The Buffalo Sabres have rehired Lindy Ruff, the last head coach to lead the franchise to the NHL playoffs back in 2011.
Ruff, 64, was fired by the New Jersey Devils after 61 games this season. He replaces Don Granato, whom the Sabres fired after three seasons.
Ruff coached the Sabres for 15 seasons from 1997 to 2013. He ranks fifth all-time and second among active coaches with 864 career regular-season wins for the Sabres, Dallas Stars, and Devils. His 935 combined wins in the regular season and playoffs are tied for fourth in league history.
“As I went through the hiring process, it quickly became clear Lindy was the person for the job. He has experience, a proven track record, familiarity with young players, and so much more,” said Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams.
Adams worked as an assistant coach under Ruff in 2011-12 and during the 2012-13 season, when Ruff was replaced by Ron Rolston.
The Sabres have gone through six different coaches since Ruff was fired.
“I want to be clear though that this hire was not made with nostalgia in mind. Lindy is the right person for the job now, and any history with our organization and community is simply an added bonus. I believe wholeheartedly that Lindy can help our team reach their goals and am excited to get to work with him,” said Adams.
Ruff led the Sabres to the playoffs eight times during his tenure in Buffalo, including the Eastern Conference final in his first two seasons and the Stanley Cup Final in 1999.
He’s the winningest coach in Sabres history, having set franchise records in regular-season games coached (1,165), regular-season wins (571), playoff games coached (101), and playoff wins (57) during his first stint with the organization from 1997-98 to 2012-13.
Ruff won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s coach of the year in 2005-06. He was a finalist for the award three other times.
The Sabres have gone 13 seasons without a playoff appearance since Ruff last took them there in 2010-11, which is the longest current drought in the NHL. That included a disappointing 2023-24 campaign in which Buffalo appeared poised to reach a new level of success with a roster of solid young players but finished with a lower points percentage (.512) than they did in the previous season (.555).
Ruff was credited with helping a young team in New Jersey take a leap to the postseason in 2022-23 with a 49-point improvement year over year. But the Devils regressed by 48 points this season, leading to his dismissal.
“This is a team ready to take the next step,” said Ruff on the Sabres. “I am both humbled and honored to be trusted to help this team win now. It is not a job that I take lightly. It is my goal to ensure that players believe in each other, play for each other and love being a Buffalo Sabre. There is no doubt that we all need to embrace the challenge ahead of us. The work starts today, and I could not be more excited.”
Ruff will be formally introduced in a news conference on Tuesday.
Though it lacks the volume of teams in close proximity like the Eastern Conference wild-card race, the Western derby is no less wild. Sunday’s action will provide yet another clue as to who will earn the final spot in that half of the postseason bracket.
Heading into Sunday’s slate, the Minnesota Wild appear pretty well locked in to the the first wild-card spot, with 79 points and 29 regulation wins through 67 games. But who gets the second one?
Right now it’s the Vancouver Canucks, with 73 points and 24 RW in 66 games. They’re taking on the Utah Hockey Club on Sunday (8 p.m. ET, ESPN+). Once past that game, they’ll play eight games of their final 15 against playoff teams.
Next up are the Calgary Flames, with 71 points and 24 RW in 65 games. They are idle on Sunday and will play against teams currently in playoff position in nine of their final 17 contests.
Speaking of the UHC, following Sunday’s game against the Canucks, seven of the remaining 15 games are against current playoff-positioned clubs.
Stathletes gives the Canucks the best playoff chances of the group (31.1%), followed by the Blues (30.2%), Hockey Club (22.4%) and Flames (20.2%). The “prize” for the team that wins this race is likely a first-round matchup with the Winnipeg Jets, but upsets do happen!
There is a lot of runway left until April 17, the final day of the regular season, and we’ll help you track it all with the NHL playoff watch. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide details on all the playoff races, along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2025 NHL draft lottery.
Points: 62 Regulation wins: 23 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 15 Points pace: 75.9 Next game: vs. WPG (Sunday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 20
Points: 45 Regulation wins: 13 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 14 Points pace: 54.3 Next game: vs. CAR (Thursday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 1
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process are here. Matthew Schaefer, a defenseman for the OHL’s Erie Otters, is No. 1 on the draft board.
TOKYO — For two days in Japan, it’s the Hanshin Tigers who have looked like the class of the National League.
In another sign that Japanese baseball has never been better, the Tigers capped a two-game sweep over MLB clubs with a 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday at the Tokyo Dome.
Even more impressive, the Tigers didn’t give up a run in either game. Daichi Ishii recorded the final out, freezing James Outman for strike three on a 95 mph fastball to cap 18 scoreless innings in a row.
“These two days were priceless,” Hanshin manager Kyuji Fujikawa said through an interpreter.
Hanshin tagged two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell for three runs in the fourth inning when the first two batters reached base before Teruaki Sato smoked a three-run homer into the right-field seats, where a jubilant Tigers fan club erupted in celebration.
On the mound, right-hander Hiroto Saiki threw five dominant innings, giving up just one hit and one walk while striking out seven. Saiki struck out Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani to start the game and coaxed a harmless popup from the slugger in the fourth.
“Really good ballclub,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I thought they played really good defense. They can handle velocity, good with the fastball. The starter [Saiki] had major league stuff. Good command, good split. And then Sato, he looks the part. He’s a really impressive baseball player.”
Saiki was one of the best pitchers in Japan last season, finishing with a 13-3 record and a 1.88 ERA over 167⅔ innings. The Tigers had a 74-63 record last season, which was good for second place in Japan’s Central League.
The Tigers started the two-game sweep with a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday after 20-year-old lefty Keito Mombetsu threw five perfect innings. No Cubs player reached base until Miguel Amaya smacked a single through the infield in the sixth that just got past the shortstop.
Hanshin also dominated on the basepaths against the Cubs, going 3-for-3 on stolen base attempts.
“They clearly showed they can play at the top level,” Roberts said.
Japanese players have made a huge mark on MLB, particularly over the past three decades. Former Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki was recently elected to the Hall of Fame, and this week’s Tokyo Series features five Japanese players, including three on the Dodgers with Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki.
Skenes is coming off a dominant performance in his first season in the majors. The 22-year-old right-hander went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA in 23 starts for Pittsburgh in 2024, winning the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
The Pirates posted a video on social media on Saturday that showed Shelton informing Skenes of his decision.
In the video, Skenes walks into Shelton’s office and answers a couple questions about how his bullpen went and how he was feeling. Shelton later got up from behind his desk and informed Skenes he would be starting March 27 at Miami. He shook hands with Skenes and gave him a hug.
“Congrats, brother,” Shelton said to the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft.
“Appreciate it,” Skenes responded.
The 22-year-old Skenes has been working on incorporating a cutter and a running two-seam fastball to go along with his blazing four-seam fastball.