When the Rangers employed Ruff under then-head coach Alain Vigneault, he started working primarily with the defense and the penalty-kill unit. After Vigneault was fired at the end of that season, Ruff was thought about to change him.
Lindy Ruff is expected to be named the next head coach of the Devils, ending his three-year period as assistant coach of the Rangers, according to NHL Network expert Kevin Weekes. The NHL network also reported the Devils are also anticipated to remove the interim basic supervisor tag from Tom Fitzgerald, making him the full-time GM.
Ruff, a defenseman for 12 seasons in the NHL, also played parts of three seasons with the Rangers. When the NHL is scheduled to reboot on Aug. 1, it is not known whether Ruff will be behind the Rangers bench in Toronto.
Ruff, who has been an assistant with the Rangers because 2017, was mentioned as a prospect for the job 2 weeks back. Sportsnets Elliotte Friedman reported that Ruff was being considered along with interim coach Alain Nasreddine, previous Islanders coach Peter Laviolette, ex-Golden Knights coach Gerard Gallant and previous Kings coach John Stevens.
Tom FitzgeraldAPAs for Ruff, it would be the 60-year-olds 3rd stint as a head coach in the NHL after gigs with the Sabres and Stars. He was the head coach of the Sabres– the team that drafted him in 1979– from 1997-2013 before ending up being the bench employer in Dallas for 4 seasons.
Ruff led Buffalo to the Stanley Cup finals during the 1998-99 season before eventually losing to the Stars. He had a 571-432-78-84 record with the Sabres and made 8 playoff appearances, making Coach of the Year honors for the 2005-06 season. In Dallas, Ruff went 165-122-41 with two playoff seasons.
Ruff led Buffalo to the Stanley Cup finals during the 1998-99 season before eventually losing to the Stars. He had a 571-432-78-84 record with the Sabres and made 8 playoff appearances, making Coach of the Year honors for the 2005-06 season. In Dallas, Ruff went 165-122-41 with 2 playoff seasons.
The Rangers may be looking for a new assistant coach quickly.
The Rangers decreased The Posts ask for remark.
The Devils fired John Hynes in early December after opening the season with a 9-13-4 record, promoting assistant Nasreddine to the interim position. A month later, the company fired GM Ray Shero and raised Fitzgerald, then an assistant GM.
David Quinn was ultimately picked as head coach, however Ruff was maintained, in addition to goaltending coach Benoit Allaire.
When the season was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Devils were 28-29-12. They will not be amongst the 24 groups contending in the NHLs return-to-play tournament.
