Lindy Ruff played 10 seasons as a member of the Buffalo Sabres and he's been the franchise's head coach for 17 years across two stints. He knows the type of game-changing atmosphere the team's fans can create when they're all-in.
Ruff got a taste of that electricity — an ever-present feeling during the Sabres' Dominik Hasek-led run to the 1999 Stanley Cup Final or the Party in the Plaza generation of the early 2000s — during Wednesday night's much-needed 8-4 win over the Ottawa Senators.
"We fed off the energy. The building came to life," Ruff told reporters about Ryan McLeod's game-tying goal. "They were upset about the goal allowed [by the referees after video review], and then all of a sudden you start killing one off and get a shorthanded one. It's the fans' version of, 'Let's stick it to you.'"
It was a stark contrast to the first few Buffalo home games of the season, which featured plenty of booing, some "Fire Adams" chants directed at general manager Kevyn Adams and a fan throwing their jersey on the ice after a loss to the Colorado Avalanche dropped the Blue and Gold to 0-3-0.
Let's make one thing clear: Sabres fans want to care. Badly. They're just waiting on a team that deserves their full support after a miserable 14-year playoff drought.
Lindy Ruff and Buffalo Sabres players encouraged by positive energy in victory over the Ottawa Senators
The vibe around the Sabres couldn't have been much worse after opening the new season on a three-game losing streak. The coaches were frustrated, the players were frustrated and the long-tortured fanbase was certainly frustrated.
Everybody involved need a performance like Wednesday night to cleanse the palate.
Buffalo rattled off four straight goals after falling behind 2-1. Then, after the Sens had trimmed the lead to 5-4 early in the third period, the Sabres scored twice in quick succession to reestablish a firm advantage before Jiri Kulich fully secured the win with a late empty-netter.
McLeod, Jack Quinn and Jason Zucker each scored two goals. Zach Benson returned to the lineup in triumphant fashion with four assists, while Josh Doan added three helpers to continue his run of strong play to begin his Blue and Gold career.
It was an all-around strong outing, and alternate captain Alex Tuch was happy with how the group responded to a pressure-packed situation.
"We were just trying to have fun out there. I thought everyone was smiling, hooting and hollering. A lot of energy. It was contagious," Tuch said. "You could feel it on the bench: even when stuff was going wrong, guys were taking accountability, and they were going out there trying to be better the next shift. No one was perfect out there tonight, but I thought we were all working for each other, and that's what makes it easy."
Ruff added: "I thought we showed a lot of life. We showed a lot of passion."
Winning comes a lot easier when everyone is pulling in the same direction. That's what happened against Ottawa. The coaches, players and fans all brought the right energy to the KeyBank Center.
Now the question is whether the Sabres can build off that win in a meaningful way.
Next up is another home game as Buffalo welcomes the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers to Western New York. The Cats are dealing with multiple key injuries, including Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, but they're still off to a solid 3-2-0 start.
Saturday's Atlantic Division clash is an weekend matinee (1 p.m. ET), which tends to create a larger contingent of high-energy kids in the building, so the vibes should once again be terrific.
That is, of course, if the Sabres give them something to cheer about.