Sabres become first team to score a goal with no shots in a 20-minute period

The Buffalo Sabres became the first team to achieve a very unique feat on Wednesday night.

During their 4-2 win against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Sabres became the first team to score a goal without registering a shot in a full 20-minute period.

The goal occurred in the final minute of the game, when the Sabres were defending a 3-2 lead against the Hurricanes. Tage Thompson made an attempt on the empty net, but hit the post, and Ryan McLeod then rushed in on his own to bury the puck sitting right in front of the empty net. As McLeod went to shoot the puck, his stick snapped on the shot and did not make contact with the puck, so he failed to register the shot.

However, Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burn was right behind him and made a desperation dive to get the puck out of the slot. In the process of doing that, he tripped McLeod, resulting in what would traditionally be a penalty shot, but with the net empty, it results in an automatic goal, despite the fact that no shot was taken on the play.

According to Sabres’ analyst and former NHL goaltender Martin Biron, the Sabres became the first team in NHL history to score a goal in a 20-minute period without taking a shot on net. Biron mentioned that the feat has been achieved twice before, with the Detroit Red Wings doing so in 1986 and the Montreal Canadiens in 2016, but both occurred in overtime, meaning that the Sabres were the only team to do so in a full 20-minute period.

The Sabres were outshot 8-0 in the period overall, so it was a low-event period from both teams. But the Hurricanes carried the play overall, out-attempting the Sabres 33-6 and winning the expected goals battle 1.43-0.06. While the Sabres took six shot attempts in the period, none went on net, with four being blocked and two missing the net.

The goal was also McLeod’s third of the game, giving him a hat trick after scoring in the first and second period to build the Sabres’ initial 3-0 lead.