BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — It was reunion week in Buffalo, offering Lindy Ruff an opportunity to reminisce about the franchise’s memorable past, and provide a glimpse into what could well be a bright future.
Among the laughs and stories the Sabres’ winningest coach shared with members of the 2005-06 team, and the bottle of Russian vodka he received from Maxim Afinogenov, Ruff couldn't help but draw a connection to his current roster.
“You heard Danny Briere talk about the team and how it came together,” Ruff said of the former co-captain and now-Flyers general manager delivering a message over a highlight-reel montage celebrating the past and broadcast on the video scoreboard on Thursday night.
“And I really think our team has come together like that. We’ve become a tight group,” he added, following a 5-3 win over Montreal. “Some of the memories and seeing some of those highlights, I thought our game tonight looked a lot like those 2005 games.”
Though these Sabres still have much to prove, it’s starting to feel like 2005-06 again.
Two years removed from declaring bankruptcy in 2003, a high-scoring team came out of the NHL lockout by rolling to the Eastern Conference final before losing Game 7 to eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina.
Playoff drought
After nearly two decades of neglect, one failed rebuild after another, an NHL record 15-year playoff drought, and a coaching carousel bookended by Ruff getting fired in 2013 and returning 11 years later, the Sabres are showing signs of being relevant again.
Since rallying to a 4-3 overtime win at Edmonton on Dec. 9, and a change in general manager with Jarmo Kekalainen replacing Kevyn Adams days later, Buffalo has won 15 of 17.
At 26-16-4, Buffalo entered Friday tied with Boston in sharing the East’s two wild-card spots in a tightly contested race with seven points separating the Sabres and the 15th-place Columbus Blue Jackets.
This is hardly the first time the Sabres have enjoyed a surge before following up with a lengthy collapse. And yet, leading scorer Tage Thompson believes this year is different because of the consistency Buffalo has displayed and ability to bounce back from losses.
“This is the most fun I think I’ve had here in my entire career,” said Thompson, whose eight-season tenure in Buffalo is the longest, and matched only by captain Rasmus Dahlin.
“We’ve got something really good going and it doesn’t feel fabricated,” he added following a three-goal, five-point outing against Montreal. “It feels real. And I think everyone in the room believes it as well.”
The Sabres have shown poise in rallying from deficits. Buffalo is tied for fourth in the NHL with 12 wins when trailing at any point — including overcoming a 4-1 deficit in a 5-4 overtime victory at Detroit in November.
Slow starts are no longer an issue, with Buffalo 18-2-1 when scoring first.
Building buzzing
Fans are starting to believe. The Sabres have sold out four of their past seven home games, after doing so just three times in their first 17. What were once a chorus of “Fire Adams” chants have been replaced by “Let’s Go, Buffalo!”
Forward Jordan Greenway, in his third-full season in Buffalo, has become a believer after being skeptical whenever someone informed him of how the arena would shake to near-deafening cheers during the Sabres' heyday.
“It’s a completely different experience, truthfully,” Greenway said. “When you’ve got that compared to 11,000 people booing you, it brings a completely different element. It’s fun. And guys start to believe it and want to continue to live it.”
The new-found buzz was not lost on Jason Pominville, the forward who enjoyed the highs playing for the Sabres from 2004-12, and the lows in closing his career in Buffalo from 2017-19.
“It’s been great to see the turnaround and how hot the team has gotten,” Pominville said, comparing the raucous atmosphere of a Bills home gamein the NFL.
“And I’m happy for Lindy that they turned it around,” he added. “How nice would it be for him to be the last coach to bring the team in the playoffs, and now bring them back.”
The Sabres haven't made the playoffs since the Ruff-coached 2010-11 team lost Game 7 of a first-round series to Philadelphia. And they haven't advanced in the playoffs since a second-round series win over the Rangers in 2007.
As much as Ruff refuses to get ahead of himself in reminding players to stay in the present, the 65-year-old coach has allowed moments of reflection.
“I referenced the noise the other night. It made me remember some of the playoff games where the building is loud, and the building almost starts to shake,” Ruff said. “It’s great for the players to see. And on the other side, it’s great for the fans to have something to cheer about.”
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