Lindy Ruff saw similarities between the Sabres’ current roster and the one that he led to the Eastern Conference finals in 2006.
The 64-year-old also saw an opportunity to be the one to finally guide the franchise back to the Stanley Cup playoffs and win the championship that he thought should have been Buffalo’s almost 25 years earlier.
Western New York is home to Ruff and his family. It has been since he was a rookie defenseman here in 1979. The homecoming was a second chance, and those are rare in his profession. Yet Ruff wasn’t quick to accept the job in April when he first heard from general manager Kevyn Adams and owner Terry Pegula.
“The conversations with Kevyn were – just coming off of being let go in New Jersey and seeing a coach let go here, I was questioning myself,” Ruff admitted after he was re-introduced as the Sabres’ coach. “You know, why would I do this? Then I came to a point, why wouldn’t I? Because I’m a risk taker. And I think if there’s no risk, there’s no reward. So, I’m putting myself in that position.”
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff watches during the second period against the Canadiens last month at KeyBank Center.
What’s going through Ruff’s mind now, as the Sabres own an 11-game winless streak and are last in the Eastern Conference through 32 games? Their 6-1 loss in Montreal was the franchise’s lowest point since Ralph Krueger was fired after 12 consecutive losses in March 2021. The no-show in Bell Centre after Pegula’s speech to the players is the type of listless performance that can get a coach fired.
Another coaching change is off the table for the Sabres. Ruff is signed through next season, and he was Pegula’s choice to take over for Don Granato. The owner and coach talk regularly, Ruff acknowledged Tuesday morning on WGR. Most scrutiny surrounding the Sabres ahead of their game Friday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs centers around the makeup of the roster and whether Adams should be given more time to try to trade his way out of this.
Changes are needed inside the dressing room, even though Pegula’s message to the players was that the answer lies within. There’s not enough defense depth. Too many inexperienced forwards were rushed to the NHL. There's not enough leadership, other than Rasmus Dahlin and Jason Zucker, or the player-driven accountability that we heard about in April. The Sabres need another proven scorer who’s been in the playoffs and can show players like Dylan Cozens how to win.
The coach shouldn’t be immune to criticism, though. Not only are the Sabres not showing progress, but they’ve regressed in some areas. This current skid is reminiscent of the slide in 2021 that convinced Adams to nuke the roster and hire Granato as full-time coach.
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Sabres’ 5-on-5 numbers during the current 0-8-3 skid and where they ranked in the NHL entering Wednesday: 50.14 Corsi (15th), 48.31 expected goals percentage (20th), 20 goals for (14th), 28 goals against (29th), 110 high-danger scoring chances (first) and 113 high-danger scoring chances allowed (30th).
Here’s how those numbers compare to where they were 11 games into the 18-game skid in 2021, when the league had 31 teams because Seattle had yet to start playing: 46.8 Corsi (23rd), 43.1 expected goals percentage (28th), 14 goals for (27th), 37 goals against (31st), 98 high-danger scoring chances for (fourth) and 125 high-danger scoring chances against (31st).
Both miserable slides occurred during a condensed schedule. The Sabres played 11 games in 18 days in 2020-21 because the season was shortened by the pandemic and these last 11 losses were in a span of 20 days because the NHL is holding the 4 Nations Face-off in February. There's no time for a mental reprieve. The coach doesn't know whether it's better to practice more or hold off-ice meetings. The power play during the skid is worse right now (2-for-31) than it was in 2021 (2-for-20).
The Sabres’ bad starts, ineffective power play and perceived lack of defensive structure convinced Adams and Pegula to fire Granato in April, one year after the coach led them to a 91-point finish and one win outside the playoffs. The franchise seemed to be on the right path in 2022-23, when Granato’s message to play fearless and score helped the Sabres have the third-most goals in the NHL. The playoff drought continued because of a lack of defense depth and shaky goaltending.
Exit interviews that spring were more like a celebration than a soul-searching to try to close the gap the following season. Granato knew that his team was going to have to make progress defensively to win in 2023-24. He allowed his players to take risks for so long that reeling them in didn’t happen immediately. Some bad habits remained. It was impossible to predict which version of the Sabres would show up each game. The team didn’t win more than three in a row. Its power play was one of the worst in the league. Buffalo gave up the most first-period goals.
The Sabres finished with eight fewer points in the standings, but, at 5-on-5, Granato had them at 13th in goals and tied for 11th in goals against. Accountability was the buzz word used as blame was shoveled on the coach who had two years remaining on his contract. Adams turned over half of his forward group and counted on Ruff’s approach to coax more out of the franchise pillars who didn’t produce as much as they should have.
The results are worse. Ruff’s impatience with lines, defense pairs and individual performance has seemed to cause a crisis of confidence. The players who wanted to be held accountable aren't responding to the person delivering the message. The Sabres are 12th in 5-on-5 goals scored but tied for 22nd in goals against. Individual mistakes, like Nicolas Aube-Kubel’s turnover 10 seconds into the game Tuesday, are causing the defensive zone structure to crumble. None of the young players on this roster seem to be trending in the right direction. Ruff fixed the Sabres' starts, but now they're not protecting leads.
The power play is 30th in the NHL and marred in a 2-for-35 slump with Ruff running it alongside assistant coach Seth Appert. Dahlin has missed the past seven games with back spasms, but the team also started the season 0-for-22 with him running the top unit.
Under Ruff, the Sabres are 22nd in goals per game and 27th in goals allowed per game. They take undisciplined penalties and miss the net at an alarming rate. The latter is even a problem in practices and morning skates. This team doesn’t look like it understands how to execute an odd-man rush, a drastic shift from where Granato had the Sabres in 2022-23. They never looked this bad for this long under Granato, even though the roster should be deeper up front, aside from the loss of Jeff Skinner, who was turnover-prone and played out of structure.
Ruff has made several players a healthy scratch to send a message that poor performance won’t be tolerated. He benched Owen Power and JJ Peterka in the same game. Ruff’s players have done push-ups after losing competitive drills. They’ve skated laps after painful losses. He’s used his wry sense of humor to bring levity in challenging times. Now he seems to be out of answers. Ruff coached the Sabres through bankruptcy. He’s been behind the bench as an NHL head coach for 1,806 games. And, through his 25 years, no situation has been as challenging as this one, he said.
“I'm almost lost for words, obviously,” Ruff said. “It's on me to solve this. This is the toughest solve I've been around. It is on me to get these guys in the right place and win a hockey game and nobody else. Just me."
Sweeping changes to the roster may be needed. Core players haven’t responded appropriately after receiving long-term contract extensions. Pegula will decide if Adams or someone else will complete significant trades. Adams’ recent press conference was a gesture to show reporters and fans that he’s holding himself accountable. Players have told reporters that the 0-8-3 winless streak and 11-17-4 record is on them. Ruff tried to shoulder the blame as well.
It’s unclear what’s next after the Sabres unraveled in Montreal. There won’t be another pep talk from the owner anytime soon. And, though we may see Pegula fire his fourth general manager, the coach also is responsible for how this team has underperformed since the season began in Prague.
