Andreas Athanasiou was unable to make an offensive impact on the Los Angeles Kings’ offense for much of this season due to a long list of injuries.
Athanasiou showed what he can do by scoring twice in a win over the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday, his first game back since missing five games due to an unidentified illness.
With Detroit having a record-setting 30 goals in his career, the seventh-year forward opened the scoring with his 100th career goal from a 2-on-1 break at 3:05 left in the second period. Athanasiou scored the first of L.A.’s empty-net goals in overtime to seal the Kings’ seventh win in nine.
Athanasiou said, “Anytime you can put puck in the back, it’s definitely an confidence booster,” after he played his 20th game.
Trent Yawney, the faith assistant coach to Buffalo, was a huge boost. He had him on the ice after Buffalo pulled their goalie.
He said, “Those are huge moments and big times in a game, and obviously you want be out there and to be able get the puck out to ice the game,” he continued. It worked out well.
Cal Peterson made 19 saves for his second shutout in a season, and fourth career. Dustin Brown also got a shutout.
With 8:55 left, the Sabres appeared to have avoided a major crisis when top-line forward Alex Tuch crashed into the left post in a partial short-handed escape.
Don Granato stated that initial tests did not rule out a head injury. However, Tuch will undergo further testing to make sure there were no other injuries.
Petersen stopped Tuch’s initial shot and he tapped the rebound towards the net. Tuch’s momentum didn’t stop and he crashed into the net, appearing to hit the post with his right arm.
After winning over Minnesota and Toronto, the Sabres lost a chance at winning three consecutive games for the second time since opening the season 3-0. Dustin Tokarski made 29 saves to drop to 1-4-1 after nearly two months of COVID-19 treatment.
After receiving a long pass by Mikey Anderson, Athanasiou broke down the left wing and fired an attempt from the left circle. It appeared that Casey Fitzgerald was being tipped off and it sailed over Tokarksi’s left shoulder.
The Kings, who allowed the most shots per game in the league when they entered the game, then stepped up and outshot the Sabres by 10-5 in the final 23 minutes, and 32-19 overall.
Granato stated that the Kings’ ability to stop chances after gaining the lead was “as focused as you’ll ever see” “The game’s first goal is crucial. They won it. They scored the first goal. From that point on, they were able anchor down.
Petersen denied Buffalo its best scoring opportunities in the final minute.
The goalie pushed his blocker to the top with 25 seconds left and took a piece from Jeff Skinner’s shot in the slot. Petersen was driving alone to the net when he got his glove up and stopped Tage Thompson’s backhand.
Yawney said that the game was “probably very close to our identity, as a group,” and has been filling in for Todd McLellan over the past 10 days. “Those close games are the only thing our guys feel comfortable with.”
Yawney made a joke about being happy to give McLellan the duties. McLellan is expected to rejoin the team on Monday.
“Yeah, I’m done now. I did my job. It’s up for him now,” Yawney said, going 4-2 in McLellan’s absence.
INJURY UPDATES
After suffering a lower-body injury in the third period, Kings LW Viktor Arvidsson (who scored three goals in a 4-3 OT victory at Columbus on Friday) did not return to action. LW Brendan Lemieux was not able to play and is currently listed as day-to-day with a left leg injury. He sustained the injury in the first period against Columbus. Vinnie Hinostroza, Sabres forward, was activated from injured reserve after missing 18 games due to a lower-body injury.
UP NEXT
Kings: Monday night’s four-game road swing continues at the Bruins
Sabres: Florida Panthers host on Monday night
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81
Barcelona beats Elche to continue climbing up the Spanish league.
Barcelona showed its offensive strength on Sunday by resorting to goal-hungry substitutes in order to salvage a win and maintain momentum in the Spanish league.
Memphis Depay and Ferran Torres were on the bench for the second-half goals. Barcelona won 2-1 against Elche to maintain its climb in the standings.
“It’s amazing to be able all these forwards to the bench,” Barcelona coach Xavi Martinez said. “Today they made the difference.”
The win moved Barcelona up one spot to third, equal in points with fourth-place Atletico Madrid who beat Real Betis 3-1. Barcelona was the only team to finish the round in the top 3 since the opening round.
Xavi stated, “It was a crucial victory to allow us to continue fighting.” “We are on track.”
It will be more difficult to move higher. Barcelona is currently 15 points behind league leader Real Madrid. Real Sociedad defeated Barcelona 4-1 on Saturday. Sevilla is currently in second place, with a score of 0-0 at Alaves Friday. Barcelona is seven points behind.
Barcelona holds a game on Madrid and Sevilla.
Just before halftime, the hosts scored the opening goal after Pedri Gonz’s clearance was mistakenly converted into a pass for Elche forward Fidelchaves. Chaves entered the area and fired a low shot in the far corner.
In the 60th, Barcelona equalized with a goal from Torres. Torres came in for Gavi paez at halftime. Ousmane Dembele was back in good terms with the club, having refused to leave during the winter transfer window. He set up the goal by scoring a cross from the right.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was replaced by Depay. He converted an 84-minute penalty kick after a video review due to a handball.
Elche complained loudly about the handball against Barcelona in the area that was not called at the end of the match.
After scoring five goals in the last three games, Aubameyang was left scoreless.
Barcelona had won all three of its previous matches in all competitions with four goals scored each time. Since January’s round 16 Copa del Rey match against Athletic Bilbao, it has not lost eight consecutive games.
Barcelona managed to improve its attack despite financial difficulties. In the winter transfer window, Torres and Aubameyang were added to the squad. Adama Traore was also brought on as a substitute for Lionel Messi in the second half. Luuk de Jong was also an option for Xavi Sunday.
Xavi stated that it was difficult to exclude players who are worthy to be on the field. “I must make these decisions, and it’s great to have many options to choose from.”
Elche was sitting 14th after a demoralizing loss of 3-0 at Levante.
ATLETICO RECOVERES 4TH PLACE
Joao Felix scored twice, and Thomas Lemar added another as Atletico beat Betis 3-1 to take fourth place and secure the final Champions League spot.
Diego Simeone’s team won the league for the third time in a row. Barcelona is currently tied on the head to head tiebreaker.
Felix stated, “We are experiencing a positive moment again.” “Our attitude is positive and the results are showing.”
Betis, who reached Thursday’s Copa del Rey final on Thursday, fell to fifth with its second consecutive league defeat.
ZIDANE FALTERS
Luca Zidane (son of Zinedine Zidane’s former France great goalkeeper) made a few crucial mistakes as Rayo Vallecano fell to 2-0 at Cadiz. Goals from Ruben Alcaraz, OussamaIdrissi, and Oussama Zidane were the highlights.
Zidane allowed a weak header to get past him for Cadiz’s first goal in 55th. Then, he failed to hold onto the ball after a routine crossing that led to Cadiz’s second goal in 63rd.
Cadiz (18th) won the league at home for the first time this season, moving one point away from safety.
Rayo is still without Radamel Falcao (injured Colombian forward) and has lost six of the seven previous games in all competitions. Last week, Rayo drew 1-1 against Betis in a result that saw it eliminated from the Copa del Rey semifinals.
CELTA WINS LATE
Celta Vigo conceded an equalizer at the 87th, but Iago Aspas converted a penalty kick to win the game seven minutes into the final stoppage. This was a thrilling 4-3 win against Mallorca. With the win at home, Celta moved up to 10th while Mallorca remained in the relegation zone.
