It’s Not Too Early to Fire Kevyn Adams and Lindy Ruff

[DickSmehlik]

For those of you saying Ruff isn’t part of the problem, he most certainly is.

I don’t know who thought the guy who took his teams to the playoffs in just in 3 of his past 11 seasons was going to be the answer.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I definitely saw this coming with Ruff, but Adams should be gone right with him probably by the end of this month.

In 4yrs as a GM he's had 2 of his own coaching hires, both didn't last that long. He fired Krueger during his first year as a GM, then hired Granato and that lasted for 3.5 seasons and then his only hope was a retread in an over the hill ex Sabres coach that should be retired from coaching after his run in NJ...I mean really?

There were a lot of very good coaching options for lesser retreads that were far more deserving and he went for a rehire out of what, nostalgia that the Sabres did the same for him? I thought he would be at least somewhat smart enough to look into someone like Nelson or Woodcroft was someone I thought would be hired by one of the vacancies.

Curious who you Sabres fans would see as the successor to Kevyn Adams? Shouldn't be that hard to replace someone that inept with someone competent. Hopefully whomever it is, they don't go after another over the hill retread of a coach and gives one of the coaches that are more deserving of a shot or another shot, a go. At this point, you'd go interim anyway and then move on from there if it goes well so there's that flexibility.

Must be nice to have that as a potential scenario, as a Pens fan, we've been hoping Sullivan would be on the hot seat for a long time.

And Reinhart and Montour. Something is wrong when players keep blossoming after they leave your team. They had all the pieces to be elite.

We definitely know how that feels with Sullivan, lol. Not to that extent but yeah...

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Completely serious, they should poach Shanny from Toronto. He is likely out soon anyways, and he did change the culture. Leafs were the same unable to make playoffs and being pathetic every year then giving us up in garbage time.

He will clean up the org and replace almost everyone from scouts to trainers to anything associated with the suck.

Yeah that'd be a bad hire. I feel like once Shanahan is done in Toronto, he's probably done and will just retire.

Mathieu Darche would be a great hire for the Sabres as a GM, but that'd require the Bolts to give them permission and if Darche would want to join the Sabres, which I mean I can see why he wouldn't. Botterill was more experienced and got less time than a zero experience Kevyn Adams. Or if they want to really reshape their culture, everything and want someone with more experience with that sort of thing - Mark Hunter would be an interesting hire.

So what's the deal with the Pegulas? Do they meddle? Are they cheap? Do they keep hiring buddies rather than qualified personnel?

Pegulas are pretty toxic from what I've read on multiple boards and other things. But from stuff here alone, this is a good one to sort through/

https://forums.hfboards.com/threads...as-been-for-the-buffalo-sabres.2953501/page-3

Ray Shero on line 1

I think the biggest issue with any GM taking this role is for one, they hired Adams for a reason, easier to manipulate when your new GM is an Assistant coach they fired with zero experience for the job, lol.

But you'd have to imagine that GM's like Shero and others would probably balk at the offer knowing they might not even get 3-4 seasons to fix the mess in Buffalo that's deeply rooted at this point. If I were someone like Shero, I'd put it in my contract that there has to be no interference from ownership with transactions and influence in that regard.

 

[ScottyK]

Ray Shero on line 1

 

[Dubi Doo]

The rot is deep. It starts with ownership and bleeds down to the core. They'll likely need another rebuild because outside of Peterka, Thompson, and Benson- their top-6 core players just don't have it. Firing the coach and GM will only go so far, though I do agree the GM needs to go. Ruff can only do so much. He may as well retire and enjoy the sun somewhere warm.

Sad to see as a Sabres fan, but this is why you keep sports at an arm's length away. You can't allow it to impact your life too much. Peaks and valleys. Ride the peaks for as long as possible, but when the valleys hit- take it on the chin and move on. Life is hard enough already!

 

[adsfan]

May I offer Brunnette as an option?

The 0-4 Predators may be willing to let him go to another team if you can give them a forward who can score, an average or better Dman or a backup goalie.

 

[Mattilaus]

Curious who you Sabres fans would see as the successor to Kevyn Adams?

No one. Just move the f***ing team. Nobody with any experience or credibility will come here. There are reports even Ruff didn't want to come here again and had to be convinced. It's over. The franchise is dead.

 

[Fatass]

No one. Just move the f***ing team. Nobody with any experience or credibility will come here. There are reports even Ruff didn't want to come here again and had to be convinced. It's over. The franchise is dead.

Quebec City?

