BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Ryan McLeod scored on the first shot of the game, again just before the second period horn, and was awarded an empty-net goal for his first career hat trick in the Sabres' 4-2 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night at KeyBank Center. Dylan Cozens also scored, Jason Zucker had two assists, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 34 saves as Buffalo held on to its early lead against one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference despite not recording a shot on goal in the third period. After squandering a two-goal lead midway through Saturday's dispiriting 6-2 loss against the Seattle Kraken, the Sabres improved to 13-9-5 this season when scoring first. McLeod beat former Sabres goaltender Dustin Tokarski with a wrist shot from the top of the left circle 47 seconds in. It was the sixth time this season the Sabres have scored on their first shot of the game. McLeod got his first multi-goal game with the Sabres when he batted in a rebound with 3.5 seconds left in the second, and he was awarded his 10th goal of the season when Tage Thompson's shot from the opposing end of the ice hit the post, and Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burns slashed McLeod's stick into pieces on the rebound attempt. Jaccob Slavin and Martin Necas had goals for the Hurricanes in the third period. Winners in three of the past four games, and 6-3-1 since halting their 13-game winless skid, the Sabres host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night before going on a four-game road trip. *** 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.