BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — A two-goal flurry in the second period uplifted the Sabres to their second win in a row. Ryan McLeod scored in his fourth consecutive game, 83 seconds after Peyton Krebs got his first of the year, Tage Thompson's explosive one-timer provided a crucial cushion in the third period, and the Sabres held on for a 4-2 win Tuesday night against the Dallas Stars, one of coach Lindy Ruff's former clubs. Owen Power tallied three assists, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 28 saves, and Thompson assisted on Alex Tuch's empy-net goal in the closing seconds. Rewarding result Winning consecutive games for the first time this season, Buffalo (3-4-1) began a four-game homestand by beating one of the league's top teams. The Stars (5-2-0) were conference finalists last year, and entered Tuesday night tied atop the West standings, having yet to trail by more than one goal in a game all season, and leading the NHL with a 1.50 goals-against average. The Sabres are finding a groove after a slow start, winning three of the past five games with 22 goals during that stretch. “We suffered a couple tough losses,” Ruff said. “I think when you deal with losses like that, the adversity can make you stronger. And I think it’s making us stronger.” "I like where our game’s at right now," said Thompson, who leads the Sabres with five goals and has points in five consecutive games. "Obviously, the record’s not what we want, but I think we’re playing a lot better hockey than our record shows right now.” Secondary scoring While Tuch (nine points) and Thompson (eight points) lead the scoring so far, the Sabres have gotten eight goals in the past five games from players on the third and fourth lines. The opening goal Tuesday night showed the hard-working style Ruff has tried to implement. Checking liners Beck Malenstyn and Krebs were both crashing the net when Power took a shot from the point. Melenstyn, who scored in Saturday night's win at Chicago, tipped the puck off the crossbar, and Krebs backhanded it into the net for his first goal in 15 games dating to last season. "The strength of a club is if you can get scoring and good defending out of every line,” Ruff said. Buffalo has the youngest lineup in the NHL for the third year in a row. But they are coming of age under old-school coaching. “Our team as a whole is just more mature,” Thompson said. “We got a lot of guys that have been here for a while, a lot of young guys that have learned." Special effort Buffalo ranked in the bottom third of the league in penalty killing entering the game, but was solid in thwarting three Dallas power plays. Particularly in the first period, Luukkonen didn't need to make a save during two power plays, as Sabres defenders committed to blocking shot lanes. Overall the Sabres blocked 27 shots, which along with the penalty kill effort, most pleased Ruff. "We did an excellent job with the details," he said. On the other end, the Sabres did not convert on their only power play, and are now 0 for 22 this season with the man-advantage. Ruff said he did like what the Sabres set up and the looks they got. "We'll get one by the end of the year," he quipped. Up next The Sabres return to the KeyBank Center ice on Saturday to play the Detroit Red Wings in the season debut for Buffalo's black and red throwback uniforms. Tuesday's game began a stretch in which the Sabres will play eight of 10 at home. They also have three days off before each of their next two games. The time is now for Buffalo to take advantage of the schedule and work its way into playoff position. *** Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.