VANCOUVER – JJ Peterka set up Juri Kulich's tying goal midway through the third period and scored the game-winner with 6:27 left as the Buffalo Sabres rallied for two goals to beat the Vancouver Canucks, 3-2, Tuesday night in Rogers Arena.

The club is last in the Eastern Conference with an 18-26-5 record and, barring an unprecedented run, the playoff drought that’s chased off season-ticket holders will reach 14 years.

The Buffalo Sabres played pretty well on Saturday in Edmonton against the Oilers, but some of the same problems that have lost them hockey games all season long cropped up again. Paul Hamilton shares

Tage Thompson had taken a shot from the point, and Jiri Kulich was parked in front of the net battling for position. When the rebound bounced toward him, he kicked it toward the net attempting to get a stick on it.

After missing a couple weeks for the Sabres due to injury, Kulich has been excellent in his return. The 20-year-old forward is carving out a new role on the team, and it's a huge

Jiri Kulich had a goal and two assists and the Buffalo Sabres rallied to beat the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 on Tuesday night. JJ Peterka also scored and had an assist for the Sabres, while Tage Thompson scored his team-leading 21st of the season.

Kulich’s final faceoff of the night came with 18 seconds remaining and the Sabres clinging to a one-goal lead in a game they desperately needed. His opponent, J.T. Miller, entered the night with a 58.7-percent success rate in the circle. Kulich won the draw and, seconds later, cleared the puck out of the defensive zone.

The Buffalo Sabres got back in the win column on Tuesday evening. After another tough matchup with the Seattle Kraken Monday, the blue and gold rebounded with a promising 3-2 win in Vancouver over the Canucks.

(AP Photo/Adrian Kraus) Buffalo Sabres center Dylan Cozens (24) celebrates with right wing Alex Tuch, left, and right wing JJ Peterka (77) after scoring during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Buffalo, N.Y ...

Jiri Kulich had a goal and two assists to help the visiting Buffalo Sabres rally for a 3-2 win against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. JJ Peterka added a goal and two assists, Tage Thompson also scored and Rasmus Dahlin had two assists for the Sabres,

Hopkins' second goal of the game snapped a tie with 11:01 left as the Connor McDavid-less Edmonton Oilers overcame a barrage of Buffalo shots in the final two periods to beat the Sabres, 3-2, Saturday at Rogers Place.

Rasmus Dahlin has recorded 15 assists in his last 15 games. Dahlin is two assists away from tying Mike Ramsey for the second-most assists (256) by a Sabres defenseman alltime. Dahlin is one goal away from tying Ramsey for the second-most goals by a defenseman in franchise history (73).