The Sharks couldn't solve Buffalo goalie Colten Ellis on Tuesday night at SAP Center and lost 2-0 to the Sabres in front of 14,900 fans.
How it happened
After a scoreless first period, Sabres defenseman Olen Zellweger carried the puck up the left wing and beat Yaroslav Askarov on the blocker side 50 seconds into the second. Zach Benson added an empty-net goal at 19:05 of the third. Owen Power had two assists, and Tage Thompson picked up one in his 500th career game with Buffalo.
Askarov kept it close
Askarov made 38 saves. The Sharks managed only 23 shots, and Ellis stopped all of them for his first shutout of the season.
"We're not generating, but we also just give up 40 shots and a lot of chances again, so that's the bigger issue," coach Ryan Warsofsky told NHL.com.
Facing his old team
Defenseman Michael Kesselring, acquired from Buffalo on June 17, had three shots in 16:25 in his first game against his old team. "Obviously, personally, I wanted to show that they made a mistake, but we didn't win, and that's what really matters," he said.
Up next
The Sharks are now 6-6-1. Next: Vancouver at SAP Center on Thursday, then Ottawa on Halloween afternoon for Los Tiburones night.