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Sabres keep playoff hopes alive

Tyler Ennis

BUFFALO, NY - APRIL 14: Tyler Ennis #63 of the Buffalo Sabres scores against Mathieu Garon #32 of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first period at First Niagara Center on April 14, 2013 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

The Buffalo Sabres are still long shots to make the playoffs, but they did all they could this weekend.

After defeating the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, Buffalo earned a 3-1 win over Tampa Bay tonight.

Once again Sabres goaltender Jhonas Enroth was a big factor, stopping 32 of 33 shots. Buffalo decided to go with its backup netminder following his 29-save shutout on Saturday.

That might not seem like a big deal but, as the Buffalo News pointed out, Ryan Miller almost never goes back-to-back games without a start when he’s healthy.

Tyler Ennis got the Sabres on the board first with a power-play goal just 4:09 into the game. The 23-year-old had struggled recently with no points and a minus-seven rating in his previous seven contests. Jochen Hecht accounted for the game-winner.

On the Lightning’s side, this game was unfortunately more than just a loss. A mere day after his three-assist night against the Washington Capitals, forward Tom Pyatt suffered an upper-body injury, according to the Tampa Tribune’s Erik Erlendsson.

With this win, Buffalo is still four points shy of eighth place with just five games left to play. Even if the Sabres win all of their remaining matches, they still might miss the playoffs, but at least with tonight’s victory they get to wonder “what if” for a little bit longer.