BUFFALO, N.Y. - Turns out, Mother Nature could only delay the Boston Bruins from continuing what's become their hottest start in franchise history.
A day after Boston's home game against Tampa Bay was postponed because of a blizzard, the Bruins traveled to Buffalo to pick up their pace with a 3-1 win over the Sabres on Sunday night.
"Yesterday, we were ready to play, so I guess it gave us a day to rest," center Patrick Bergeron. "We got here, and we knew Buffalo played last night, so we tried to take advantage of that."
Bergeron capitalized on a fortunate carom off the end boards to score the go-ahead goal on a power play 7:52 into the third period. Milan Lucic clinched the win with an empty-netter in the final minute in helping the Bruins improve to 8-1-1.
The Bruins earned their 17th point, the most they've had through 10 games. The previous best was 16 points over that span, set four times - the last in 1978-79, when Boston opened 7-1-2.
Brad Marchand, back after missing one game with an upper-body injury, also scored. Backup goalie Anton Khudobin made 25 saves in only his second start of the season.
"Certainly, we had a different day yesterday, but at least we made it here," coach Claude Julien said. "No doubt, we were well-rested."
Tyler Ennis scored for the Sabres (5-7-1) in a game that would've been far more lopsided in the Bruins' favor if not for Ryan Miller, who was outstanding in making 36 saves.
• Blackhawks 3, Predators 0: In Nashville, Tenn., Marcus Kruger and Jonathan Toews each scored 66 seconds apart in the second period, and Chicago remained the NHL's lone undefeated team in regulation.
Patrick Kane also added a goal in the third as the Blackhawks wrapped up their season-high six-game road trip with their fourth straight win and improved to 10-0-2 overall and 8-0-2 away from Chicago.
Goalie Corey Crawford got Chicago's first shutout of the season and the sixth of his career, making 17 saves.
• Red Wings 3, Kings 2: In Detroit, Jonathan Ericsson scored with 5 seconds left to lift the Red Wings.
The Kings failed to clear the puck, less than a minute after they tied the game, and Ericsson took advantage. His slap shot from above the right circle trickled through Jonathan Quick's pads.
• Oilers 3, Blue Jackets 1: In Columbus, Ohio, Magnus Paajarvi scored a go-ahead short-handed goal with 3:10 remaining and Devan Dubnyk made 39 saves as Edmonton snapped a five-game losing streak.
• Rangers 5, Lightning 1: In New York, Carl Hagelin had two goals and an assist, and Henrik Lundqvist made 19 saves in the Rangers' victory that extended the Lightning's losing streak to four games.
• Devils 3, Penguins 1: In Pittsburgh, Ilya Kovalchuk and David Clarkson scored less than two minutes apart in the second period as New Jersey won its fifth straight.
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