Buffalo, N.Y. — In an exciting matchup on Tuesday night, Alex Tuch showcased his skills with two goals and an assist, leading the Buffalo Sabres to a 3-2 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. This win marked the Sabres’ first four-game winning streak in over two years, a feat they hadn’t accomplished since a five-game stretch from January 19 to 26, 2023.

Bowen Byram contributed significantly for Columbus, netting a goal and providing an assist, while goaltender James Reimer made 28 saves, earning his second win of the season after enduring a five-game winless streak (0-4-1). The Blue Jackets saw contributions from Kent Johnson, who matched his career-high with his 16th goal, alongside a score from Ivan Provorov. Meanwhile, Elvis Merzlikins stopped 18 shots for the Blue Jackets.

Tuch gave the Sabres a 2-1 advantage with 7:43 left in the second period, deftly redirecting Dennis Gilbert’s precise centering pass. Just six minutes later, he found the net again, this time deflecting Rasmus Dahlin’s shot from the right point into the goal. The Blue Jackets entered the game without several key players, including forward Kirill Marchenko, who is sidelined with a broken jaw, as well as defensemen Zach Werenski (an undisclosed injury) and Dante Fabbro (upper body injury). The Sabres were also missing Tage Thompson (head injury), defenseman Mattias Samuelsson (lower body injury), and goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who sustained an injury during the morning practice.

Looking at some takeaways, the Blue Jackets appeared fatigued as they concluded a four-game road trip that featured overtime victories against both Vegas and Utah. The Sabres, on the other hand, held a team meeting on Monday to address their poor response following an incident involving New Jersey’s Stefan Noesen checking Thompson in the head during a previous game. It seemed their response was immediate, as Gilbert dropped the gloves with Mathieu Olivier just three seconds into the game against Columbus.

One key moment in the game was when Byram opened the scoring by converting a rebound just 10 minutes and 7 seconds into the match, even as Buffalo trailed in shots on goal 7-0 at that point.

In terms of statistics, this loss for the Blue Jackets marked their first regulation defeat in nine games, with a record of 5-1-3 in that span, since a 3-1 loss back on January 11, 2018.

As the teams look ahead, the Blue Jackets will host Utah on Thursday, while the Sabres will travel to face Nashville on Saturday.