The Buffalo Sabres clinched their first NHL playoff series victory in 18 seasons with a 4-1 win over the Boston Bruins in Game 6 of their first-round matchup on Friday night at TD Garden.

Alex Tuch opened the scoring at 3:25 of the first period with a tap-in off a centering pass from Rasmus Dahlin, followed by Mattias Samuelsson's long shot from the left circle at 12:26 to give Buffalo a 2-0 lead. David Pastrnak pulled the Bruins within one at 1:54 of the second on a one-timer during a 2-on-1 rush set up by Pavel Zacha. The Sabres sealed the victory in the third as Zach Benson scored on a feed from Josh Doan at 5:58, and Josh Norris added an empty-net goal with 3:20 remaining.

Goaltender Alex Lyon stopped 25 of 26 shots for Buffalo, while Jeremy Swayman made 22 saves for Boston. The Sabres went 0-for-4 on the power play, and the Bruins had no opportunities.

Buffalo won the best-of-seven series 4-2, sweeping all three games in Boston. The series scores were: Game 1, Sabres 4-3; Game 2, Bruins 4-2; Game 3, Sabres 3-1; Game 4, Sabres 6-1; Game 5, Bruins 2-1 (OT); Game 6, Sabres 4-1.

This marks the Sabres' first series win since beating Ottawa in the 2007 Eastern Conference finals, ending an 18-season drought. Buffalo also snapped a 14-year playoff appearance drought this season by capturing the Atlantic Division title.

"To win the series on the road -- against a team that played so well at home -- I thought our guys dug in," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. Forward Alex Tuch praised Lyon: "He was lights-out. ... Gives the bench a lot of confidence." Bruins coach Marco Sturm noted, "We felt the pressure being at home. We wanted to prove people wrong."

The second period saw physical play, including nine minutes without a stoppage. Late in the game, tempers flared when Benson tripped Charlie McAvoy, leading to a slash and penalties for both.

The Sabres advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the first time since 2007, where they will face the winner of the Montreal-Tampa Bay series. The Lightning staved off elimination with a 1-0 overtime win in Game 7.