The excitement around Ruff

Being born in Syracuse, New York, Alex Tuch has been a long-time Buffalo Sabres fan. Now he is excited about the opportunity to be coached by the man who brought so much joy to the Western New York region. Tuch was in attendance for Lindy Ruff's introductory press conference and spoke to the media afterward.

Tuch commented that it was a dream come true to play for such a legendary coach and is giving him a sense of nostalgia. Alex also said that not all players will love him throughout the process and many of them will get annoyed by such a hard coach as Ruff. He did say that is exactly what the organization needs to have a coach who asks a lot out of his players.

The Sabres forward stepped up this year and became a leader both on and off the ice. Alex scored over 20 goals and registered 59 points on the season. He also was named as an alternate captain for a period during the season when Kyle Okposo was out with an injury. Now that Okposo is gone due to a trade, Tuch should be in the running for captain or alternate next year.

When he was signed during his opening press conference, Tuch wanted to impress on the local media how big of a Buffalo Sabres fan he was. He started naming off players who played for the team during the 05/06 and 06/07 seasons when they made the Eastern Conference Finals both years. The Syracuse native was 10 at the time and commented on how much of an impression those teams made.

Now he can be coached by the very man who led those teams to the back-to-back conference finals appearances. If Tuch and the Sabres get what they hope, the team will be right in the thick of things when it comes to the playoffs.