BUFFALO, N.Y. — This article originally appeared on PGHHockeyNOW.com.
Tommy Novak shoveled Egor Chinakhov’s rebound for a hard-fought goal, and frustrations over officiating and scoring chances denied melted away. Novak was the only Pittsburgh Penguins (29-15-12) goal scorer who was not a rookie.
And the Penguins hit the Olympic break with a well-earned 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres (32-19-6) at Key Bank Center.
Avery Hayes scored a pair of impressive goals. Important ones, too.
Second shift. First career shot. First NHL goal. The perfect storm of Penguins’ injury (Rickard Rakell), illness (Noel Acciari), and personal absence (Blake Lizotte) created a need for the Penguins to make a recall just hours before the game. The organization chose the scrappy Hayes to make his NHL debut, and they were handsomely rewarded.
Midway through the first period, Hayes chased a bouncing puck in the offensive zone and zipped past defenseman Jacob Bryson for a short breakaway. Hayes (1) showed a healthy burst of speed past Bryson for the puck and whipped it past Buffalo goalie Alex Lyon at 9:17 of the first period for a 1-1 tie.
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