Sabres fire Ruff

[Kin]

I've never understood how he kept his job for as long as he did based on the criteria for why most coaches get fired.

Well, not to go off on a tangent but I always sort of thought that there was the belief in Buffalo, whether it was just Regier or it involved ownership, that the reasons most coaches get fired tends to be kind of dumb. So I thought it was refreshing that Ruff kept his job as long as he did.

 

[Kin]

So? What coach is able to win without a good goalie?

That's my point. Like most coaches he just coached his teams to the level of their talent. 

All I'm saying is, if he stayed with 1 team for longer than pretty much everyone else in pro sports has been able to, it has to be for a good reason.

Right and I'm asking what that reason is when his record doesn't reflect it.

 

[Derk]

Ruff wasn't the problem in Buffalo. He's the 2nd longest tenured coach in North American professional sports for a reason. Darcy Regeir is to blame. The Sabres have historically been a very conservative team and the moment Regeir was able to go on a spending spree for the first time in his long tenure he screwed up real bad. Don't be surprised to see Regeir out the door next, with Burke coming in to replace him. I called this one the day Burke got fired.

Burke is a master of handing out good contracts.

He'd be a perfect fit in Buffalo. Pegula's big with USA Hockey and he wants to bring a "big-town" mantra to Buffalo. Who better to do that than Burke? BB would be close to his kids in Toronto. It's a match made in heaven.

And still close to Toronto for.. you know... personal reasons.

Burke as GM and Wilson as new coach?  Imagine the laughs?

Maybe he would trade a couple firsts and a second to the Leafs for Kessel.

 

[Justin]

So? What coach is able to win without a good goalie?

That's my point. Like most coaches he just coached his teams to the level of their talent. 

All I'm saying is, if he stayed with 1 team for longer than pretty much everyone else in pro sports has been able to, it has to be for a good reason.

Right and I'm asking what that reason is when his record doesn't reflect it.

In Ruff's down years he didn't have the talent to succeed. It's the same as any other coach, Ruff isn't special. Obviously Sabres management felt that Ruff was doing things right and it wasn't his fault the team was struggling. That's rare - the first thing people usually do is blame the coach. Ruff somehow accomplished to fend that off presumably because he is a good coach.

 

[Corn Flake]

I've never understood how he kept his job for as long as he did based on the criteria for why most coaches get fired.

Well, not to go off on a tangent but I always sort of thought that there was the belief in Buffalo, whether it was just Regier or it involved ownership, that the reasons most coaches get fired tends to be kind of dumb. So I thought it was refreshing that Ruff kept his job as long as he did.

I suggested that as well in the other part of my paragraph... I thought it was a refreshing approach as well, but in this case it ended up going to the other extreme. 

 

[Kin]

In Ruff's down years he didn't have the talent to succeed. It's the same as any other coach, Ruff isn't special. Obviously Sabres management felt that Ruff was doing things right and it wasn't his fault the team was struggling.

Or they realized that most teams just play to the level of their talent and that firing a coach doesn't really have a tangible benefit provided that there's a sort of baseline competence.

That's rare - the first thing people usually do is blame the coach. Ruff somehow accomplished to fend that off presumably because he is a good coach.

I think that if you looked at people talking about the Sabres over the years you'd find a lot of criticism directed Ruff's way. That he wasn't fired doesn't really seem to be indicative of anything other than patience from Regier. Regier who, incidentally, has also had an uncommonly long tenure as GM of the Sabres.

So it's kind of a contradiction there. Either the same sort of "He's been there a long time, therefore he's a good coach" reasoning applies to Regier or we just have to realize that a common thread throughout Buffalo's various ownership groups has been patience with a fallible GM and coach.

 

[Deebo]

Word is assistant coach James Patrick will be taking over, not clear if it is interim or permanent.

 

[Peter D.]

Word is assistant coach James Patrick will be taking over, not clear if it is interim or permanent.

Probably makes sense that he be interim to ride out this season. 

Regier may be out of the job at the end of the year, so let the new GM bring in his own guy.

 

[iwas11in67]

I wonder if Miller's rant the other night had anything to do with the timing of this?

 

[louisstamos]

All I have to say is this:

"Is this a joke?  This must be a joke."

;D

 

[Peter D.]

He has two words for all of us:

"No goal."

