Lindy Ruff to coach his 1,000th game with the Buffalo Sabres
When the Buffalo Sabres play against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday, 10 November, head coach Lindy Ruff will be coaching his 1,000th game in the National Hockey League.
Ruff began his coaching career as an assistant coach with the Florida Panthers in 1993. Four years later, he succeeded Ted Nolan as the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres, a position he
has held ever since.
While Ruff is currently the longest-tenured coach in the NHL today, he never envisioned himself making it this far with one team. When the Sabres only won seven of their first 25 games
in 1997-98, Ruff immediately though he would be getting the hook.
“No, I’m not being funny,” Ruff told TSN.ca. “I thought I was going to be gone in December.”
Roughly 13 years later, Ruff is still coaching the Sabres, the hockey team that originally drafted him 32nd overall in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft. Prior to his coaching career, Ruff played
in the league as a left-winger and defenceman for the Sabres and New York Rangers in a career that spanned 12 years.
Coaching his 1,000th game will put Ruff among an elite group of NHL coaches. He is slated to become the 18th coach the reach the 1,000 games milestone. In addition, he will become the
third coach in NHL history to coach 1,000 games or more with the same team, along with Al Arbour (1,500 games) and Billy Reay (1,012 games).
“I've been d**n lucky is what I’ve been,” Ruff said of his time with the Sabres.
Despite the milestone, many hockey experts have questioned whether or not Ruff’s job is in jeopardy. The Sabres have yet to win a game on home ice, and they are off to a 4-9-2 start this
season.
While the team has clearly not been playing their best, Sabres general manager Darcy Regier has not lost faith in his coach.
“The focus is on being better, getting better and what we have to do both as individuals and as a team to improve,” Regier said.
Ruff has also remained positive about the situation, and believed that better times lie ahead for Buffalo.
“We need to put something together now,” Ruff said. “And I think you only eliminate the bad times by putting together a real good stretch and coming out the stronger team.”
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