Patrick Lalime, Drew Stafford Spark Buffalo Rally

For the first 30 minutes of Tuesday's Pittsburgh-Buffalo game, it appeared as if the Penguins were going to win in a rout, jumping out to a 3-0 lead and dominating puck possession. Ryan Miller, who has been the best goalie in the NHL this season, looked ordinary, giving up three goals on just 11 shots before being lifted 1:28 into the second period in favor of backup Patrick Lalime.

And that's when things started to change.

Lalime essentially stood on his head in goal, stopping all 27 shots he faced -- including some excellent scoring chances -- to give the Sabres offense an opportunity to mount a furious comeback by scoring four goals in the final 28 minutes of regulation.

It all started when Penguins defenseman -- and former Sabre -- Jay McKee covered a loose puck in the goal crease, leading to a penalty shot that was taken by Drew Stafford.

From that point, it was a different game.

Stafford would add another goal just two minutes later and finish with a three point night. This after he was a healthy scratch during Buffalo's 5-3 win in St. Louis this past Sunday. Going back even further, Stafford entered Tuesday's game without a goal since November 27 -- or his last 15 games -- and was credited with just five assists in the process. Prior to being scratched on Sunday his ice time had been cut as he spent much of his previous two games skating on Buffalo's fourth line.

The Sabres remain on top of the Northeast Division with 52 points, and trail No. 1 seed New Jersey by just three points in the Eastern Conference standings (though, the Devils have two games in hand -- hey, it's never too early to start looking at these things).

Meanwhile, for the Penguins, it's their second consecutive tough loss after they surrendered a late goal to Ian White in a 4-3 loss against Toronto on Sunday.