 

[Justin]

In Ruff's down years he didn't have the talent to succeed. It's the same as any other coach, Ruff isn't special. Obviously Sabres management felt that Ruff was doing things right and it wasn't his fault the team was struggling.

Or they realized that most teams just play to the level of their talent and that firing a coach doesn't really have a tangible benefit provided that there's a sort of baseline competence.

That's rare - the first thing people usually do is blame the coach. Ruff somehow accomplished to fend that off presumably because he is a good coach.

I think that if you looked at people talking about the Sabres over the years you'd find a lot of criticism directed Ruff's way. That he wasn't fired doesn't really seem to be indicative of anything other than patience from Regier. Regier who, incidentally, has also had an uncommonly long tenure as GM of the Sabres.

So it's kind of a contradiction there. Either the same sort of "He's been there a long time, therefore he's a good coach" reasoning applies to Regier or we just have to realize that a common thread throughout Buffalo's various ownership groups has been patience with a fallible GM and coach.

This is more simple than you're making it. If Ruff wasn't a good coach the Sabres would have fired him. Simple as that. Management obviously saw something that said "Lindy isn't the issue here" or...he would have been fired. When you last that long in once place it means good things. Poor coaches don't get the chance to do that.

With Regier, he was fine until he got handed bags of money by Pegula. When the Sabres were a lower-budget franchise Regier managed to steer the ship without almost ever making a major trade or free agent signing. Once Pegula gave him the cash to make Buffalo big-budget team Regier spent it stupidly. If the Sabres don't improve over the rest of this season he'll be gone as well.

 

[Kin]

This is more simple than you're making it. If Ruff wasn't a good coach the Sabres would have fired him. Simple as that.

You can keep saying that but until you can actually point to something he's done with the talent he had that was particularly impressive all you're doing is regurgitating talk-radio level analysis.

Management obviously saw something that said "Lindy isn't the issue here" or...he would have been fired.

As they just did, which you find fault with. Either management can do a bad job at identifying the problem with a club and make coaching decisions as a result or not. You can't have it both ways.

 

[ZBBM]

I think if you compare Ruff to Trotz, who has had a similar situation to deal with in terms of low budgets (up until Pegula took over) and essentially the same tenure, Ruff comes up short.  He was an OK coach, but did he uplift his team, as (I think) Trotz has? Debatable.  Some seasons, yes, but as others have said he's ridden some very good goalies.  Hell, if we had Miller, Quinn would probably still be at the helm.

EDIT: OTOH his overall W/L record is pretty damn good, I have to say.

 

[ZBBM]

Incidentally, although I don't think the Sabres will poach Eakins, sooner or later somebody will ask.  I really worry about losing him.

 

[ZBBM]

The news came as a surprise only because Sabres management, including team president Ted Black, had spent much of the past week voicing its support of Ruff. Team owner Terry Pegula was also regarded as a big fan of Ruff.

Le baiser de la mort.

 

[Kin]

OTOH his overall W/L record is pretty damn good, I have to say.

It's alright, he's got a career .559 Point winning percentage, but he's had good teams.

 

[losveratos]

You can keep saying that but until you can actually point to something he's done with the talent he had that was particularly impressive all you're doing is regurgitating talk-radio level analysis.

As opposed to your analysis which is on an internet forum of the wrong team in question whilst most likely not even watching half of their games every year?

If you're going to bring level of analysis and validity of opinion into a conversation on an internet forum... the whole thing just falls apart. Who are we to judge?

Now stop poking holes in our ability to make judgement on people we've never met or spoken to or sometimes even seen outside of an NHL stat page! All of those things are desperately needed on internet hockey talk.

/sarcasm

 

[Kin]

If you're going to bring level of analysis and validity of opinion into a conversation on an internet forum... the whole thing just falls apart. Who are we to judge?

I'd say this board has actually done pretty well being a place where the validity of opinions are debated and people try to raise the level of analysis. That's basically the entirety of what goes on here.

 

[losveratos]

If you're going to bring level of analysis and validity of opinion into a conversation on an internet forum... the whole thing just falls apart. Who are we to judge?

I'd say this board has actually done pretty well being a place where the validity of opinions are debated and people try to raise the level of analysis. That's basically the entirety of what goes on here.

And for someone who uses it constantly, you've done a pretty poor job of reading sarcasm. But I suppose I could edit my previous post.