Buffalo Sabres defenseman Owen Power (25) celebrates his first NHL goal with teammates Vinnie Hinostroza, Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner during the third period of against the New Jersey Devils, Thursday, April 21, 2022, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

NEWARK, N.J. – In his first NHL game April 12 in Toronto, Owen Power perhaps was a tad deferential about going to the net. Understandably so. But he's a fast learner. He's started to drive down low with regularity and his first NHL goal seemed like a matter of time.

The moment came in his fifth NHL game Thursday night in Prudential Center. The record books will show it happened at 8:33 of the third period and gave the Sabres a 4-2 lead in an eventual 5-2 win over the New Jersey Devils. Those are just lines on a scoresheet. This meant much more for Power -- and the organization as a whole.

Power burned New Jersey goalie Andrew Hammond on a short shot through the legs after taking a Jeff Skinner pass and beating Devils center Pavel Zacha to the net. Skinner fell down in the New Jersey zone after taking a long stretch pass from Tage Thompson, but managed to get the puck to Power from one knee.

Asked his reaction to the goal, Power said, "it was pretty surreal. It was obviously nice just to get it out of the way."

Power celebrated with teammates at the end boards, some with their arms in the air. Skinner swooped into the crease to scoop up the puck for safekeeping before joining the party.

"I saw it as a one on one and I had beaten my guy up the ice," Power said. "So I was hoping (Skinner) would see me and lucky enough he saw me. So it was a good play."

"He's creating offense for us," Skinner said. "Everyone's excited obviously and it's also a big big point of the game. I think he's just making good reads."

The Sabres knew the 6-foot-6 Power has offensive talent. But in recent days, several players have commented on how refined his offensive game is at only 19 years old.

"The group likes it," coach Don Granato said of Power's push up the ice. "They are curious to see how effective Owen can be as well as anybody else. There's a little bit of fan in each guy in that locker room. As they get excited, and they get to know him and they see what a good person he is, it just adds to it. So it's a lot of fun."

"Everyone's kind of talked about all the strengths in his game," Skinner said. "It's gonna be exciting to watch him grow and keep progressing because he's off to a good start."

For his part, Power has been impressed with the camaraderie in the Buffalo dressing room and the way he's been invited into the action.

"It's nice when when guys on your team are excited for you to do good," he said. "That just says a lot about the group we have here. Every guy I think wants to be here and loves playing for this team. So it's it's been a ton of fun."

The Sabres (30-38-11) are 4-1 since Power joined the club. They moved one point ahead of Detroit for fifth place in the Atlantic Division with three games to play.

Power's goal came 3 1/2 minutes after Devils defenseman Nikita Okhotiuk scored his first NHL goal – in his first game – with a shot on the left wing that cut the Sabres' lead to 3-2. It was time for Power to answer.

"I wouldn't say I was pressing to get my first goal. I think that's just how I play," Power said. "I like to get up the ice, I like to jump in the play."

"He's such a talent and you could tell that he wanted it," said winger Kyle Okposo. "The last few games, he's up in the play all the time. ... Huge goal at a big time in the game and not afraid to jump up in a spot like that. It just shows his smarts and his hockey sense."

Here are some other observations on the game:

1. Pair of shorties

After 31 scoreless minutes, the Sabres took charge of the game and added to the Devils' woes on the power play as former Sabres farmhand Hammond suddenly went haywire. Okposo and Alex Tuch scored short-handed goals on the same penalty in a 47-second span of the second period to put the Sabres up 2-0. The Devils are 0 for 29 on the power play in the last 11 games and went 0 for 4 Thursday.

Okposo got his 21st goal of the season at 11:53 on a flip shot from outside the blue line that knuckled past the glove of Hammond. Tuch made it 2-0 at 12:40, surprising Hammond by backhanding a loose puck off the goalie's left leg after Hammond had stopped Victor Olofsson on a breakaway.

Deadpanned Okposo: "Well, I just picked my spot there. Just a fluky one, just a sinker. Those happen sometimes and it dove hard."

2. Sabre points

• It's the fifth time in franchise history the Sabres have scored two shorthanded goals on the same penalty. Brandon Montour last did it on March 31, 2021 against Philadelphia in the game that saw Buffalo snap its franchise-record 18-game winless streak.

• Buffalo made it 3-0 at 17:58 of the second as Rasmus Dahlin scored his 12th of the season on a broken-stick shot that hit the skate of Dawson Mercer and deflected past Hammond.  Skinner scored his 32nd of the season on a Thompson pass with 3:57 left to put the game away.

• Craig Anderson had one of his sharpest games in the last few weeks, making 29 saves. It was his 308th career win, tying retired Boston goalie Tuukka Rask for 33rd on the all-time NHL list.

3. Lessons of Lindy

New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff was denied his 783rd career win, which would have snapped a tie with New York Islanders legend Al Arbour for fifth on the all-time list. Ruff is 43-71-13 in two seasons in New Jersey. He became the Sabres' all-time victory leader with 571 from 1997-2013.

Ruff on Power prior to the game: “I think you look at a Dahlin and a Power and you look at two players that could be cornerstones for a long period of time. And those guys are hard to find.”

4. Next

The Sabres returned home after the game and will practice Friday in KeyBank Center. They host the New York Islanders Saturday at 12:30.

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