Sabres 2, Devils 1 F/SO

Brodeur made this gem of a save against Pominville in the opening seven minutes of the game.

The Devils suffered a rare shootout loss on Wednesday, falling 2-1 to the Buffalo Sabres at HSBC Arena.

Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville scored in the shootout for the Sabres, who handed the Devils their second straight defeat. Ryan Miller stopped attempts by Zach Parise and Jamie Langenbrunner, as New Jersey's shootout record dipped to 6-2.

Hecht responded to Martin Brodeur's quick poke-check attempt with a deke of his own in the second round of the shootout. Pominville sealed it with a goal in the next round that sneaked underneath Brodeur's catching glove.

Brodeur finished with 30 saves, while Miller made 39 stops in a game that featured a potential Olympic matchup. Miller will likely be the starter for the United States, while Brodeur looks to earn the starting nod for Canada next month in Vancouver.

"I didn't make my mind up until he got close," Brodeur said of his play on Hecht. "I thought he wasn't really looking at me."

Brian Rolston scored his 16th of the season in the second period, tying the contest at 1-1 after Adam Mair had drawn first blood for the Sabres in the opening frame.

The Devils (34-16-2) picked up a point in the standings and now lead Pittsburgh by three in the Atlantic Division. Jersey's Team returns home to host Toronto on Friday and Los Angeles on Sunday.

"We did a good job of creating opportunities, but we didn't finish," said Langenbrunner, who was whistled for goalie interference eight minutes into the third period after delivering a blow to Miller's head, then struck Miller in the mask with a slap shot in overtime. "(Miller) bailed them out of a few situations."

Brodeur, meanwhile, rebounded from a poor start against Ottawa on Tuesday in which he was pulled after allowing three goals on 12 shots over the first two periods.

New Jersey was playing its fourth game in six nights, while the Sabres returned Tuesday from their season-long seven-game swing out west.

Mair gave Buffalo the early lead with his second of the year with 5:46 to go in the first period. Standing in front of the net, Mair was able to get a piece of Derek Roy's slap shot from the top of the right circle.

Rolston tied it with his 16th with 5:09 remaining in the second period. After a long pass from Johnny Oduya at the red line, Rolston raced along the left wing before unleashing a slap shot from the left circle that beat Miller on the short side.

"When you get more chances, you want to win," Devils coach Jacques Lemaire said. "You get a point, but this is a game that I felt we should have won."

NOTES: Brodeur dropped to 5-1-2 in his last eight against the Sabres. ... There were only two penalties called in the game.

with AP wire services