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Sabres improve to 10-0 on road, 3-0 vs. Hurricanes in 2006-07

Nov 14, 2006 - 2:46 AM RALEIGH, North Carolina (Ticker) -- The Carolina Hurricanes went on a magical run last season. But this year, it appears to be the Buffalo Sabres who are destined for greatness.

The Sabres got third-period goals from Adam Mair, Derek Roy, Paul Gaustad and Jochen Hecht as they remained perfect on the road this season with a wild 7-4 victory over the Hurricanes.

Buffalo (15-1-1) matched the franchise record with its 10th straight road win, tying the mark set in the 1983-84 season. The NHL record is 12 consecutive road victories, set by the Detroit Red Wings last season.

"We've been playing really well on the road," Sabres goaltender Martin Biron said. "We've been coming back a lot. We came back against Boston. We won in overtime in New York. We found a way to win in Philly when we were down late in the third. We're finding ways to win on the road and that's good for us."

The Sabres squandered a 3-0 advantage against the defending Stanley Cup champions but recovered to win for the third time in as many meetings against the team that eliminated them in last season's Eastern Conference finals.

"We've got a good young team," Buffalo defemseman Teppo Numminen said. "We've got a good mix of players and great goaltending. We have a balanced team for the new NHL. We were close last year and hopefully we can be better this year."

Carolina captain Rod Brind'Amour forged a 3-3 tie with 13:37 to play, but Buffalo went back ahead just 46 seconds later on Mair's first goal of the season.

The play developed right off a faceoff as Thomas Vanek sent the puck to the front of the net and Mair shoveled it past goaltender Cam Ward.

"When it was tied 3-3, it was good to score," Mair said. "That was a big lift for our team. I think we settled into the third period after that."

Roy netted an unassisted tally less than four minutes later and Gaustad scored with 6:49 left - both goals coming on the power play. Hecht added an empty-netter in the final minute to cap the scoring.

Roy scored after a loose puck popped into the air and came down to him in the slot. He, Mair and Gaustad entered with a total of four goals on the season.

"My job is to stay ready and be prepared to go out when (coach Lindy Ruff) says," Mair said. "Sometimes it is harder than people think, but you've got to stay focused on the action. When you get out there, you have to make the most of your opportunities."

Buffalo initially jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period behind goals from Vanek, Jason Pominville and Hecht.

Justin Williams got Carolina on the board midway through the second period and Ray Whitney buried a rebound four minutes later to make it 3-2. Brind'Amour knotted the game when he beat Biron between the pads from a sharp angle.

"It was an awful first period," Hurricanes defenseman Mike Commodore said. "We (were) down 3-0. It's tough to come back against any team, especially to a team that's only lost one or two overtime games all year."

Roy, Numminen, Daniel Briere and defenseman Dmitri Kalinin each had two assists for the Sabres, who scored at least four goals for the 12th time in 17 games and handed the Hurricanes their first defeat in four outings.

"I thought we battled ourselves back into the game and gave ourselves a chance to win the game," Carolina defenseman Bret Hedican said. "We came out flat but we battled back and showed a lot of character getting back into the game."