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Sabres Ruff doesn't have top defensive teams



Howard Simon

howard@wgr550.com

While giving a vote of confidence to his Head Coach recently, Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier said if he had to pick a coach to shore up a team’s defense it would be Lindy Ruff.  With all due respect, the historical data does not back up that claim.

Team defense, or lack thereof, has been the Sabres biggest problem in their 5-8-1 start.  Buffalo is ranked 27th in the NHL in average goals against at 3.43.  For the first time in Ruff’s 14 plus seasons behind the Sabres bench, they gave up at least four goals in six consecutive games.

The perception of Ruff, held by many Sabres fans, is that he is a defense first coach who stifles offense but the stats would prove different.  Here are the defensive numbers under Lindy season by season with the average goals against followed by where that ranked in the league:

 

2012-13            3.43(27th)

2011-12            2.72(18)

2010-11            2.78(17)

2009-10            2.45(4)

2008-09            2.79(14)

2007-08            2.84(22)

2006-07            2.90(13)

2005-06            2.85(10)

2003-04            2.70(22)

2002-03            2.67(13)

2001-02            2.44(10)

2000-01            2.24(1)

1999-00            2.49(8)

1998-99            2.13(2)

1997-98            2.28(3)

 

Since Dominik Hasek was traded back in the summer of 2001, the Sabres have finished better than 10th just one time.  In 2009-2010, Ryan Miller produced the best season of his career en route to the Vezina Trophy and rookie defenseman Tyler Myers looked like a polished veteran while skating away with the Calder Trophy.

 

The offensive numbers are better, post lockout. Ruff guided offenses that finished 5th, 1st and 4th.  They slipped to 12th, 10th,9th and 17th the next four seasons and are currently 13th.  Since the lockout, in every season except one(2009-2010), the Sabres offense has finished with a higher league ranking than the defense.

 

Here are some bonus numbers for you, under the category of did you know?

 

 *Buffalo has led after the first period in only three of the 14 games(they’ve led after two periods only once)

 

*Buffalo has the second worst home penalty kill in the NHL at 72%(the road power play is 1-30(3%) for the season which is also second worst in the league)

 

*Overall, the power play is 1 for 26 over the last 7 games

 

*Buffalo is 3-4-1 against Northeast Division teams(last season they were 13-6-5)

 

*Still looking for their first goal of the season are: Drew Stafford and Jochan Hecht(14 games), Nathan Gerbe(9 games) and Patrick Kaleta(8 games)

 

