BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Sabres leading scorer Tage Thompson passed concussion-related tests after being struck in the head by New Jersey Devils forward Stefan Noesen, coach Lindy Ruff said Sunday.
Noesen faces potential further discipline after being issued a match penalty for elbowing Thompson in the face. The NHL will determine whether Noesen intended to injure Thompson on the play that happened at 5:11 into the third period of the Sabres' 4-3 victory Sunday.
Thompson was lunging for the puck near the blue line when Noesen knocked it away and continued charging into Thompson. The hit knocked Thompson's helmet off and spun him around.
Thompson was down on the ice for a moment before rising to one knee and skating off on his way to the dressing room. Ruff said Thompson "is good, passed all the tests" after the hit and is expected to be available to practice Monday.
"I didn't watch the replay of hit until after the game," Ruff said. "Definitely a hit that you don't like. That penalty was well deserved. I know I had a couple of guys that wanted to go after [Noesen] right away. And where we were at in the game, there was going to be a time to even the score."
Noesen did not speak to reporters after the game. Devils coach Sheldon Keefe did not address the hit in his postgame comments.
The Sabres did not respond on the ice. Jack Hughes scored a shorthanded goal 21 seconds after Noesen's penalty to get the Devils within one. The Sabres killed two penalties in the third to avoid losing for the seventh time this season after holding a multigoal lead.
"Our response is we won," said the Sabres' Jason Zucker, who scored on a pass from Thompson to give Buffalo a 4-1 lead late in the second period. "[Noesen] made two plays that cost their team the win. So, we'll take that all day."
Noesen was trailing the play on Buffalo's fourth goal and pushed Zucker into the net after he scored.
"Why isn't there a call after he gets cross-checked after he scores a goal?" Ruff said. "In a game where there's all kinds of strange calls, why isn't there a call on that?"
Thompson had a goal and two assists in helping the Eastern Conference's last-place team win its third game in a row. Thompson's 26 goals rank among the top 10 in the NHL, and he leads the Sabres with 48 points in 47 games.
Rasmus Dahlin had two assists to move ahead of Mike Ramsey for the second-most points among Sabres defenseman with 331.
The Sabres' three-game win streak is their fifth this season. They have not won four in a row since January 2023.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.