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NHL Game Summary - Boston at Buffalo

Nov 4, 2010 - 3:51 AM Buffalo, NY (Sports Network) - Michael Ryder and Brad Marchand each posted a goal and one assist as Boston raced out to a four-goal lead before taking a 5-2 decision over Buffalo at HSBC Arena.

Tim Thomas moved to 7-0-0 on the year, setting a franchise record for consecutive victories to begin a season with a 33-save effort. He missed out on posting his third consecutive shutout, but surpassed Tiny Thompson's mark of six wins in a row to start the 1937-38 campaign.

"It's nice to be seven-and-oh. Today was a tough game," said Thomas. "We're very happy with the way we played in the first period getting two short-handed goals, but after that we took a lot of penalties and kinda cruised through."

Blake Wheeler, Patrice Bergeron and Milan Lucic also tallied for the Bruins, who have won three in a row and seven of eight.

Drew Stafford and Andrej Sekera scored for the Sabres, who have dropped four straight overall and have failed to win a home game this season in six attempts.

Subbing for Ryan Miller, who is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury, starter Jhonas Enroth allowed three goals on 12 shots in 20 minutes in defeat. Patrick Lalime played the final 40 minutes and stopped 12-of-13 shots.

Buffalo's first power play of the game turned into a short-handed breakaway goal by Marchand at the 3:32 mark of the first, and a second Sabres advantage turned into a second Bruins goal as Bergeron followed up his own rebound and beat Enroth on a wrister with 5:06 left in the first.

It was 3-0 exactly two minutes later as Wheeler was on the doorstep to convert a Bergeron dish.

Ryder put the visitors up by four at 2:11 of the second period when he snuck a shot through Lalime's equipment low and inside the right post.

The Sabres snapped Boston's lengthy scoreless string when Stafford stuffed home a shot from the top of the crease on a power play with 3:21 left in the second period. The score snapped Thomas' personal shutout streak at 167 minutes, 12 seconds, following back-to-back blankings of Toronto and Ottawa last week.

Sekera's rebound poke from the left side of the crease halved Buffalo's deficit with 4:34 to play, but Lucic drilled the clincher into the empty net with 2:07 remaining.

"As far as the team goes, it's my responsibility to pick them up, it's on my shoulders, first and foremost," said Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff when asked who was responsible for his club's sluggish start. (I've gotta) pick 'em up and put 'em back together, get them ready to play."