BUFFALO – Whether the Sabres like it or not, coach Lindy Ruff said, officials will call what he described as “light penalties” both ways during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“We had some self-inflicted pain,” Ruff said after the Sabres gave the Montreal Canadiens six power plays in Tuesday’s 3-2 win in the Bell Centre. “And I think there’s a part of the game our players need to understand.”
Of course, Ruff also believes the Canadiens are helping sell some of those calls.
“I know Montreal’s got a good power play, but I think they’re going down,” Ruff said Wednesday in the 4 Seasons Hotel Montreal before the Sabres traveled home with the best-of-seven series tied at 2.
Entering Game 5 tonight at KeyBank Center, the Canadiens have converted four of their 20 power-play chances in the series. The Sabres, meanwhile, have scored on five of their 16 opportunities on the man advantage. There’s not a huge disparity.
So far, the Carolina Hurricanes, who disposed of the overmatched Philadelphia Flyers in four games, have enjoyed the most power plays in the second round (22).
Ruff, as he often does at this time of year, dropped something that will surely receive some attention. He did not, however, want to expound much on it.
He said trying to get a call is “part of the playoffs.”
“You know how important power play can be,” he said. “So you get a stick on somebody, you got to be careful with your sticks. If they have a chance to make the play look worse than it is, they’re going to. It’s playoff hockey. Every team in this league does it. And it’s an understanding that keep your stick off.”
Ruff said “the little push” Sabres center Tage Thompson gave Kaiden Guhle on Tuesday wouldn’t have been a cross-checking penalty in the regular season.
“But in the playoffs it’s called,” Ruff said. “So tell our guys not to do it.”
Ruff said the Sabres talked at length on Tuesday about their discipline.
“We didn’t pass the discipline test,” he said following the game. “Do I like all the calls? I think you can tell, I don’t like all the calls, but I have been there and I have lived all those calls in the past, and it’s something we have to be better.”
Notes: Ruff on the superb game Sabres defenseman Owen Power played in Game 4 in his 23 minutes, 43 seconds of ice time: “I thought he moved his feet great, he broke the puck out well. His reads, a lot of his breakouts were right on cue. When he could close the gap, he closed the gap.” … Winger Josh Doan’s five-game assist streak is the longest in the postseason by a Sabres player since Daniel Briere in 2006. … The Canadiens are 4-0 in the playoffs this season following a loss. … The Sabres did not practice on Wednesday.
The Habs were flopping around like soccer players. It was an embarrassment to the sport. The Bell center is a hard place to win at, especially with garbage calls like the cross check on Tage & the interference call on Ras. Not to mention the bunk call of goaltender interference on Helenius. Do better NHl. Seriously.
I agree with Marty on the Habs embellishing. At the same time the Sabres have to see how the game is being called and ACT accordingly. The goalie interference was particularly galling since the Montreal player was the one who actually impacted Dobes ability to make a play. It felt like some grand compromise to take the heat off the refs for missing the goal. Terrible decision. Thankfully the hockey gods did what the nhl could not do for themselves and granted Tage a goal.