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Sabres tease rare win before blowing huge lead for 18th straight loss

The Buffalo Sabres. That's it. That's the headline.

What else do we even say about this wretched squad at this point, one that has put forth one of the worst stretches of hockey we've seen in quite some time. Somehow, some damn way, things got even worse for the Sabres, who went full geologist mode en route to discovering a new layer of rock-bottom with an absolutely devastating defeat at the hands of the Flyers on Monday.

This loss was particularly sickening for everyone involved, as the Sabres outplayed and outshout Philly through two periods while taking a 3-0 lead into the final frame before letting the Flyers come back with four straight tallies to secure the OT win and another collapse for the Sabres.

The Buffalo Sabres gave up a 3-0 third-period lead to the Flyers en route to an NHL record-tying 18th straight loss. (Getty)
The Buffalo Sabres gave up a 3-0 third-period lead to the Flyers en route to an NHL record-tying 18th straight loss. (Getty)

There's a couple different ways of looking at this, but no matter how you chop it up, this loss put the Sabres alongside some dreadful company in the NHL history books.

According to NHL.com, the Sabres are 0-15-3 since Feb. 23, extending their NHL shootout-era record for the longest stretch without a win since ties were eliminated before the 2005-06 campaign. TSN's Frank Seravalli tweeted that Buffalo matched the NHL's longest winless streak in the 21st century at 18 games.

The NHL record for consecutive losses, according to the website, is 17, but that doesn't include overtime losses in the shootout era. The Sabres, with their 18 straight L's — including three in OT — have beat that mark and you can never tell me otherwise.

The NHL record book and historic archives sure are a little confusing sometimes, but the Sabres are not. They're just real bad.

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