Sabres' win over the Lightning leaves Jon Cooper frustrated, tightens division race

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A few weeks ago, the Buffalo Sabres beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 8-7 in a game that had 102 penalty minutes, five fights and the type of emotion that’s usually reserved for the postseason.On Monday, the two teams met for a rematch. The sequel didn’t have the same fisticuffs. There were 26 combined penalty minutes, but none were for fighting and only eight were for roughing. The Sabres didn’t mind, though. After back-to-back losses on the road, they returned home to play in front of a rowdy crowd in Buffalo for the first time since ending a league-record playoff drought. The Sabres fed off that energy and put together one of their most complete performances in weeks.Advertisement