BUFFALO – Lindy Ruff is admittedly a bit stubborn. The veteran coach believes he can fix anything, even his current team, which still sits in last place following Tuesday’s 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators, his 600th victory with the Sabres.
After becoming the second coach in NHL history to reach the milestone with one team, Ruff compared taking over the Sabres this season in the midst of their NHL-record 13-year playoff drought to driving an old car that has been sitting in the garage.
“You get under the hood and you get to look at it, you get to feel what you need to get the car running really good,” Ruff said. “I’m a guy that, from Day One, has always think I can fix everything. I haven’t been able to fix everything. This year has been a disappointment for me from Day One.”
Still, the Sabres have enjoyed some mild success in Ruff’s second stint here. They briefly moved into a playoff spot in November before imploding during a 13-game winless skid.
That stunning stretch of futility clearly gnaws at Ruff.
“If we could take the 13 games out of the season, just even split that in half, because before we got to the 13 games, we were like 11-9-2,” he said. “The games after that, we’re three or four games over .500. That segment of games killed our club, and I feel personally responsible that there were games that were right there that could’ve turned it and got it the other way. And we didn’t get it done.
“I also feel that the way we’re playing now, these last 40, is conducive to winning those types of games. So it’s been tough.”
Ruff, who signed a two-year contract to return to Buffalo, acknowledged he feels obligated to return next season and get the Sabres over the hump. Remember, he’s 65, an advanced age for an NHL coach.
Helping the Sabres reach the playoffs again – he was last coach to lead them there – would add to his legacy as the most revered coach in franchise history.
Only Ruff and the legendary Al Arbour, who led the New York Islanders to four consecutive Stanley Cups, have won 600 games with one team.
Ruff said he wasn’t aware Tuesday’s win was a milestone, so the announcement following the game – he received a nice ovation and acknowledged the crowd in KeyBank Center– caught him by surprise.
“Feels good,” he said. “I mean, just to get the win tonight felt good. How hard we battled, really after the first period. I’ve been fortunate. A lot of good people around me that have helped throughout the years, and coaches, unbelievable fan support here in this building.”
Thursday’s win before a crowd of 13,955 fans offers Ruff a little more hope for the future.
Fresh off Sunday afternoon’s 4-3 road victory over the heavyweight Winnipeg Jets, the Sabres shook off a sluggish start and erased two one-goal deficits to beat old friend Dylan Cozens and the Senators, who hold the Eastern Conference’s first wild card spot.
Sabres winger Tage Thompson scored the game-winning goal 1:23 into the third period, beating goalie Anton Forsberg from in close after linemate Zach Benson won a battle behind the net and fed him the puck.
“I think they were on us for a bit there, but we weathered the storm and stayed alive and were able to get to our game in the third,” Quinn said.
Brady Tkachuk’s power-play goal 1:23 into the contest put the Sabres in an early hole.
After an offside challenge wiped out Sabres winger JJ Peterka’s goal, winger Jack Quinn tied it 18:31 into the game, ending a 13-game goal drought.
David Perron’s power-play goal restored the Senators’ lead 7:39 into the second period before Sabres defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker knotted it again at 12:59.
Bernard-Docker, part of the March 7 trade that sent Cozens to Ottawa, has stood out in the last two games. He recorded two assists Sunday in his second outing with the Sabres before beating Forsberg from above the right circle.
“It felt pretty good, I’m not going to lie,” Bernard-Docker said of scoring against his former team.
Bernard-Docker has endured a tough season, battling injuries and sometimes sitting out games as a healthy scratch. Following some visa issues, he sat out three games before finally making his Sabres debut in Saturday’s 4-1 road loss to the Minnesota.
“It feels just unreal to be on the ice, honestly,” he said. “I’ve had a tough year kind of prior to this, kind of just grinding and lots of skates by myself and work in the gym. It feels good to be back into games.”
Goalie James Reimer made 30 saves for the Sabres.
