NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Down went Buffalo Sabres defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo. Up went the referee's arm. Off went Nashville Predators left winger Viktor Arvidsson.

Hello, turning point.

Converting its five-minute power play into two goals, Buffalo took charge late in the second period and went on to a 4-1 win Saturday night at sold-out Bridgestone Arena.

Left winger Jamie McGinn and center Sam Reinhart turned a 1-0 deficit into a lead the Sabres would keep while Nashville played a man short after Arvidsson earned a major and game misconduct for cross-checking Colaiacovo in the throat.

"I don't think there was intent to maliciously cross-check," Buffalo coach Dan Bylsma said. "But when you look at it, it's a pretty stiff cross-check to Carlo's neck. He delivered a blow."

Colaiacovo wound up in the hospital, diagnosed with a dented trachea, according to Bylsma. It's not known whether Colaiacovo will have to miss games.

What is known is that the game changed totally after the Sabres (10-12-2) took advantage of extended power-play time. The Predators (12-7-4) owned a slight territorial advantage over the first 30 minutes, hemming Buffalo into its zone for a significant stretch of the first period's last 10 minutes.

But Arvidsson, whose goal at 2:00 of the second period was quickly wiped out by goaltender interference on center Cody Hodgson, was then involved in a play he would just as soon erase.

"He didn't have bad intentions," Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said of Arvidsson, "but it was an unfortunate result."

McGinn tied it at 13:09, scoring his fourth goal off a mad scramble in front of goalie Juuse Saros. Reinhart took a feed from left winger Matt Moulson and potted his fifth goal from the high slot at 16:13, 30 seconds before the man advantage ended.

"That killed them and gave us a boost," Sabres goalie Chad Johnson said. "Scoring two goals changed the game."

Reinhart made it 3-1 58 seconds into the third period for the first two-goal game of his 33-game career, pouncing on a pass from defenseman Jake McCabe and swatting a forehander that barely trickled over the goal line.

"The chances have been there," Reinhart said, "so to see the puck go in feels good."

Center Ryan O'Reilly capped the scoring with an empty-net tally at 17:47, his eighth goal, as Buffalo won its second straight game after a six-game losing streak. Johnson (6-7-1) came up with 28 saves, including a point-blank stop on left winger James Neal midway through the second period that prevented the Predators from taking a 2-0 lead.

Nashville's lone goal came at 11:42 of the first period, four seconds after Reinhart was sent off for tripping. Center Mike Fisher tallied his 250th career goal off a nice pass from Neal, his third goal in as many games.

But that was it for the Predators as they lost for the fifth time in six games, a stretch in which they have potted just six goals. They went more than 227 minutes without a goal while being shut out during the first three games of a 1-3-1 trip that finished Friday with a 3-2 overtime loss to Philadelphia.

The loss spoiled the NHL debut of Saros, who made 20 saves while giving starter Pekka Rinne only his fourth night off in the first 23 games. Saros stopped the first 15 shots and appeared to play with poise, moving well and not fighting the puck.

"He had a couple of tough shots early and was able to make those saves, and then it looked like he settled in," Laviolette said. "It was unfortunate what happened after that."

It was just the second regulation home loss for Nashville, which is 5-6-3 in its last 14 games.

NOTES: Buffalo D Mark Pysyk (bone bruise) and C Tyler Ennis (upper-body injury) missed their sixth and third games, respectively. ... Nashville placed C Paul Gaustad and RW Gabriel Bourque on IR with upper-body injuries, recalling LW Viktor Arvidsson and G Juuse Saros from Milwaukee of the AHL. ... Predators backup G Carter Hutton (lower-body injury) was scratched, as were Ds Anthony Bitetto and Victor Bartley. ... Sabres scratches were D Mike Weber and LW Johan Larsson.