LOS ANGELES — Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen delivered an impressive performance, saving 24 shots and helping the Buffalo Sabres triumph over the Los Angeles Kings with a score of 1-0 on Wednesday night.

Luukkonen, who had been sidelined for two games due to a lower-body injury, recorded his first shutout of the season. He made six saves in both the first and second periods and capped it off with 12 saves in the final third. With this victory, the Sabres have celebrated five wins in their last seven encounters.

On the opposing side, David Rittich contributed with 18 saves for the Kings, but Los Angeles suffered their third loss in four games.

The match remained scoreless until just 38 seconds into the third period, when Jason Zucker found the back of the net on a power play. He deftly redirected a shot from Rasmus Dahlin past Rittich.

Dahlin has been in fine form, recording points during four consecutive games on the power play, extending his overall point streak to seven games with a collection of four goals and six assists during that stretch.

Injury updates revealed that Tage Thompson, who is the Sabres’ top goal scorer, missed his third consecutive game due to a lower-body issue, despite participating in practice for the past two days.

For the Kings, who have experienced a rocky season thus far, their inability to secure results continues to haunt them, bringing their home record to 5-2-1.

A key moment in the game occurred when Zucker deftly positioned himself at the top of the crease, resulting in his fourth goal of the season off of Dahlin’s shot.

Though the Sabres entered the match with a struggling power play efficiency of 10.5% on the road, ranking them 30th in the NHL, they managed to go 1-for-3 against the Kings, which proved sufficient for the win.

Looking ahead, the Sabres will travel to Anaheim for a game on Friday night, while the Kings are set to host the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.