Rangers break a 2-2 tie, Sabres erase two goals, Devils fall

The Rangers and Sabres won in very different ways Tuesday night. New York recovered after the Islanders erased a two-goal deficit and won 5-2 at Madison Square Garden. Buffalo waited until the third period to erase its own two-goal deficit, then beat Minnesota 3-2 in overtime. New Jersey lost 5-3 to Utah after tying that game twice.

All three results are official in the NHL game feeds. The Rangers moved to 4-1-0, Buffalo to 2-1-0 and New Jersey to 1-2-0. Those records matter more than an isolated October score, but the closing sequences already reveal three useful early-season stories.

Bjorkstrand restores the Rangers' lead

Oliver Bjorkstrand scored on the power play at 17:07 of the second period to break a 2-2 tie. That was the decisive goal. Alexis Lafreniere later completed a hat trick with two empty-net goals and finished with four points, while Mika Zibanejad recorded three assists.

The Islanders had answered Bjorkstrand's opening goal and Lafreniere's early second-period score in less than two minutes. Bo Horvat scored on the power play at 2:56 and Calum Ritchie tied it at 4:52. The Rangers did not let the response become a collapse. Bjorkstrand restored the lead before intermission, and the Islanders never scored again.

Buffalo spends the third period climbing back

Minnesota carried a 2-0 lead into the third period in Buffalo. Noah Ostlund scored at 3:55, Tage Thompson tied the game at 9:38 and Owen Power ended it 4:22 into overtime. Power and Thompson each finished with a goal and an assist. The NHL named them the first two stars, with Ostlund third.

The order matters. Buffalo did not need one frantic burst. It cut the deficit, found the equalizer almost six minutes later and then converted in overtime. That makes the win a measured comeback rather than a lucky final bounce, even if one October game cannot settle what the Sabres will become.

New Jersey ties it twice, then loses the chase

The Devils tied Utah at 1-1 and 2-2 behind two Luke Evangelista goals. Nick Schmaltz put the Mammoth ahead for good with a power-play goal at 12:05 of the second period, and Lawson Crouse made it 4-2 with 57 seconds left in the period. Jesper Boqvist brought New Jersey within one in the third, but Vincent Trocheck closed the scoring for Utah.

For New York, Bjorkstrand's second goal is the rivalry result to remember. For Buffalo, the full climb from 2-0 down is the point. New Jersey leaves with the opposite lesson: matching two leads did not matter once Utah created the third and protected it. The regional scoreboard produced two wins and one loss, but each arrived through a different pressure test.