SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- After a rocky start to 2016, things are looking much better for the Buffalo Sabres recently.

On Tuesday, Buffalo used a trio of first-period goals to spur a 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild as they won back-to-back games for the first time in a month.

Left winger Jamie McGinn, defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen and right winger Brian Gionta all scored in the opening stanza as the Sabres (17-22-4) built a lead they would not relinquish. Buffalo snapped a six-game losing streak on Sunday in Winnipeg, and has now won two in a row.

Defenseman Ryan Suter scored short-handed for Minnesota and added an assist when left winger Thomas Vanek got a goal late. The Wild got 20 saves from goaltender Devan Dubnyk but lost their second consecutive game falling to 22-13-8.

"What's nice is we had a two-goal lead going into the third and we were able to finish it off," Gionta said. "Those are the games that we mature and we learn how to win as a team. Obviously, the start helped. You jump out to an early lead like that in the first; you can settle into your game and really kind of grind them down."

Buffalo goalie Linus Ullmark had 28 saves in the win. Trailing 3-1 in the final minute with Dubnyk on the bench, Suter sent a shot just wide of the net and Vanek tipped it past Ullmark to pull Minnesota within a goal, but the Wild couldn't draw even.

"I like the way we battled there in the third," Buffalo coach Dan Bylsma said. "I thought we played a hard-fought third period on the road. We didn't give them a lot until they scored that goal."

Buffalo opened the scoring midway through the first period when Dubnyk blocked a backhand shot by left winger Evander Kane. The puck deflected to the goaltender's right, where McGinn was stationed and he tapped in the rebound for his first goal since the calendar flipped to 2016.

The Sabres added to their lead with goals 20 seconds apart later in the first. It was 2-0 after Ristolainen sent a seeing-eye puck through a crowd in front of Dubnyk for his eighth goal of the season -- best among Buffalo defensemen. On the next shift, Gionta knocked down a high shot in front of the net, deflecting the puck past Dubnyk.

The goal was reviewed to see if Gionta had played the puck with a high stick, but it was allowed to stand and Buffalo led 3-0 after 20 minutes.

"We're not making any excuses," said Wild coach Mike Yeo, who has seen him team struggle through slow starts recently, especially at home. "We've shown the last couple of our slow starts that we start to push and the game is there. No excuses for the game. We do need practice, there's no question about that. We've had two practices since Christmas, but again, we're not making excuses."

Minnesota answered in the latter stages of the second period with Buffalo on a power play. Suter streaked down the right side and got a backhand shot off that glanced off Ullmark's mask and high in the air. The goalie didn't know where the puck had gone until it glanced off the crossbar and caromed into the net off Ullmark's back.

"We took the first period off and it shows. They get three goals and then we decide to play," said Suter, whose team is now just 2-4-1 in its past seven home games. "We've got to figure it out and we will figure it out."

NOTES: The Sabres were hoping to have D Mark Pysyk back in the team's lineup on Tuesday for the first time since Nov. 17, when he suffered a broken bone in his foot. Pysyk participated in the team's morning skate, but could not go in the game. ... This is the third consecutive season that the Wild have faced the Sabres in Minnesota's 43rd game. ... The hat trick delivered by Sabres C Sam Reinhart during Buffalo's last game in Winnipeg was the first by a Buffalo rookie since RW Jason Pominville -- now skating for the Wild -- did so in 2006. ... Wild LW Zach Parise will spend Wednesday evening hosting a skating party for former patients from Children's Hospital of Minnesota at a rink in the Minneapolis suburbs. ... The Sabres next return to Buffalo for a two game homestand, hosting the Boston Bruins on Friday. Minnesota caps a three-game homestand on Friday when the Winnipeg Jets visit.