BUFFALO, N.Y. _ The Devils, even with the rust of the All-Star break still in their game, came much closer to resembling the playoff contender they seemed to be up until a month ago.
Having leading scorer Taylor Hall back in the lineup certainly had a lot to do with that.
Hall scored the third-period winner as the Devils defeated the Eastern Conference-worst Sabres, 3-1, on Tuesday night at KeyBank Center to snap a four-game losing streak and keep pace in the tight Metropolitan Division race.
Keith Kinkaid, also returning from an injury, made 27 saves for the Devils (25-16-8) as Jake McCabe's power-play goal at 14:58 of the third period spoiled his bid for his first shutout this season.
Robin Lehner made 25 stops for the Sabres (14-27-9), who had a three-game winning streak snapped. Kyle Palmieri clinched it with an empty-net goal with 5.9 seconds to go.
The Devils' 2-7-3 slump started on Dec. 29 with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Sabres at Prudential Center as the Sabres came back from a two-goal deficit, but Hall's potential third-period winner was overturned on a coach's challenge for offside.
There was no challenge, though, on his third-period goal on Tuesday, which gave the Devils a 2-0 lead at 5:31 as Hall wound up from the top of the left circle. Lehner was able to get his glove on the shot but could not stop it fully.
The end of the All-Star break brought upon the busiest stretch of the Devils season as they will play their final 34 games _ including Tuesday night's game _ over 68 days, including 14 games in the 28-day February.
For the Devils, who have not made the playoffs since 2012, it will be a tough challenge to break their postseason drought.
"Games at this time of the year are a lot different than the start of the year," said Hall, who has yet to reach the playoffs as he's in his eighth NHL season. "There's a lot less open ice. The goals are harder to come by. The referees probably aren't calling as many penalties so five on five and having a good start and gaining momentum right off the bat is a huge part of the game.
"It's a good challenge for us," Hall added. "A lot of players really haven't gone through that, myself included."
Hall missed three games with an injured right thumb and the Devils in that span were shut out twice and scored just two goals, with the power play going 0 for 11.
"He's such an identity player for us in how we want to play," Devils coach John Hynes said. "He's a momentum changer for us."
Kinkaid also sat out three games after exiting a 3-1 loss at Philadelphia on Jan. 20 at 12:15 of the first period as he allowed three goals on seven shots. Both he and Mueller, who fractured his left clavicle on Nov. 12 and missed 31 games, were activated off injured reserve earlier on Tuesday.
To fit in Mueller, Hynes dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen.
Miles Wood, just four goals shy of Hall's 18 for the team lead, gave the Devils a 1-0 lead at 5:49 of the second period as Will Butcher fed him the puck in the neutral zone and Wood's burst of speed got him through the Sabres defense and to the crease, where he slipped a backhander past Lehner. That snapped Lehner's shutout streak at 145:15.
It was somewhat of a busy first period for Hall as he returned from his injury as he had two of the Devils' nine shots plus an ugly boarding penalty on Sabres right wing Kyle Okposo at 7:42 that could have been called as a five-minute major.
But as he exited the penalty box, Hall had the Devils' most dangerous first-period chance as Lehner stopped his tip try at the crease.
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