Sabres HC Lindy Ruff doesn’t mince words about Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen performance in loss to Penguins

Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff shared his frustration after a 5-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday.

Pittsburgh was outshot by Buffalo 42-19 but won 55.2% of face-offs. Talking to the media, Ruff talked about the team's performance.

“They took advantage of our big mistakes on the PK. They made the same mistakes, and we didn’t take advantage. You either get a big save or you don’t get a save. We needed a save,” Ruff said.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed four goals on 18 shots. His goals saved above expected (GSAx) was -2.33, per Evolving-Hockey. This season, Luukkonen’s record is 14-13-4, with a 2.99 goals-against average and a .898 save percentage. He has two shutouts, and his NHL career record is now 61-54-14.

The Penguins scored on 3-of-4 power plays, while Buffalo scored on 1-of-5. Pittsburgh had 22 penalty minutes, 21 hits, 17 blocked shots, 12 giveaways and six takeaways. Buffalo recorded 20 penalty minutes, 19 hits, 14 blocked shots, nine giveaways and one takeaway. The teams will play again on March 27 at 7 p.m. EDT.

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Buffalo Sabres took an early lead but allowed three second-period goals

The Buffalo Sabres took an early lead with Owen Power’s power-play goal in the first period. He scored from the high slot at 15:16, but the Penguins quickly responded in the second period.

Rickard Rakell tied the game with a power-play goal at 1:41. Twenty-seven seconds later, Anthony Beauvillier scored on a breakaway, making it 2-1. Cody Glass added another power-play goal at 11:43, as Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen missed.

In the third period, Bryan Rust scored to extend Pittsburgh’s lead to 4-1 before Zach Benson scored for Buffalo at 14:46 to make it 4-2. Pittsburgh’s Alex Nedeljkovic, though, sealed the game with an empty-net goal at 17:18 as Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was pulled for an extra attacker.

Nedeljkovic had a standout performance, making 40 saves and becoming the 11th goalie in NHL history to shoot and score a goal. Cody Glass and Bryan Rust each had a goal and an assist.

The Penguins snapped a three-game losing streak, improving to 19-20-8. The Sabres, now 17-23-5, will look to address their defensive and penalty-kill issues. Earlier this season they lost 11 straight games and have lost five of their last eight games.

They play the Seattle Kraken next on Monday. The game starts at 4 p.m. EST.