BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Jeff Skinner scored two goals and had an assist in his return to the Sabres lineup, leading Buffalo in an 9-3 bounceback win against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night at KeyBank Center.
The Sabres (14-17-3) also got two goals from captain Kyle Okposo, while Jordan Greenway, Jack Quinn, Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power also scored in Buffalo’s bounceback beatdown of their Atlantic Division rivals following the worst home loss of the season Tuesday night against last-place Columbus.
Skinner took the team lead with his 13th and 14th goals in his first game after missing three with an upper-body injury. Linemate Alex Tuch tallied four assists, rookie Zach Benson had two assists, and Thompson added a pair to his point total, along with his ninth goal, which gave the Sabres a 5-3 lead at 8:22 into the second period and chased Toronto goaltender Ilya Samsonov.
Devon Levi made 24 saves, improving to 7-4-2 this season for Buffalo.
Greenway, who missed the past nine games with an upper-body injury, scored the opening goal, his third of year, at 2:33 into the contest. Quinn got his first in his second game back following offseason surgery on his Achilles tendon. Okposo’s eight goals this season have all come in the past 15 games.
The Sabres visit the New York Rangers on Saturday night before the holiday break.
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Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.