Sabres 2, Capitals 1 (SO)

[January 13, 2014]  WASHINGTON — Sabres 2, Capitals 1 (SO): Cody Hodgson returned to the lineup and scored the lone goal of the shootout in the third round as Buffalo snapped an 11-game road winless skid (0-9-2).

Washington nearly seized a 2-1 lead with 53 seconds left in the third period, but defenseman Karl Alzner's apparent goal was waved off as teammate Nicklas Backstrom was whistled for a tripping penalty. Buffalo registered all five shots in a fruitless overtime before Hodgson wristed the puck inside the right post to end the bonus format.

Tyler Ennis scored a power-play goal, Hodgson notched an assist and Ryan Miller finished with 28 saves for the Sabres, who also posted a 2-1 shootout victory over the Capitals on Dec. 29.

Jason Chimera scored and Joel Ward had an assist to extend his point streak to four games. Philipp Grubauer turned aside 30 shots for Washington, which has dropped five of its last seven (2-2-3).

Chimera's attempted centering feed from the left faceoff circle fluttered off the stick of Buffalo's Brian Flynn and past Miller 11:01 into the first period to open the scoring. The Sabres answered just over seven minutes later as defenseman Christian Ehrhoff's shot from the right circle was denied, but the puck caromed off the skate of Hodgson in front before Ennis snapped it home.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Miller, who made a season-high 49 saves in the teams' previous meeting, preserved a 1-1 tie with just over two minutes left in the third period by stopping C Mikhail Grabovski with the blade of his stick. ... Buffalo avoided matching a franchise-record 12-game road winless streak, which was established from Dec. 17, 2011-Jan. 21, 2012. ... Hodgson had been sidelined since blocking a shot by Boston D Torey Krug on Dec. 19. ... Buffalo LW Ville Leino also returned to the lineup after suffering a lower-body injury on New Year's Eve. ... Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin saw his four-game point streak come to an end, but Ward has collected one goal and three assists on his stretch.

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.