MITTELSTADT SEALS SHOOTOUT WIN OVER PANTHERS

N.Y.» Casey Mittelstadt BUFFALO, and Jack Eichel scored shootout goals and the Buffalo Sabres matched their best start to a season in 10 years with a 3-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Friday night.

Kyle Okposo set up goals by Johan Larsson and defenseman Marco Scandella on a night the Sabres top two lines were held without a point, and their potent power play finished 0 for 4. Zemgus Girgensons also had two assists.

Buffalo improved to 4-0-1 under new coach Ralph Krueger, and opened with three straight home wins for the first time since 2008-09.

Linus Ullmark finished with 41 saves on a night Buffalo squandered a 2-0 third-period lead.

Mike Hoffman forced overtime by scoring with 11 seconds left. Left open in the right circle, he waited patiently before snapping a shot over Ullmark’s left shoulder.

Sergei Bobrovsky had little chance on either of Buffalo’s goals, and finished with 41 saves through overtime — including three key stops over the final 1:45 of the extra frame. His best save came with 45 seconds left in overtime when he kicked out his left pad out to stop Mittelstadt set up at the post.

Bobrovsky was coming off a 6-3 loss to Carolina on Tuesday in which he was yanked after allowing four goals on 14 shots in the first period.

Eichel scored on Buffalo’s first shootout attempt by banking in a shot off the right post. After Florida’s Vincent Trocheck and Aleksander Barkov failed on their attempts, Mittelstadt sealed the victory by backhanding a shot inside the crossbar.

Ducks 2, Blue Jackets 1.

Ryan Miller had 26 saves in his first start of the season, lifting the Anaheim Ducks to a win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Jakob Silverberg and Cam Fowler scored for the Ducks, who have won four of their first five to start the season. The 39-year-old Miller was terrific after being slotted in for starter John Gibson on the second night of a back-to-back.

Hurricanes 5, Islanders 2.

N.C.» Dougie Hamilton RALEIGH, and Andrei Svechnikov each had a goal and an assist as the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders and improved to 5-0-0 for the first time in franchise history. — The Associated Press