Sabres

Ryan Miller came to the rink with a chip on his shoulder after giving up five goals in a loss to New Jersey in his last start. Rebounding quickly, Miller made 40 saves for his third shutout of the season and 10th of his career, and center Derek Roy had a goal and two assists in the Buffalo Sabres' 5-0 victory over the Kings on Friday night. "Sometimes you have to have a little bit of an edge in your game, and I don't think I've had it," Miller said.

Ryan Miller and the Buffalo Sabres withstood a late Ottawa Senators rally and stayed alive in the Eastern Conference finals. Miller was remarkable in stopping 15 shots in the third period, and Chris Drury and Derek Roy each had a goal and an assist in a 3-2 win over Ottawa in Game 4 on Wednesday night. The Sabres nearly squandered a three-goal lead but staved off elimination, cutting the Senators' best-of-seven series lead to 3-1. Game 5 is Saturday at Buffalo.

Another opportune bounce, a sharp goalie and a stifling defense pushed the Ottawa Senators within a win of their first trip to the Stanley Cup finals. Ray Emery stopped 15 shots to register his third shutout this postseason, and Daniel Alfredsson scored an easy goal in a 1-0 win over the stunned and demoralized Buffalo Sabres in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Monday night.

Oleg Saprykin helped the Ottawa Senators further shed their label as underachievers and get a jump on the rival Buffalo Sabres. After Ottawa squandered a two-goal lead, Saprykin ended a tie 7 minutes 41 seconds into the third period of a 5-2 win Thursday in the opener of the Eastern Conference finals. Dean McAmmond, Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson had a goal and assist each, and Mike Fisher had a short-handed goal for the Senators, who improved to 9-2 in this postseason.

Chris Drury and the Buffalo Sabres waited a year to get back to the Eastern Conference finals. After vanquishing the other two New York teams, the Sabres are one round from a shot at the Stanley Cup. Drury had a goal and assist in the Sabres' four-goal second period that erased an early deficit and sent Buffalo to a 5-4 victory Sunday over the New York Rangers in Game 6.

Thomas Vanek scored his second consecutive game-winner, capping a two-goal third period in Buffalo's 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Friday night. Brian Campbell had a goal and assist and Chris Drury also scored at home for the Sabres, who twice rallied from one-goal deficits and grabbed a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Ales Kotalik and the Buffalo Sabres provided an answer to anyone questioning whether they are the elite team in the NHL. It's a response that came through loud and clear Wednesday night in a 5-2 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series. "I think we showed everybody we were ready," Kotalik said. "A lot of things were said before the game, and we made sure we showed to respond not in the paper but on the ice."

Jochen Hecht scored twice, leading the Buffalo Sabres to a 4-3 win over the visiting New Jersey Devils in a meeting of the Eastern Conference's top two teams Wednesday. Ryan Miller stopped 28 shots to help the Sabres extend their lead atop the East standings to seven points over the Devils, as well as idle Pittsburgh and Ottawa. The Sabres (49-20-7) also moved into a tie for first place in the NHL with Nashville, and inched to within one victory of their second consecutive 50-win season.

Ty Conklin is already winning over his new Buffalo Sabres teammates. Conklin made 42 saves Thursday night and helped the Sabres end a season-worst, four-game losing streak with a 5-3 victory over the Florida Panthers at Sunrise, Fla. "My mind-set going into it was that I want to make a good impression; you want the guys to feel confident with you in the net," said Conklin, acquired from Columbus on Feb. 27. "While it's only one game, it's a bit of a start."