Lindy Ruff Gets 2-Year Extension as Sabres Move On — Nhl Games Scores

Lindy Ruff finalized a two-year contract extension on Wednesday afternoon to keep coaching the Sabres after nhl games scores ended with Buffalo's elimination in Monday's Game 7. The deal keeps the 66-year-old behind the bench after a season that left the club one shot short of the Eastern Conference Final.

Ruff Stays With Buffalo

“It’s great to be here,” Ruff said at KeyBank Center, “in the sense that I’m going to continue. And I'm humbled again by the opportunity.” The extension extends a run that already included lifting Buffalo out of last place in December and ending a 14-year playoff drought.

Ruff, who has 25 years of NHL head coaching experience, also said, “One of my biggest decisions was talking with my assistant coach, which is my wife, because there's a lot of nights you go home and question whether you should still be coaching.” He added, “You've got the disease, you've got to continue.”

Kekäläinen Calls It a No-Brainer

Jarmo Kekäläinen called the extension a “no-brainer” and said, “He’s not like that at all.” He also said, “He’s not a spring chicken anymore, but he’s a student of the game.” Ruff entered the end of the season as a Jack Adams Award finalist, putting him among the NHL's top three coaches.

Ruff said, “Just like the players, when we ask the players to get better – and that was throughout all our meetings today – I'm going to ask the staff to do the same thing.” The Sabres plan to keep the entire assistant coaching staff, including Seth Appert and Marty Wilford, as Buffalo tries to build on a season that reached the postseason and ended one shot from the conference final.

Alex Tuch Looms

The biggest offseason question is Alex Tuch, who is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Kekäläinen restated the organization's interest in re-signing the alternate captain during a Wednesday morning exit meeting, giving Buffalo one clear roster issue to handle while Ruff settles into the next three months of work.

Ruff closed with the same urgency that shaped Buffalo's pushback from December: “We've got three months to make ourselves better, to pick up the areas that we need to improve. And let's go to work.”