Buffalo Sabres Media Guide - NHL.com

the Hockey Department
Lindy
Ruff
Head Coach
Head Coach Lindy Ruff, the longest-tenured coach
in the NHL, returns behind the Sabres’ bench for
the 11th year following one of the most noteworthy
seasons in team history. Ruff has compiled a record
of 358-289-91, with his 358 wins tops among all
NHL coaches with their current team. Ruff is also
eighth overall among active coaches in wins, and
40th all-time in NHL career wins.
The 2006-2007 regular season once again
showed why Lindy Ruff has become the most successful
coach in Buffalo Sabres history. The Sabres
won a team-record 53 games and captured the
first Presidents’ Trophy in franchise history, while
leading both the Northeast Division and Eastern
Conference from wire-to-wire. This is also the first
time in franchise history they’ve posted back-to-back 50-win seasons. Buffalo returned to the
Eastern Conference Finals for the second consecutive season, and the fourth time under
Ruff’s guidance.
Ruff was named to the NHL All-Star Game for the second time in his career as Head Coach
of the Eastern Conference squad, and was runner-up to Vancouver’s Alain Vigneault for the
Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL’s Coach of the Year.
Ruff, the all-time winningest coach in Sabres’ history, has a .591 playoff winning percentage
and is the Sabres’ all-time leader in playoff games coached (88), and wins (52), surpassing
Scotty Bowman’s mark of 18 wins (set over five seasons). In only his second season as head
coach, Ruff led the 1998-99 Sabres to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in 24 years
and established himself as one of the league’s top coaches. He also achieved a club record
that season for the most wins (14) in one playoff year. In the process, Ruff became only the
third head coach under the present Stanley Cup Playoff format to lead his team to the
Conference Finals in each of his first two seasons.
Ruff led the surprising Sabres to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2005-06, where the team
lost on the road in Game 7 against the Carolina Hurricanes. For these accomplishments, Ruff
was honored by the NHL with the Jack Adams Award as the league’s Coach of the Year. Ruff
joins Ted Nolan (1997) as the only other head coach in team history to receive this honor.
One of the highlights of Ruff’s 06-07 season took place on April 5 when Buffalo defeated
Ottawa 5-4, making him the 31st coach in NHL history to record 300 career wins, and the 16th
in NHL history to reach the milestone with the same team.
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Buffalo’s 1-1 tie vs. N.Y. Islanders on April 3, 2002, was Ruff’s 405th game behind the bench,
passing Scotty Bowman on the Sabres' all-time games coached list. In his 500th game as
the Sabres’ head coach, Buffalo picked up a 5-2 win over Anaheim (Oct. 26, 2003). He
recorded his first win as Sabres head coach with a 3-1 decision at St. Louis on Oct. 1, 1997.