*Buffalo has won only one time in the seven games when the opponent scores first

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under :  
Topics : Sports
Social :
Locations : Buffalo
People : Darcy Regier, Dominik Hasek, Drew Stafford, Jochan Hecht, Lindy Ruff, Nathan Gerbe, Patrick Kaleta, Ryan Miller, Tyler Myers
02/15/2013 11:17AM
Sabres Ruff doesn't have top defensive teams
Please enter your comments below.
02/15/2013 11:33AM
The suck
Anything else to say?
02/15/2013 11:34AM
Interesting to note...
That in one year, a GAA of 2.85 can put you at #10 (a desirable place to be), whereas another year a GAA of 2.84 puts you at #22. A 2.72 GAA (last year's #18 in the league) would've been good enough to be #8 in 2005-2006. So, it stands to reason that those fluctuations are league-wide, not necessarily something unique to the Sabres and any sort of system implementation or execution.
02/15/2013 11:35AM
good source
from a good source, ruff had been offered a contract extension right after regier. just waiting until they start winning to make the announcement.
02/15/2013 11:39AM
Sabres RUFF always underachieved
Now he achieves just about ZERO!
02/15/2013 11:49AM
Ruff=Shame. Regier=Shame. Terry=Shame
just a shame.
02/15/2013 12:04PM
Kudos to Howard.....
Your best work yet, seriously. This coach is not who we're told he is. Of course people around the league told Pegula Ruffs worth keeping........because Lindys no threat to their team. Pegula means well but he's got to severe all ties and start clean. There are players rotting with Lindys coaching.
02/15/2013 12:07PM
Bemusdave
Lindys "system" is not a defense first system. To many times we are facing a 2 on one coming back at Miller.We expel a lot of energy trying to recover and move the play out of our zone. I don't know why he doesn't change it up and keep the defense back. We are not a high scoring team and can't over come the goals agents.He just looks like he is going to live and die by that system.
02/15/2013 12:08PM
Bemusdave
By the way great artical!!!!!!
02/15/2013 12:25PM
Ruff never had top defensive teams...Never...it fell on goaltending
The nail in the coffin is GOALTENDING. A Montreal player once said...the Sabres were an average team with a great goaltender. (Hasek) Now they are an average team with an average goaltender. (Mr Softee) The Drury and Briere days were a good offensive team with an average goaltender. (Mister Softee) Come on Howard...DUMB ARTICLE. MISTER SOFTEE AIN'T HASEK. If Hasek was still here in the Drury and Briere days, the Sabres would have won two cups, including one with a depleted defense. Put it together fool. You guys keep loving Mr Softee who I think sucks. He is a Grant Fuhr type who needs his team to score 4 or more goals a game. Fuhr was average and so is Miller.
02/15/2013 12:35PM
2013 WGR Shill Award Leaders (Top 3)
1.) Kevin Sylvester. 2.) Paul Hamilton. 3.) Andrew Peters. Last years winner...Jeremy White. Runner up...Paul Hamilton. This year Jeremy sits currently in the 7th spot. What a drop off.
02/15/2013 12:40PM
Dump Stafford
Sick of watching that sissy. Musta burnt himself out when playing bully against Philly. He's got nothing.
02/15/2013 12:40PM
Please stop showing Ruffs picture on blogs
I get sick every time I see one. I can't stand him anymore. He must get fired. I hope the Sabres lose tonight and then get embarrassed on NBC Sunday. Pleeeeeaaaassssse. GO BRUINS and PENS!!!
02/15/2013 12:45PM
Extend Ruff
Quality job this year, per usual.
02/15/2013 1:12PM
Falling under the completely useless category...
is this article. ANDRE SEKERA plays for the Buffalo Sabres and you are going to point out that the Sabres' defence isn't good under a coach who should have been fired five years ago? The perception I have of Lindy Ruff is that of a player who was SO bad at defence that a bad organization had to move him to wing just to warrent wasting a roster spot on the bum. Perhaps you never watched this team when he was actually playing. I did.
02/15/2013 1:14PM
Hecht!!!
Please take a look at when the Sabres went on a winning streak last year (it coincided with Hecht being shelved for the season). When the Sabres resigned him for this year, I was shocked. They spoke of having him on the 4th line. He plays top 6 forward minutes. The Sabres have been down 1-2 goals in last 5 minutes of the game multiple times this year, Hecht almost always sees a long shift right in the middle of that time (when we need a goal in the worst way). Hecht is a slient killer (in a bad way). Anyone on his line will have their stats go into the witness protection program. He ruined Pommer's season a couple years ago when he was on that line. He literally misses the net from the front or either cicle more times than I can count. He has more bad penalties than goals or assists this season. The only use he has is killing penalties. He used to be (4 years ago) good on the walls when fighting for a puck, he never wins thos battles any longer. He has to go...
