Things just weren’t going the Pittsburgh Penguins’ way during the first period on Sunday, but don’t discount the Buffalo Sabres’ role in that rocky start.
Along with Jack Eichel and Ryan O’Reilly triggering a 3-0 start that ended Matt Murray’s night early, Jake McCabe robbed what seemed like a sure goal at the last possible moment. What would have been a 1-1 tie remained a 1-0 advantage for Buffalo thanks to a heads-up play by McCabe, which you can watch above.
Here’s a screencap of that near-goal, to give you an idea of how close it really was (while respectfully disagreeing with the Robin Lehner hot take):
Jake McCabe is a better goaltender than Robin Lehner. pic.twitter.com/GqbMKCjWYY
— Lindy Ruff’s Tie (@LindyRuffsTie) March 5, 2017
The NHL determined that the puck didn’t cross the line after a review.
Pittsburgh is attempting to fight back from that 3-0 deficit, cutting Buffalo’s lead to 3-2 heading into the third period.