Buffalo Sabres rout Columbus Blue Jackets, who lose Monahan and Voronkov

Things couldn't have gone much worse for the Blue Jackets in a 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 6 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo to finish a set of back-to-back games that started Oct. 5 in Columbus with a 2-1 shootout win over the Dallas Stars.More: Zach Werenski sparks Columbus Blue Jackets' shootout win over Dallas StarsDespite trailing just 2-1 after the first period, another bad second period led to another game getting out of hand while the Blue Jackets (7-8-0) dropped to 0-3-0 in back-to-back finales — all in road games following victories at home.Josh Norris scored two goals to lead the Sabres (8-5-3), who also got goals from Rasmus Dahlin, Jack Quinn and Josh Doan. Owen Power assisted on Buffalo's first three goals, as 10 different Sabres players contributed with points. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen started in net for Buffalo and earned the win with 24 saves.Kent Johnson and Zach Werenski scored goals for the Blue Jackets, while Jet Greaves allowed five goals and took his fourth straight loss in net. Greaves allowed a couple goals he probably should've stopped, but mostly was put into difficult situations while his team was outshot 37-26 and massively outplayed most of the game.Johnson's goal tied it 1-1 late in the first period and Werenski's second goal of the season, and second in as many games, was window dressing to cap a power play late in the third.Blue Jackets lose Sean Monahan, Dmitri VoronkovAs if getting blown out wasn't bad enough, the Blue Jackets also lost forwards Sean Monahan and Dmitri Voronkov to injuries in the second and third periods. Both left the game and didn't return. Monahan, who assisted Johnson's goal, blocked a shot late in the second period left with a lower-body injury, while Voronkov left with an apparent upper-body injury in the third.Josh Norris quick rip! 🚀#LetsGoBuffalopic.twitter.com/RmifqdKVae— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) November 7, 2026Turning pointJust 2:10 after Johnson tied it 1-1 late in the first for the Blue Jackets, Norris scored the first of his goals to give the Sabres the lead back at 2-1 with 1:50 left in the opening frame.Adam Fantilli couldn't handle Denton Mateychuk's pass in the neutral zone, the Sabres immediately turned it into a scoring chance and Norris beat Greaves with a shot between the pads. Buffalo took momentum into the first intermission and carried it into a dominant second period.BLAST OFF! 🚀 pic.twitter.com/809afSL7kw— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) November 7, 2026Goal of the gameBuffalo came out flying in the second, dominated possession inside the Blue Jackets' zone and made it 3-1 on Dahlin's one-timer from above the right circle just 4:30 into the period. Getting himself set to take the shot, Dahlin blasted the puck into the top right corner of the net with a slapper off Peyton Krebs' feed that topped 95 miles per hour.Placing a shot moving that fast into a corner to clearly beat a goalie from distance showed just one of the many skills that made Dahlin the No. 1 overall pick for the Sabres in 2018.Save of the gameLeading 5-1 starting the third, Luukkonen made a nifty snag of a hard wrist shot from Coyle to preserve the four-goal lead 1:13 into the third. Coyle received the puck above the left circle and fired his shot at the far side from near the faceoff dot on that side of the ice.Blue Jackets lineup notesMonahan was given a promotion from the third line to the top, which paid off with his assist on Johnson's goal. The move sent Adam Fantilli to the second line, where he centered a group that had Valeri Nichushkin and and Conor Garland as wingers.Forwards Luca Del Bel Belluz and Ryan Lomberg were also scratched in favor of rookie Jack Williams and veteran Steven Lorentz, who were recalled from the AHL's Cleveland Monsters after the Blue Jackets' 2-1 shootout win Oct,. 5 over the Dallas Stars.Up nextThe Blue Jackets will face the Florida Panthers on Oct. 10 at Nationwide Arena in a rematch against a team that blew their doors off 7-3 on Oct. 13 in the same building.Dispatch Blue Jackets/Crew reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.comThis article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Buffalo Sabres rout Columbus Blue Jackets, who lose Monahan and Voronkov