assist, while Slafkovsky recorded two assists. Hutson played 27:07 and factored into two Canadiens goals with a goal and an assist. Jacob Fowler stopped 14 of 17 shots for Montreal in regulation and overtime.
Zellweger paced Buffalo with two goals and led all skaters with 25:49 of ice time. Beck Malenstyn picked up two assists. Luukkonen turned aside 35 of 38 shots he faced, including a 5-for-5 mark on the penalty kill as Montreal went 1 for 3 on the power play.
What It Means
The win moves the Canadiens to 3-2-1 on the season, while the Sabres fall to 3-3-1. Both teams sit in the Atlantic Division standings behind Ottawa, with Montreal and Buffalo each holding seven points through the early stretch of the 2026-27 season, according to the official standings. Montreal also leads the season series 1-0 after the result.
Montreal out-shot Buffalo 38-17 and out-blocked the Sabres 15-7, controlling much of the possession despite surrendering two power-play-free goals against. The Canadiens finished 1 for 3 on the power play while Buffalo went 0 for 5, a difference that proved significant in a game decided by a single shootout goal.
What’s Next
Both clubs return to action later this week as the Atlantic Division schedule continues. For more on Buffalo’s week, see the Sabres vs Canadiens preview published ahead of Tuesday’s matchup. The Sabres remain without captain Rasmus Dahlin, detailed in the Dahlin injury update, and are still adjusting after a deal detailed in the Ryan Johnson trade report. Buffalo’s recent form was also on display in a loss recapped in the Mammoth vs Sabres recap.
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