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BOX SCORE
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) -- After calling it "one of the ugliest games I ever saw," Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff broke into a smile and said he was "a happy man."
Stu Barnes scored 1:54 into overtime as the Buffalo Sabres ended a three-game winless streak, beating the Boston Bruins 2-1 Wednesday night. The win was Ruff's 100th with the Sabres.
|  | | Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek made 27 saves against Cameron Mann's Bruins. |
"I wrote down the things I liked in this game," Ruff said, holding a piece of paper. "Usually when we win, I write down a lot of things."
Lindy Ruff became the fourth coach in Sabres' franchise history to record 100 victories. Scotty Bowman, the Detroit Red Wings coach, is atop the list with 210 wins.
The Sabres won despite being outshot 28-17.
On a 2-on-1 break, Barnes capped a give-and-go with Vaclav Varada, snapping in the returning pass over fallen Bruins goalie John Grahame.
Jason Woolley also scored for the Sabres, who snapped an 0-2-1 streak. Buffalo won for only the second time in seven games (2-4-1).
Buffalo, which entered the night in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, remained in the thick of the playoff race.
Antti Laaksonen scored for the Bruins, who have lost five straight and are 0-5-1 in six games.
The Bruins have had a difficult week after trading away veteran defenseman Ray Bourque to Colorado on Monday and learning a day later that Marty McSorley would be charged by Vancouver police for slashing Donald Brashear of the Canucks.
"It's been tough," said Mattias Timander, one of the young group of Bruins defenseman. "But you can't let it affect you on the ice. ... We're all professionals. We have to follow our game plan. Hopefully, we'll win some games.
"We'll play until the last second of the season."
After Woolley opened the scoring 4:45 in, when his intended centering pass pinballed in off the skate of Boston defenseman Kyle McLaren, Laaksonen tied it with 10:12 left in regulation.
Capitalizing on a Buffalo miscue when defender Jay McKee fell, Laaksonen rushed in alone and snapped a 15-footer just inside the left post. It was Laaksonen's first goal of the season and second career.
Woolley's goal was the first by Buffalo in almost 135 minutes against the Bruins. The Sabres were shut out in their last two meetings with Boston, including a scoreless tie.
The Sabres played their first game without captain Michael Peca, who sustained a dislocated shoulder that could sideline him for the rest of the regular season (14 games). Peca was injured Sunday in a 2-1 loss at Washington.
Buffalo also played without Geoff Sanderson, who missed his third game with a knee sprain.
The Sabres injury woes worsened when defenseman Alexei Zhitnik injured a finger on his left hand. Ruff described the finger as either "cracked or broken."
"I think we're all going to attempt that (filling the leadership void)," Barnes said. "One thing about this team is that we have a lot of character guys on this team and I think there are a lot of guys that are going to be stepping forward, trying to help out and do more."
Brian Rolston, one of three players acquired in the deal for Bourque and Dave Andreychuk, made his Bruins debut.
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ALSO SEE
NHL Scoreboard
Boston Clubhouse
Buffalo Clubhouse
Zhitnik leaves game with possible finger fracture
Bourque shakes off pain, expects to play again Friday
RECAPS
Buffalo 2
Boston 1
Carolina 4
Chicago 1
Montreal 3
Pittsburgh 0
Philadelphia 3
Tampa Bay 2
Vancouver 3
Dallas 3
NY Rangers 4
Anaheim 3
Detroit 1
San Jose 1
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Stu Barnes scores an OT goal to beat the Bruins.
avi: 344 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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