BUFFALO – Lindy Ruff sees it and feels it everywhere. Sabres flags flap on cars and proudly hang on porches. Signs are plastered all over town. Some, the coach pointed out, tell fans to honk for their beloved team.
Off-the-charts-enthusiasm has accompanied the Sabres’ first trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2011.
In Ruff’s first stint here, the excitement never reached this level. Sure, fans showed their passion. But the Sabres, who host the Boston Bruins on Sunday at KeyBank Center in Game 1 of their best-of-seven first-round series, regularly made the postseason.
Then one of hockey’s most rabid fan bases endured an NHL-record playoff drought.
“The difference right now is the city is incredibly jacked up,” Ruff said following Saturday’s practice. “I think the city kind of got used to before this, us being in the playoffs, 05-06, 06-07. We were in the playoffs for a good period of time. It’s been such a long wait that you can feel the emotions and the fans’ appreciation for how this year went. …
“This anticipation has been long waited for. And we’re hopefully going to put together a long journey here together.”
That journey might be long and arduous. The Sabres won 50 games, earned 109 points and won the ultra-competitive Atlantic Division. They possess the talent to play into June.
Or the Bruins, who finished nine points behind them in the standings, could pull an upset. In this age of parity, nothing is too surprising.
But first things first. Sunday will almost certainly be an unforgettable experience for so many players and fans. The atmosphere promises to be electric.
Sabres winger Alex Tuch said he had a hard time falling asleep Friday night.
“I don’t think it’s going to be compared to anything,” he said of the atmosphere. “I think it’s going to be a whole other animal. I think even the fans are curious to see what’s going to happen. I know everyone’s really anxious and excited. … The roof’s going to probably pop off the building.”
Ruff, of course, knows his players will be amped up, which beats the alternative.
“I would rather have our players too jacked up than not jacked up at all,” he said.
The Sabres experienced playoff-type atmospheres down the stretch playing before sellout crowds that often became raucous.
“The fans have been electric inside this building,” Ruff said. “So it will probably get to a little higher level but it’ll be part of what we learn to grow with.”
Part of that growth will likely involve playing a heavier game. The Sabres are known for their speed and skill. But over the last year, after some tepid responses, they’ve developed a grittier style and pack mentality, quickly answering any challenges.
“They understood that we failed the test a few times last year when it was a chance to really come together as a group to look after each other, to protect each other, to be there for each other,” Ruff said. “… I thought that momentum started early in the year, and the momentum just kept getting greater and greater.”
Coach Marco Sturm raised some eyebrows on Friday when he told reporters in Boston his Bruins “are bigger, stronger” and “more physical.”
“We just have to be smart,” he said. “But we’re going to go after them.”
Ruff refused to take any jabs.
“That’s his take on his team,” he said. “I have a lot of respect for what our team has done and how we play and the speed we play the game. They’ve got a good team, and they know who they are and we know who they are.”
Sabres winger Josh Doan said “our group trusts what we’re doing here.”
“We’re going to stick to our game plan,” he said. “So it’s one of those things that you see but, at the end of the day, there’s no real response from us in this room.”