Hurricanes stop Sabres in a game with a distinct Stanley Cup playoff feel

Chip Alexander, The News & Observer on Jan 19, 2026

Published in Hockey

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RALEIGH, N.C. — Sometimes, it’s a better hockey game than anyone probably expected.

It was a national holiday. It was an afternoon game. It was the middle of January.

But sometimes, those games can surprise. It can be like it’s April or May, with a lot more on the line, with some hard hits, chippy moments and desperation saves by the two goalies.

The Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres had one of those games Monday. The Canes emerged with a 2-1 victory at Lenovo Center, but only after 60 hard-fought, don’t-give-an-inch minutes that had both teams straining to come away with the two points.

Carolina’s Andrei Svechnikov scored his fifth goal in the past three games — all five on Sebastian Aho assists — and Seth Jarvis notched the winner on a power play at 2:10 of the third period, Svechnikov and Aho with the assists.

But the big story in this one was Brandon Bussi, just as the Canes goalie has been much of the season. Can a goalie go from waiver wire to the Vezina Trophy? Probably not, but Bussi has done little but win for the Hurricanes, and done it at a time when injured goalie Pyotr Kochetkov has been sidelined for the season and veteran Frederik Andersen inconsistent.

Bussi had 17 saves Monday in pushing his record to 18-3-1. More than a few were on Sabres star center Tage Thompson, who Bussi said once played with him a year in junior hockey, and one was bigger than the others.

“The season he’s having and the accolades and the ability to put the puck in the net, you just have to keep an eye out when he’s on the ice,” Bussi said of Thompson, who has 25 goals this season.

One had to see the save to believe it. Thompson probably didn’t believe it. He likely scores nearly every time when presented with the same opening and opportunity. He’s that good a finisher.

The situation: the Sabres had a power play in the second period of a 1-1 game. Bussi suddenly was faced with a 2-on-1 situation in front of the crease, with Jason Zucker to his left and Thompson to his right.

Zucker made the pass and Thompson lifted a quick shot and Canes fans groaned and the TNT telecast graphic quickly showed the Sabres with a 2-1 lead.

The problem: Bussi stuck out his glove and the puck found the back of the glove. No goal. Thompson, already headed to the Buffalo bench, could only look to the rafters. The groans soon turned to thunderous “Bus-si, Bus-si” cheers with 11:29 left in the period.

“Save of the game, for sure, and maybe the year,” Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “It would be tough to see a better save than that.”

Asked if that was his best save of the season, Bussi smiled and replied, “The next one.”

That has been his mentality since being claimed off waivers Oct. 5 from the Florida Panthers – take it save by save, period by period, game by game. Before this season, he had never played in an NHL game and there he was Monday being interviewed after the game on TNT.

The final moments were hectic. The Sabres, who had pulled into a wild-card playoff position with a 15-2-1 stretch of games, pulled goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen for a sixth attacker.

Thompson twice put shots on net in the final half-minute, and it was a fierce battle in the Canes zone to the end.

Bussi’s only thought: “Keep the puck out of the net, no matter what. Find a way.”

The Canes (31-15-4) found a way and now have beaten the Sabres 13 straight times at home. Buffalo (26-17-5) scored quickly Monday as Rasmus Dahlin knocked the Sabres’ first shot past Bussi for a 1-0 lead. But Svechnikov tied it off a perfect Aho feed and Jarvis put the Canes in front with a sharp-angle shot.

The only downside for the Canes in the game was losing forward Eric Robinson to an apparent shoulder injury. Brind’Amour said Robinson could be out for “a while” but did not know the severity of the injury.

But much of the talk Monday was about guy they call “The Bus.”

Bussi has grown accustomed to being in the Canes’ lineup, starting games. He has taken over Kochetkov’s stall in the locker room opposite Andersen, and has taken over as the team’s No. 1 goalie.

“I’ll be frank with you. It will never feel normal,” he said. “I think this is what you dream about your whole life, and I think that’s a good thing for me. I’m fortunate to be able to do what I do for a living. To be able to hear the crowd cheer us on, cheer me on, is very cool.

“But I don’t think I’m a person who ever takes that for granted.”

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