Matthew Knies scored twice and added an assist in his Columbus debut, powering the Blue Jackets to a 6-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night — the franchise’s first season-opening victory in five years.
Knies, acquired from Toronto on Monday, became the first Columbus player to score twice in his Blue Jackets debut, and his three points tied the franchise debut record set by Artemi Panarin in 2017. Cole Sillinger, Adam Fantilli, Sean Monahan and Mathieu Olivier also scored for Columbus, Charlie Coyle added three assists, Zach Werenski had two, and Jet Greaves stopped 23 shots.
Mattias Samuelsson, Jack Quinn and Konsta Helenius scored for Buffalo, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 16 saves. Samuelsson opened the scoring before Sillinger tied it late in the first period, and Knies’ power-play goal with 2:02 left in the frame started a run that gave Columbus a 3-1 lead.
Columbus has now won four straight home games against Buffalo. The Blue Jackets host Utah on Saturday night.
