TORONTO, ON — Alex Tuch scored twice and the Buffalo Sabres overcame Toronto star Auston Matthews' third hat trick of the season to beat the Maple Leafs 6-4 on Saturday night.
JJ Peterka had a goal and an assist, Tage Thompson, Jeff Skinner and Jordan Greenway also scored and Devon Levi made 25 saves to help Buffalo improve to 6-6-0. Toronto has dropped four straight (0-2-2) to fall to 5-4-2.
Mitch Marner had a goal and three assists for Toronto, while William Nylander extended his franchise-record points streak to open a season to 11 games with an assist. Joseph Woll made 34 stops.
Tuch gave Buffalo a 5-4 lead with 7:12 left when Rasmus Dalhin’s point shot hit the big winger and caromed past Woll.
Tuch added an exclamation point with 1:06 to go when he buried his third into an empty net after fighting off Nylander and John Klingberg.
Matthews has an NHL-high 11 goals this season.
UP NEXT
Sabres: At Carolina on Tuesday night.
Maple Leafs: Host Tampa Bay on Monday night.