TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Daniel Briere and Thomas Vanek scored in the shootout to give the Buffalo Sabres a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.

The Sabres won the shootout 2-0 as goalie Ryan Miller stopped Martin St. Louis and Brad Richards.

Maxim Afinogenov’s waist-high deflection of Toni Lydman’s shot got Buffalo even at 3 with 8:47 left in the third period. Briere and Paul Gaustad also scored for the Sabres, who began a three-game road trip.

Buffalo played the final 1:46 of overtime with a two-man advantage after the Lightning received three minor penalties. Buffalo got only one shot during the stretch.

Tampa Bay got goals from Richards, Vincent Lecavalier and Vinny Prospal. The Lightning (2-2-1) play their next three games on the road after opening the year with four of five at home.

Gaustad tied the game at 10:16 of the second period and Prospal gave the Lightning a 3-2 lead when he skated through the slot and scored on a wrist shot at 13:51.

Briere put the Sabres ahead 1-0 when he scored on a rebound of his own shot 5:15 into the first. Tampa Bay tied it on Richards’ goal at 8:14.

Miller had 32 saves, two more than Tampa Bay’s John Grahame.

Notes: Lightning LW Ruslan Fedotenko left the game with what the team called a lower body injury. … The assist for Tampa Bay’s Darryl Sydor ended a 10-game, regular season scoring drought. … Buffalo has ended the first period tied in four of five games this season. … Lightning D Timo Helbling assisted on Lecavalier’s goal for his first NHL point.

AP-ES-10-13-05 2224EDT


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