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Sabres Visit Blue Jackets as Lindy Ruff Nears 900 Wins
The Buffalo Sabres are surging, and their coach Lindy Ruff is on the verge of making history. When the Sabres visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, Ruff could become just the fifth coach in NHL history to notch 900 career victories.
Despite the milestone, Ruff remains focused on team success.
“I couldn’t care less about 900. Seriously,” Ruff said. “There’s only one thing. We want to win hockey games. That’s all we want to do.”
The Sabres (35-36-6, 76 points) have certainly taken that to heart. They’ve won five straight and eight of their past nine games, including a 3-0 shutout of the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday. Buffalo is 11-4-0 since snapping a six-game losing streak in early March.
“Staying the course and playing the right way for 60 minutes is huge,” winger Alex Tuch said. “There’s been a lot of maturity in this group lately.”
Tuch has 12 points (7G, 5A) during his current seven-game point streak. Tage Thompson has been red-hot as well, scoring eight goals in his last five games. Both players are closing in on matching their career-high goal totals from last season.
Unfortunately, Buffalo’s playoff drought—the longest in NHL history—will extend to 14 years, as the team was officially eliminated from contention on Tuesday.
Columbus Still Battling to Stay Alive
For the Blue Jackets, Thursday’s game represents more than just a final push toward an improbable playoff berth—it’s a test of resilience and progress for a team that has seen significant ups and downs throughout the season. Despite injuries and inconsistency, Columbus has leaned on a mix of youth and experience to stay competitive in the final weeks.
Rookie standout Adam Fantilli has emerged as a key contributor with his high hockey IQ and two-way play, earning praise from teammates and coaches alike. Veteran leaders such as Boone Jenner and Zach Werenski have also played important roles, both on and off the ice, helping keep the locker room focused as the season winds down.
The matchup against Buffalo also serves as a chance to build momentum heading into the offseason or, if luck is on their side, into a potential last-minute playoff push. While the odds remain slim, a regulation win over a red-hot Sabres team would send a message that Columbus is not going down quietly.
The Blue Jackets (35-33-9, 79 points) snapped a three-game skid with a 5-2 win over Ottawa on Tuesday and are clinging to a faint hope of reaching the postseason. They trail the Montreal Canadiens by eight points for the final wild-card spot in the East and hold one game in hand.
“We see the standings,” forward Adam Fantilli said. “We put ourselves in a tough spot, but we still want to win out and give ourselves a chance.”
Kirill Marchenko continues to lead the offensive charge for Columbus with a career-best 31 goals and 70 total points. His chemistry with veteran Sean Monahan has sparked the Blue Jackets’ top line.
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“The biggest thing is he wants to be a difference maker,” Monahan said. “He wants the puck. He wants to score.”
Columbus will need to win Thursday’s matchup in regulation to avoid mathematical elimination.
While playoff hopes are dwindling, the Blue Jackets can still use the remainder of the season to assess younger players and potential long-term fits for the roster. The final few games could be crucial in shaping the team’s offseason decisions, particularly regarding depth scoring and defensive stability.
The Sabres, though eliminated, are approaching each game as a building block for next season. With core pieces like Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, and Dylan Cozens gaining experience through high-pressure matchups, the franchise appears poised to take a meaningful step forward in 2025. Ruff’s leadership, combined with a growing sense of confidence in the locker room, has Buffalo fans once again looking to the future with optimism.
