BUFFALO, N.Y. – Jiri Hudler tied it with 58 seconds remaining and Pavel Datsyuk also scored in regulation, then they each had goals in the shootoout to lift the Detroit Red Wings over the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 on Saturday night.
Datsyuk and Hudler both went to the right side in beating Buffalo goalie Ryan Miller in the shootout and giving the Red Wings their fifth straight road win.
Detroit backup goalie Joey MacDonald, who stopped 30 shots, made saves on Drew Stafford and Thomas Vanek in the shootout.
Hudler's goal with time running out completed Detroit's comeback from 2-0 down in the first period.
Andrej Sekera and Mike Grier scored for Buffalo, which failed in its bid to win a third straight game for new owner Terry Pegula.
Miller made 35 saves but the Sabres couldn't make up ground on Carolina, which lost to Montreal, for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Detroit's Mike Modano played in his first game after missing 41 games with a slashed wrist, and Valtteri Filppula returned after an eight-game absence because of a knee injury. Both were in the starting lineup for Detroit, and Modano took the game's first shot on a backhander 14 seconds in.
Sekera, who sat the last three games as a healthy scratch, opened the scoring with 7:05 left in the first period. He took possession of the puck in his own zone and streaked up the right side, ending the rush with a backhander from the circle which went over MacDonald's left shoulder.
Two minutes later, Grier bumped the lead to 2-0 on a tap-in from the slot after receiving a crisp pass by Sekera from the left corner. Grier, who also scored Friday against Ottawa, netted goals in back-to-back games for the first time since October 2009.
During the game's first power play early in the second period, Miller made four saves and was also helped by Niklas Kronwall and Dan Cleary each clanging shots off goal posts.
Datsyuk got Detroit on the board midway through the second during their next man-advantage. He wristed in a rebound after his initial shot was blocked.
Detroit improved to 5-0 against the Northeast Division. The Red Wings will continue their five-game road trip with four games, all against Pacific Division opponents.
Buffalo will embark on a seven-game road trip starting Tuesday at the New York Rangers. The trek will match the longest in team history; they also had seven-game trips in 2008 and 2010.
NOTES: Before this season, the most games Modano had even missed in a season was 30, in 1997-98 with Dallas. ... Buffalo D Jordan Leopold was scratched with an upper body injury. He missed his first game of the season. ... Detroit F Drew Miller, the brother of Sabres goalie Ryan, was a healthy scratch. ... Buffalo has scored a power play goal in only two of its last nine games. ... The Sabres are 35-12 against the Red Wings all-time at home, with eight ties and one shootout loss. ... Earlier Saturday, Buffalo captain Craig Rivet was claimed on re-entry waivers by Columbus.
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