Both teams went into the contest having won at home and on the road in the series.
The Habs, who have now won their last two in Buffalo, went behind just two minutes in. Jack Quinn went for goal, shooting into a flurry of bodies. Jason Zucker got credit for the goal, as the puck came off his leg and went in.
Montreal took four and a half minutes to tie the score, following a giveaway from the Sabres in their own half. Juraj Slafkovsky played in Nick Suzuki, who was in on goal. He picked out Cole Caufield, finishing close inside to tie things up.
The back-and-forth opening frame saw the sides trade shots, with the hosts going back in front through Josh Doan, who fired from a bit inside the blue line. Again, there were several players who blocked the goaltender's vision, with the effort finding the back of the net.
This time, Buffalo's lead lasted a mere nine seconds, as right after face-off, the Habs got their second of the night. Alexandre Texier was the one to tip Alexandre Carrier's shot into the net.
The scoring did not stop there, as midway through the period, the Sabres retook the lead. Konsta Helenius initially miscontrolled Mattias Samuelsson's pass, but recovered well to put his shot between Jakub Dobes' legs and in.
Despite outshooting Buffalo 11-7, it was Montreal who went into the first intermission behind. All of the goals came in the first 10:15 of what was a chaotic period of hockey.
After a slower start to the second frame, the Habs levelled for the third time. Josh Anderson received a centering pass from Lane Hutson, before converting into an open net.
The Canadiens, who had 23 attempts in the first two periods, went in front for the first time when Ivan Demidov's shot from the wing found a way past Pekka-Ukko Luukkonen. Jake Evans was on hand to tap it home.
Pressure was starting to tell on the Sabres, who went into this one 2-3 at home the playoffs. It got worse for them a minute and change later, when they had to try and kill a Montreal power play. Despite having a difficult angle to go for goal, Suzuki still fired a shot that found the opposite side of the net to make it 5-3.
Much of the third period saw Buffalo try to find a goal to get back into the game. Unfortunately for them, they could not finish off any of their 19 shots on net.
While they only had three efforts in the final 20 minutes, it was the Habs who scored once again. Demidov was back at it, as he fired from point-blank range to get his first playoff goal.
Montreal held onto the lead for the remainder of the period as they go up 3-2 in the series. They will have a chance to advance on Saturday as the teams return to Canada for the final time in the series.
