- Alex Lyon denied Viktor Arvidsson on a penalty shot in the second period
- Lyon unloaded an NSFW chirp on the Bruins winger right after the save
- Read below for the video and how Buffalo took a 2-1 series lead
Alex Lyon had some choice words for Viktor Arvidsson after stopping him cold on a penalty shot.
The Buffalo Sabres goaltender made 24 saves on 25 shots Thursday night in a 3-1 Game 3 win over the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. The biggest moment came at 9:50 of the second period, when Arvidsson stepped up for a penalty shot after a slash from Rasmus Dahlin. The Bruins were already up 1-0, and a second goal would have flipped the whole building.
Here’s the video:
Arvidsson tried to go blocker side. Lyon tracked him the whole way, slid out of his crease, and got enough of it to send the puck wide.
Then Lyon let him hear about it.
“Fuckin loser, you’re a fucking loser,” Lyon can be heard saying in the video posted by Sabres fan account SabresBavarian.
Bowen Byram tied the game 68 seconds later. Head coach Lindy Ruff called the sequence the real momentum swing.
“It was big, could have been a turning point in the game, but ‘Lyno’ made a great save,” Byram said. “(Lyon) made a few really, really good saves tonight. Definitely had his best performance for us, which we appreciate.”
Lyon was a bit of a fluke starter in Game 3. He had been rotating all season with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who got the nod in the first two games. When Luukkonen coughed up four goals in Game 2 and got pulled, Lyon was up.
Game highlights here:
Ruff said the three-goalie rotation is a big reason Buffalo is where it is.
“We know we’re a good team because of the depth of our goaltending,” Ruff said pregame. “We know we’re a good team because of the depth of our forwards. It isn’t about one person.”
The win puts Buffalo up 2-1 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference First Round series. Noah Ostlund chipped in a goal in his playoff debut, and Alex Tuch added the insurance. Game 4 is Saturday in Boston, with Buffalo one win away from pushing the Bruins to the edge.