I doubt it’s a coaching issue, should go for the GM

Yup. It’s a players who are on the ice issue. The leaders aren’t exactly defensively stout.

 

[mr figgles]

You can have John Tortorella. Just don’t have expectations beyond just missing the playoffs and getting bounced in the first.

 

[Mattilaus]

Quebec City?

Don't care where. Just get rid of the lot of them. The only thing that fixes it at this point is to burn it to the ground and move it to a new city with new ownership.

 

[Jersey Fan 12]

Trying to turn around the Titanic wasn't going to happen overnight. They were firing Lindy Ruff at the start of the 2022-23 season in New Jersey. And then apologizing two months later.

 

[Fire Sweeney]

What are Ted Nolan and Scotty Bowman up to these days ?

 

[Voight]

Adams only has the job because hes a glorified yes man. Sabres won't be able to hire a competent, experienced executive until things at the very top change.

Bills have had a great run under Pegula's ownership and it doesn't seem like the two of them meddle much in their affairs.

 

[Fatass]

Adams only has the job because hes a glorified yes man. Sabres won't be able to hire a competent, experienced executive until things at the very top change.

Jim Benning is available.

 

[joestevens29]

No one. Just move the f***ing team. Nobody with any experience or credibility will come here. There are reports even Ruff didn't want to come here again and had to be convinced. It's over. The franchise is dead.

There are only 32 positions guys will want to come

Ruff probably had to be convinced because even he knew it was a weird retread

 

[TageGod]

Special teams...this team has elite 5v5 numbers so far.

 

[I Hate Tie DOMI]

It's never too early for a "Fire Lindy" chant. It took the Devils fans 2 games to do it. The Sabres are 6 games in now, what's taking them so long? It's the only chance of a 10 game winning streak to save the season.

 

[Nikolajs Sillers]

Some said that if bottom six is fixed then we are good.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

You gotta think bad Ownership is at play

 

[MOGlLNY]

The owner is the problem lol

 

[57special]

As a sometime Sabres fan, or at least, enthusiast, my shoulders slumped when they hired Ruff. Blows my mind that they didn't get someone like Evason, who is not a great coach, but a good one, and would come in and give the team the accountability, and positivity, that they need.

I am not saying that Ruff didn't have his day, but I am saying that rehiring a guy whose expiration date is past due shows a lack of imagination.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

As a sometime Sabres fan, or at least, enthusiast, my shoulders slumped when they hired Ruff. Blows my mind that they didn't get someone like Evason, who is not a great coach, but a good one, and would come in and give the team the accountability, and positivity, that they need.

I am not saying that Ruff didn't have his day, but I am saying that rehiring a guy whose expiration date is past due shows a lack of imagination.

Agreed on everything but the last bit- it was a cynical and cheap cash-in on nostalgia, the bargain-basement “respectable” choice. I called it at the time, but he’s been even more of a disaster than I thought he’d be. Turns out he’s just like Granato, and we might need a modern hockey mind to play the game at the highest level. No more rah rah cheap options, no more wildcards from socer clubs. Throw money at a real coach. Find an up-and-comer. Throw Pegula out the building.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

You can have John Tortorella. Just don’t have expectations beyond just missing the playoffs and getting bounced in the first.

They should hire Torts, Sully, and Quinn. Then see if they can tell the difference in anything they do differently.

 

[MOGlLNY]

Adams only has the job because hes a glorified yes man. Sabres won't be able to hire a competent, experienced executive until things at the very top change.

Bills have had a great run under Pegula's ownership and it doesn't seem like the two of them meddle much in their affairs.

Bills are run well in spite of Pegula, not because of it. He fell ass backwards into Beane and McDermott who said when they were hired they had to be hands off.

Sabres are his play thing and he treats us like he’s Jerry Jones except cheap as f***

 

[chi777]

Bills are run well in spite of Pegula, not because of it. He fell ass backwards into Beane and McDermott who said when they were hired they had to be hands off.

Sabres are his play thing and he treats us like he’s Jerry Jones except cheap as f***

The Bills are winning despite Beane and McDermortt, not because of them. If Josh Allen developed into another JP Losman instead of the top 3 QB he is, the Bills would be bottom feeders to middling at best. Allen is a Super Bowl quality QB but he'll never touch one because of who's running the show.

The Sabres need, more than anything, an executive to come in rebuild the whole franchise. That is how bad it is. Pay Brian Burke as a consultant for 3 years to go out and find a president, rebuild the scouting department, get a new GM, and coach, etc. Most importantly, the Pegulas should be kept at arms length from all of it. Short of that, I can't fathom this francise ever recovering.