BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff is excited for the opportunity to go on the road and take on the Boston Bruins in Game 6 on Friday night. That was his message to his team after a heartbreaking overtime loss on Tuesday, extending the series to a sixth game.
There’s no doubt the pressure is now on the Sabres. Nobody wants to be the team that blows a commanding 3-1 series lead. But the Sabres like the position they’ve put themselves in as they return to the TD Garden.
“We own that opportunity to be here,” head coach Lindy Ruff said. “We trusted what we did the whole year and we trusted the process to get to this point. You’ve got to continue to trust it. And you know that game in, game out, it's a team the whole year that has won together and lost together.”
WATCH: Buffalo Sabres embracing Game 6 opportunity
Sabres forwards Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson echoed that same message. They’ve been waiting a long time to play games like this in Buffalo and are hoping their playoff journey is just getting started.
“I love it,” Tuch said. “This is what I think of when I think of hockey. There's nothing better. Honestly, the whole world knows it too. I mean, it's everyone is giving everything they have, sacrificing their bodies, minds, just everything.”
“I've been fortunate enough to play in some big games and come out on the right side, and once you get that taste of winning, it's, it's a drug,” Thompson added. “It's all you want, and you know, I think being out of it for so long, finally being here just really makes you hungry to, you know, see how far you can go.”
Thompson hasn’t scored since game one. He could very well be the Sabres hero yet again. But his head coach isn’t concerned with who it is specifically, as long as someone steps up.
“Somebody for us is going to be a big-time player,” Ruff added. “I can't tell you who that is, but somebody will.”
