As a 20-year-old last season, Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic had a

breakout season by scoring 17 goals and quickly forging a reputation as perhaps the most

punishing hitter among NHL forwards.

But finger surgery has kept him scoreless and out for 14 games this year as the Bruins

struggled. Lucic returned to the lineup Thursday night in Atlanta but his real presence was

felt Friday in HSBC Arena.

Looking as dangerous to the Sabres as he was last season, Lucic scored his first goal this

year and again threw his weight around with regularity in the Bruins 2-1 overtime victory.

Lucic set a quick tone just 28 seconds into the game by leveling Sabres defenseman Henrik

Tallinder with a clean check to the right of the Buffalo net.

"Tallinder kind of came around the net with his head down so I just finished my check,"

Lucic said. "It was a good way to start the game for myself. It took a lot of pressure off

myself to get in there physically right away and it helped us get into the forecheck right

away."

The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder is the kind of player opposing coaches have to game plan

specifically for. Sometimes, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said before the game, it might make more

sense to let Lucic have the puck first in battles along the boards and then try to play him.

"It used to be a cowardly move to let the other guy go in [first] and now a lot of teams

treat it as a smart move because if you go in first, he puts you in the glass and gets the

puck," Ruff said.

After the game, Ruff had similar thoughts.

"He's a big, powerful man. He had a breakout year last year and he's a big part of their

hockey club," Ruff said. "To get him back is a big bonus for them. You get him in his rhythm,

he's a guy you have to watch out for. He can power his way past you, outmuscle you and knock

you off pucks."

He can also put them into the net. Bursting down the left wing on a two-on-one, Lucic pounded

home his first goal on a perfect Byron Bitz pass at 10:54 of the second period.

"I knew [Bitz] would make the pass and I had a lot of faith in him to make it," Lucic said.

"I knew he saw me streaking down and it was a great play by him. It was nice to get that first

one of the year. It just took a little longer than I hoped."

. . .

Sabres defenseman Toni Lydman returned to the lineup

Friday against Boston after missing 11 games with a groin injury.

With Lydman in, Andrej Sekera joined Nathan Paetsch as healthy scratches on defense. Mike

Grier (groin) skated lightly in the morning but there's no timetable for his return as he

missed his third straight game.

. . .

The Buffalo Sabres play the Ottawa Senators for the first time this season tonight in

Scotiabank Place and they won't have to face one of the Senators' top offensive threats.

Winger Alexei Kovalev, signed as a free agent to stem the loss of the traded-to-San-Jose

Dany Heatley, will be out of the Senators' lineup because he returned to his native Russia on

Friday because of the death of his mother-in-law.

After signing a two-year, $10 million contract with Ottawa in the offseason, Kovalev has

four goals and six assists in 18 games and has points in his last four. He had 26 goals and 39

assists last year in his fifth and final season in Montreal.

The Senators will also be without fourth-line winger Shean Donovan tonight and maybe for

the rest of the season. He suffered an undetermined knee injury when checked Thursday by

Pittsburgh's Matt Cooke.

The Sabres have struggled brutally against the Senators in recent seasons as Ottawa has won

five games in each of the last four years. Buffalo was 1-4-1 against the Sens last year and

dropped all three games in Scotiabank Place.

After a non-playoff season and the offseason trade of Heatley, Senators fans are apparently

skeptical. They did sell out their 6-2 win Thursday over Pittsburgh and reported Friday more

than 3,000 tickets were left for tonight's game. That's unheard of for a Saturday night in the

Canadian capital in recent years.

. . .

The Portland Pirates signed former Niagara University star Matt Caruana to a professional

contract Friday with the Sabres' American Hockey League club. Caruana, 24, was with Gwinnett

of the ECHL, posting six goals and two assists in 11 games.

Caruana played 18 games for Portland two years ago when the Pirates were an Anaheim

affiliate and also played for the Ducks' AHL team in Iowa last year.

Caruana, 24, had 51 goals for Niagara and his 129 career points are tied for seventh on the

school's all-time list.