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The “Lindy Ruff nostalgia” talk around the Sabres needs to stop

The Buffalo Sabres should have known “Lindy Ruff nostalgia” narratives would haunt the organization when it brought back its legendary coach.

By Todd Matthews

Mar 16, 2022; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff on his bench during the first period against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Mar 16, 2022; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff on his bench during the first period against the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images / Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
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Dating back to late April, it seemed like you can’t scroll down Buffalo Sabres news headlines without finding phrases like Lindy Ruff and nostalgia in the same sentence, and it’s something I crossed earlier this week, including a recent article by Matt Bove of WKBW. 

Now, Bove did an excellent job with this piece, showing us how Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff is focused on the here and now and not the days of old during what was a decade-and-a-half run with the Blue and Gold from 1997-98 to 2012-13. That’s something I’d like to see more of, but whatever. If “nostalgia hire” or something similar is what some in the NHL universe want to claim, they’re going to claim it. 

I was excited to see Ruff back as the Sabres bench boss, and it had nothing to do with nostalgia. Sure, growing up in the 1990s and early 2000s and into my twenties in the 2010s, one may think there would be nostalgia for me. But in all honesty, my days of bringing back for nostalgia’s sake is something I’ve learned my lesson with. 

Whether it’s TV shows (there are too many to name), books, or movie series, there’s just been way too many, “thank you, I hate it” moments. But, the reason I’ve been more than cool with Ruff’s hiring is that I knew he’d bring a completely different style than former head coach Don Granato, and it’s what the Sabres needed. 

Sabres, fans, and Lindy Ruff can all focus on 2024-25 and beyond

As one of the NHL’s older coaches, Lindy Ruff won’t be here long, and that’s okay. Instead, he’s here to just get the team onto the right track, ideally, train up a successor, and ride off into retirement. 

That said, it’s not about, nor was it ever about, nostalgia when the Sabres brought Ruff back to the organization. Sure, it may feel like nostalgia when the Blue and Gold inevitably make the playoffs again, but that’s because it’s been nearly a decade-and-a-half (since 2011) that they’d last made the postseason. 

And yes, I’m starting to feel rather old in realizing that 2011 has been nearly a decade-and-a-half ago. But anyway, when you see articles like Bove’s talking about the fact that Ruff is making these players work like none other, or one of Paul Hamilton’s recent pieces, which said something similar. 

It’s clear that Ruff isn’t in Buffalo to relive the past or anything like that. So, to anyone who believes Ruff returned because of nostalgia, I implore you to take a longer, harder look at the level of intensity he has this young team practicing, and that alone debunks such claims.

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