Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres are coming off of a massive win over the Florida Panthers for a quick turnaround against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Florida trip was huge especially as they are fighting with the rest of the division for a playoff spot.
Lindy Ruff says that it was not the prettiest of wins, but it was good to see the team fight back. Especially after they lost against Montreal the other night.
"We knew we were up against a real desperate team, where they're at in the standings and trying to climb and with us losing a tough one to Montreal, letting one slip away in a third period, which we've been pretty good at. I thought we rallied to win it and fought back from from a tough start where it was a game where at times we didn't manage to puck well enough," Ruff said on his weekly appearance with Jeremy and Joe. "I've got to give Florida a lot of credit. They're one of the hardest teams when it comes to getting above you and and creating puck battles. And I thought early on in the game, they won more puck battles than us, but as the game went on I thought we got on the right side of the puck and created some great opportunities."
The turnaround in the Florida matchup came after a timeout where Ruff was seen speaking to the players. This hasn't been a rarity at all this season. Ruff spoke on the value of his guys being able to respond in those situations.
"Sometimes it's we're talking about willpower, about working harder, competing harder. Sometimes that speech is just all about as a group, we got to be a lot harder. That was a little bit more tactical. The conversation I had with the group during the first period and I thought from that point on we started to get a little bit better."
Zach Benson sustained an upper body injury in the Florida matchup and was added to the list of Josh Norris, Jordan Greenway, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who have all been on the injury report for some time now. Ruff said Benson's injury does not seem too concerning as of now and gave an update on the others as well ahead of the Olympic break.
"Norris is progressing, I feel he's really close. I do not believe he'll play tonight, there's a chance he could play against Pittsburgh," Ruff said. "Greenway was seen by a doctor in another city yesterday for an opinion on what he's been dealing with...UPL was doing better, but he won't make it back in the lineup before the break.
Related
