3 reasons why bringing back Lindy Ruff makes perfect sense for the Sabres

Few, if any, coaches have Lindy Ruff’s experience 

We know Kevyn Adams wanted a coach with years of experience in the big league, and he got one. There was no way the Blue and Gold was taking another risk on hiring a head coach with zero on-the-job experience, as was the case with Granato when they tasked him as head coach in 2021. 

Not to say doing so may not have been a bad idea in hindsight, but that’s the keyword - it would be a few years before we knew what would exactly lay in retrospect with an inexperienced coach. We don’t know the same regarding Ruff’s second stint with the Sabres, and it could end up being abysmal for all we know. 

But probability-wise, there’s way more reassurance in a veteran like Ruff than there would be with someone who's never coached in the NHL. There were other solid potential candidates out there, but neither matched Ruff in experience, making him a 180-degree opposite from Granato. 

As implied earlier, Ruff is older, and there’s a good chance he’s not the long-term solution. But when you have a 13-year playoff drought going on, you need a coach who can figure out how to get you back to the postseason. So, is there anyone better to turn to than a coach who has seen almost everything there is to see behind the bench?