SUNRISE, Fla. -- Robert Luongos return to Florida couldnt have been better. Luongo made 25 saves, while Dmitry Kulikov and Jesse Winchester each scored power-play goals to lead the Panthers over the Buffalo Sabres 2-0 on Friday night. Luongo, acquired in a trade with Vancouver on Tuesday, was in net for the first time for Florida since April 18, 2006. Luongo previously played for Florida from 2000-2006. "Kudos to all the guys in front of me tonight. It was really a team effort," Luongo said. "Shutouts are always nice, but at the end of the day its about the wins. We did a good job." Luongo received a warm reception from the fans, with chants of "Louuuuu" resonating from the stands after every save. "It was nice. It was a great reception right off the start of the game," Luongo said. It was the fourth shutout of the season for Luongo. His last was on Dec. 13, a 4-0 win for Vancouver over Edmonton in which he made 19 saves. It was the first regular-season shutout for the Panthers since a 2-0 win over Carolina on March 11, 2012 in which Jose Theodore had 34 saves. Michal Neuvirth stopped 42 shots in his first start for Buffalo since being acquired from Washington last Wednesday. It was a great performance by Neuvirth, seeing his first action since before the Olympic break. "This was my first time with a new team; for sure I was nervous," Neuvirth said. "Ive been practicing hard, but a game is a different story." The Panthers won for just the second time in seven games. The Sabres lost their second in six games. Florida went ahead 2-0 on its second power-play goal. Kulikov took a slap shot from above the right circle that beat Neuvirth on the stick side at 4:04 of the second period. Neuvirth never saw it coming as he was screened on the play. "I?just saw a bunch of bodies in front of the net," Kulikov said. "I was screaming for the puck because I was wide open." The Panthers scored two power-play goals for the third time this season. The last time was Dec. 3 against Ottawa. The Panthers grabbed a 1-0 lead when Winchester took a pass from Scottie Upshall in the low slot and flipped it over Neuvirths glove midway in the first period. The goal came with just 5 seconds left in a power play that lasted 6:30, including a 5-on-3 for 25 seconds. The Panthers have been woeful on the power play, entering the game 30th in the league. That extended penalty was due to a delay of game on Matt DAgostini. About 30 seconds later, Buffalos Marcus Foligno drew a five-minute major and a game misconduct when he drove Brandon Pirri into the boards. Pirri left briefly, but returned later in the period. "I dont think it was worthy of getting kicked out of the game," Foligno said. "That put our team in a tough position and I think it was a tough call to make." The Sabres were outshot 30-13 through the first two periods, and 44-25 in the game. They may have been sluggish after playing their second game in as many nights, beating Tampa Bay 3-1 on Thursday. That victory was costly as the Sabres lost forwards Zemgus Girgensons and Chris Stewart with lower body injuries. "Back-to-back games this late in the season, its tough for anybody," Sabres coach Ted Nolan said. "For two nights in a row, it was really tough." It didnt get any better on Friday, as defenceman Alexander Sulzer suffered a lower body injury and will be out one to two weeks, according to Nolan. The Panthers were awarded a penalty shot in the second period when Drew Stafford tripped Sean Bergenheim skating in on Neuvirth. But Neuvirth easily stopped Bergenheims shot with his stick. NOTES: Buffalo recalled Luke Adam and Nicolas Deslauriers from AHL Rochester due to injuries. Both played in Fridays game, with Deslauriers making his NHL debut. ... Florida C Vincent Trocheck made his NHL debut after being called up from AHL San Antonio on Wednesday. ... Upshall has six points in his last seven games. Fake Vans From China . -- Cam Newton pranced into the end zone, placed his hands over his chest and did his familiar Superman pose. Wholesale Fake Vans . - The Oakland Athletics say they are stopping negotiations to extend their lease at the Coliseum. http://www.fakevans.com/fake-vans-old-skool/. He left in the 4th inning of Saturdays game against the Tigers after experiencing tightness. Reyes and the team still hope that he will be ready for Opening Day in Tampa Bay in one week. Fake Vans For Sale . The thunderous cheers quickly changed to an appreciative chant: "Ma-son! Ma-son! Ma-son! Headed to New York with new life, Mason sure earned this curtain call. Fake Vans Free Shiping .com) - Even-money favorite Liams Map proved a little too tough down the stretch and won Saturdays $100,000 Harlans Holiday Stakes at Gulfstream Park.Jon Lester tries to make it four straight wins in an Oakland uniform on Sunday when the Athletics close out a three-game series with the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. You can catch all of the action live on TSN2 starting at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. Lester improved to 7-0 in his last 11 starts on Tuesday in Kansas City, as he held the Royals to three runs and six hits in six innings to improve to 13-7 overall on the year to go along with a 2.52 ERA. Since arriving from Boston, Lester is 3-0 with a 2.51 ERA. In addition to being unbeaten the last 11 times hes taken the ball, hes also pitched to a 1.46 ERA. Lester has faced the Braves three times and is 2-1 against them with a 3.32 ERA. Getting the call for Atlanta on Sunday will be lefty Mike Minor, who has lost three of his last four starts. Minor fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, as he allowed three runs and eight hits in 6 2/3 innings, dropping him to 4-8 with a 5.33. Minor had pitched to a 7.33 ERA in his previous 10 starts. "Things were just easy," Minor said. "There was no time where I was pressured or I felt like I couldnt make a pitch or scared almost like, Dont miss the barrel or dont miss here. It was one of those starts where I felt Im kind of back where I want to be." Atlanta added to Oaklands recent woes on Saturday, as Chris Johnson went 3- for-4 with a pair of RBI in the Braves4-3 win.dddddddddddd Andrelton Simmons added two hits, including an RBI single, while Freddie Freeman continued his hot hitting by lacing a run-scoring double to support six effective innings from Julio Teheran. Teheran (11-9) yielded just four hits, one a two-run homer from Stephen Vogt, and three walks to end a three-start losing streak and help the Braves post consecutive victories for the first time since taking three straight from San Diego on July 26-28. Atlanta had dropped 12 of 16 prior to Fridays 7-2 triumph in the opener of this three-game series. "Weve been swinging the bat well, pitchings been good," said Freeman. "Got to keep going out there and keep going tomorrow and hopefully we can complete the sweep." John Jaso had a solo homer for the As, but Sonny Gray struggled over 5 1/3 innings in losing his fourth straight start. The young right-hander was tagged for four runs on eight hits. With Saturdays setback, Oaklands fourth in a row and sixth in seven games, the As had 106-day stay of sole possession of first place in the AL West. Oakland is now percentage points behind Anaheim for the top spot after the Angels downed Texas on Saturday. "I think anything can go against us right now," said Gray. "We have to get out of it a little bit." ' ' '