02/15/2013 1:17PM
Yes....
Anyone that watches the games and has common sense could tell you they are not a good team. Stafford, Gerbe, Kaleta and Hecht ---> You upgrade these 4 players and we have a much better team...obviously.
02/15/2013 2:44PM
Nice Job crunching numbers!
You guys are on to something here. First the analytics (bubble chart), now this data. By keeping (some) of the emotion out of it, you're taking an honest look at evidence that can't be denied. Unfortunately for Lindy, you're taking an honest look at evidence that can't be denied...Thank You!
02/15/2013 3:12PM
Great...Now hand him an extension
By the end of the season if this pile of steaming dung continues, Pegula will probably instruct Regier to give his but buddy Ruff a 10 yr extension. Afterall he HAS earned it according to those in the front office of the team, the ownership seat and the clueless fans who still believe Lindys a great guy and a great coach. Choke!
02/15/2013 3:43PM
Enough Ruff Talk
I can agree with almost any point you make about Ruff being here too long. But there is zero chance they fire him mid-season. ZERO CHANCE. So, in the interest of keeping sports talk entertaining, can we just stop all the Ruff/Regier bashing? Please? Three weeks of the same complaints, and I'm listening to this station A LOT LESS as a result. As the Sabres become less revelant, so is this station. The Sabres are out of your control, but your shows are not.
02/15/2013 4:06PM
Nourishing Mediocrity... Walmart fans WAKE UP!!!
Thanks Howard, it's about time someone at WGR finally offers up even more tangible evidence of Ruff and Regeir's consisitent failures and no accountability. Thats what happens when most tickets are sold, you're team is notoriously soft, you're goaltending is average, you lose most of your faceoffs because you have no NHL centers, and your ownership doesn't care. Also the above clearly shows what happens when you ALIENATE and "salary dump" Great players... Peca, Hasek, etc. Howard you should write another article reviewing Regeir's DRAFT history. What an embarassment that would reveal. Realistically, In any other city besides Toronto this team wouldn't sell 8000 seats a night. Although Toronto finally seems to be turnig the corner with the hiring of Carlisle. It's a shame we can't seem to land an owner with hockey itelligence and who genuinely wants to win. For some reason Buffalo has been doomed to be the Walmart of sports. But cheer up, SPRING IS IN THE AIR, FORE EVER FORE!
02/15/2013 5:16PM
Perfect photo
This is a condemning article. It is perfectly coupled with that photo of Ruff. The stat that says it all: "Buffalo has led after the first period in only three of the 14 games(they’ve led after two periods only once)" The management must know this. Ruff has to get this turned around. I'm also starting to believe we don't have the right mix of players.
02/16/2013 2:08AM
Waaaah Waaaaah!
Cried the Whiner!
02/16/2013 9:28AM
Shillvester
Boy, I'd like to see him get Sully on his Hockey Hotline Show. Sully would own him. Shillvester is terrible with callers or he tries hard to avoid them, especially the ones who call for Regier and Ruff's ouster or negativity regarding this joke of a hockey team. GET SULLY ON THE GIG AND PUT "SHILLS" IN HIS PLACE!!!
02/16/2013 11:28PM
Defense
What Defense...swiss cheese like Bills
02/18/2013 10:41AM
Muckler and Nolan
Muckler and Nolan were responsible for the defensive success of Ruff's teams early on in his tenure with the Sabres. If you look at it, after 2001-2002 the roster turned over completely and all of the players that Muckler and Nolan brought in here were pretty much gone. Since then Darcy Regier has done an inadequate at best job of bringing in players. (Exceptions obviously being Drury and Briere). In short Ruff was the beneficiary of inheriting a team from Ted Nolan that had superior defensive talent, grit and toughness. Ever since then Regier and Ruff have done an excellent job of destroying that with small, soft, uninspired, less talented players. New GM and new coach needed.
02/19/2013 7:25PM
Hasek
So what I see is a coach that learned to lean on an all start goalie and hasnt learned how to get away from that. Miller is NOT Hasek and Lindys style of coaching and play has not changed much since that time - In 2 years 05-07 we had a high scoring fastskating opportunistic team that scored 1.5 goals for every one they let in...coincidentally those are the best years in regards to goals against since Hasek has been gone - what does that tell you - play a better brand of hockey
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When assessing the Bills defense, what has been the biggest problem?
  It was mostly coaching
  It was mostly a lack of talent
  It was 50/50 coaching and talent
 
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