Overview
- Buffalo clinched the Atlantic Division on Monday with a 5-1 win at the United Center in Chicago.
- Tage Thompson scored twice to reach 40 goals, with Josh Norris leveling the game late in the first before Alex Tuch and Ryan McLeod sealed it in the third.
- Chicago opened with a shorthanded goal from Ryan Greene, then unraveled with turnovers and a bad line change that Buffalo turned into rush chances against Spencer Knight.
- Rasmus Dahlin posted two assists and, alongside Owen Power, keyed the transition plays that sprung Buffalo breakaways.
- The crown follows a 15-year playoff drought and a surge since Thanksgiving, with the Sabres going 42-14-4 behind steadier goaltending from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Alex Lyon.