Sabres take over first place with Game-of-the-Year win vs. Lightning

The Buffalo Sabres are back, and they proved it again on Sunday in an 8-7 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning that put them into sole possession of first-place in the NHL's Atlantic Division. 

It was not only a huge two points for the Sabres to take from the team they are competing with for the top spot in the division, but it also might have been the NHL's game of the year for the 2025-26 season.

Sabres-Lightning had everything

The Sabres and Lightning entered Sunday's game tied for the top spot in the Atlantic Division, and that alone set the stage for a fantastic game. Especially with a Buffalo crowd that has waited 14 years for the return of competitive hockey and playoff hockey.

The two teams fed off of that atmosphere. They combined for 15 goals, over 100 total penalty minutes, five fights and multiple comebacks.

After the Sabres jumped out to a 4-1 lead, the Lightning stormed to take a 7-5 lead in the third period.

That set the stage for the Sabres to score three goals in the final seven minutes to not only get the win, but get it in regulation to take a two-point lead over the Lightning in the standings. 

There are a lot of things that stand out about this game that are bigger than the game itself.

The biggest is the impact on Buffalo hockey. Buffalo is one of the NHL's best hockey markets but has been completely taken out of the game through inept management and ownership for the better part of the past decade-and-a-half. Coming into this season, the Sabres had the longest playoff drought in NHL history (14 years) and looked to be well on their way to making it 15 consecutive years through the first month-and-a-half.

But starting with the firing of general manager Kevyn Adams, the team has been one of the best in the NHL and is not only winning games, but playing a wildly entertaining brand of hockey. ItA good team that is also entertaining is a great way to pump juice back into a frustrated fan base. 

It is also the type of game the NHL should be holding up as an example of what the sport can be and how chaotic it can be. There is always hope in an Olympic year that seeing best-on-best teams play can create new fans and a new interest in the sport. The problem is, when everybody returns back to their NHL teams, you get a harsh reminder of how different it can be, and how much less exciting it can be, when both teams on the ice are not basically All-Star teams. 

But there is still a ton of talent in the league, and it can still be amazing. This game is an example of it.