March 10, 2026; Buffalo, New York, USA; Buffalo Sabers’ right winger Jack Quinn (22) scores a goal against San Jose Sharks’ goalkeeper Yaroslav Askarov (30) in the first period at Key Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Image Jack Quinn had a hat trick and an assist, Jason Zucker added a goal and an assist and Ramus Dahlin had three assists as the Buffalo Sabers beat the visiting San Jose Sharks 6-3 on Tuesday for their NHL-best eighth straight win.
Alex Tuch and Beck Malenstyn also scored for Buffalo, which is 29-6-2 since Dec. 9. The Sabers are also four points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning atop the Atlantic Division.
Alexander Wennberg had a goal and an assist for the Sharks, who lost for the eighth time in 11 games (3-5-3). Keifer Sherwood also scored for San Jose, while teenage sensation Macklin Celebrini finished 33rd, a team-high.
The Sabers are averaging 4.5 goals per game during their winning streak and wasted no time against San Jose.
Quinn scored his first goal 4:12 into the game on a feed to center from Zucker. Ryan McLeod, who had three assists, started the sequence.
Less than 90 seconds later, Tuch scored his 28th goal in his 600th NHL game to give Buffalo a 2-0 advantage. He had a nice deflection on a Dahlin slapshot.
Celebrini got one back for San Jose on a Sabers sweepstakes with 7:06 remaining in the period. Will Smith caught an errant pass and set Celebrini up the middle to score. The 19-year-old has scored in four straight games and five in six games.
A stellar individual effort by Malenstyn gave Buffalo a two-point lead back early in the second period. Buffalo scored again less than four minutes later when Zucker followed a save by San Jose’s Yaroslav Askarov. Yaroslav Askarov stopped 20 shots but also allowed five goals.
Buffalo goalie Alex Lyon made 17 saves, including a blast late in the second period. He blocked Zach Ostapchuk’s slapshot, denied Collin Graf’s attempt and blocked Tyler Toffoli’s restart.
Sherwood finally beat Lyon inside 30 minutes to finish second for the third time in four games and for the 20th time of the season.
A tight battle continued in the third inning. Quinn scored 42 seconds in and Wennberg’s counter got the Sharks within two with 7 minutes to play, but Quinn completed his first career hat trick with an empty-netter with 2:46 to play.
The win gave the Sabers 40 wins for the second time in the past 15 seasons.
Tage Thompson’s 11-game point streak ended in Buffalo.
–Field level media
