'Everything collided at the right time' | Ruff shares memories of returning 2005-06 alumni

Lindy Ruff will see some familiar faces roaming the KeyBank Center halls in the upcoming days, as 19 alumni arrive in town for 2005-06 Reunion Night on Thursday.

“I’m excited – I hope they’re excited to see me,” Ruff said with a laugh. “No, it will be great seeing them, seriously. Years go by and you wonder what some of these guys have been up to. It will be great saying hello and seeing where their lives have gone.”

Coming out of the lockout, the 2005-06 Sabres stunned the hockey world with a 110-point season and a run to the Eastern Conference Final. They featured a mix of veterans – headlined by co-captains Chris Drury and Danny Briere – and young talent which had spent the previous year growing together in Rochester.

Under Ruff’s direction, they capitalized on post-lockout rules that prevented defenders from holding and interfering, allowing the Sabres to make the most of their high-flying offensive abilities.

They were never out of a game. Their 11 third-period comeback wins remain a franchise record, and they added five overtime wins in the playoffs.

Several players from the team believe they would have won the Stanley Cup, had it not been for a slew of postseason injuries to their defense corps. Even down four regulars on the back end, they made it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.

“Everything collided at the right time for us,” Ruff said.

Here’s a rundown of the 19 players expected to be in attendance on Thursday, with a thought from Ruff on each.

• What to expect on 2005-06 Reunion Night

No. 61 Maxim Afinogenov, RW

Ruff’s first thought: (Smiles) “Skilled. Dynamic.”

Afinogenov remains a fan favorite 20 years later, a testament to his high-flying, highlight-reel style of play. He spent nine seasons in Buffalo, but 2005-06 was his best: a team-leading 73 points, including 22 goals.

The winger left Buffalo after 2008-09 and spent one more NHL season in Atlanta but continued to play in the KHL until age 40.

“He was such an unbelievable skater that I’m not surprised,” Ruff said.

No. 43 Martin Biron, G

Ruff’s first thought: “Earmuffs (laughs). Talkative. Character.”

All Biron did in 2005-06 was win games – in fact, he won a franchise record 13 straight starts from Nov. 15 to Dec. 1, helping to launch the team towards a 52-win campaign.

Biron finished the season with a 21-8-3 record, accounting for nearly half the team’s victories.

These days, he remains very much a part of the franchise as a studio host alongside Brian Duff.

“Not surprised,” Ruff said.

No. 19 Tim Connolly, C

Ruff’s first thought: “Dynamic. Incredibly skilled. Great playmaker.”

Connolly’s offensive artistry was on full display in 2005-06, when he scored 55 points (16+39) in just 63 games.

His late-game heroics helped win a wild Game 1 of the Sabres’ conference quarterfinal series vs. Ottawa. Connolly set up Derek Roy’s game-tying, shorthanded goal with 1:37 remaining – then, after the Senators retook the lead, he scored a tying goal of his own with 10.7 seconds on the clock.

No. 17 J-P Dumont, RW

Ruff’s first thought: “Short side, top corner. Great shot.”

Dumont scored seven goals in the 2006 playoffs, none bigger than his overtime winner in Game 3 against the Senators. It may not have been the best display of his shooting prowess – a knuckler that fluttered into the far-side corner – but it propelled the Sabres toward one of their moment memorable series wins in franchise history.

No. 8 Rory Fitzpatrick, D

Ruff’s first thought: “He was a guy who understood his role and could defend for us.”

Fitzpatrick played 56 games for the Sabres in 2005-06, plus an additional 11 in the playoffs. He earned the primary assist on Danny Briere’s overtime winner in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final against Carolina.

No. 28 Paul Gaustad, C

Ruff’s first thought: “Character. Penalty killer. Physical. Good on faceoffs.”

“Goose” would indeed become the Sabres’ ace in the faceoff circle during his seven-plus seasons in Buffalo. His career winning percentage (55.6) is among the highest in franchise history.

The 2005-06 season was Gaustad’s introduction to Buffalo. He played 78 games, chipping in nine goals and 24 points.

No. 55 Jochen Hecht, C

Ruff’s first thought: “One of the greatest guys at protecting the puck below the goal line. The term is ‘assing people out.’ Using the other guy’s momentum to create his own open space.”

Hecht was Mr. Reliable for the Sabres for a decade from 2002 to 2013. His hard work below the goal line helped create offense for his linemates, which happened to be two of the team’s most productive goal scorers in Briere and Dumont.

No. 45 Dmitri Kalinin, D

Ruff’s first thought: “Speed. Good shot. A real good skater.”

One of the stalwarts of a deep Buffalo defense, Kalinin led the 2005-06 team with a plus-14 rating in 55 regular-season games.

No. 12 Ales Kotalik, RW

Ruff’s first thought: “I’ve got this vision him of looking in the glass. Just looking at himself, checking himself. (Laughs) Great shot. A breakaway, shootout type of player. You knew when you got him into a certain position, he was going to score.”

The 2005-06 season was the dawn of the shootout, and Kotalik remains one of the best to ever do it 20 years later. He scored exactly half of his career attempts – 22 of 44 – for the eighth best percentage in shootout history (minimum 20 attempts).

Kotalik is also remembered for his one-timer, which helped him score a career-high 25 goals in 2005-06 – tied with Briere for second on the team.

No. 74 Jay McKee, D

Ruff’s first thought: “Just your prototypical hard-nosed, shot-blocking defenseman. Penalty killer. Laid it all on the line.”

McKee was one of the veteran backbones of the 2005-06 team, all the way up until a serious staph infection held him out of Game 7 against Carolina. His 241 blocked shots that season remain a franchise record and are the eighth most since the league began tracking the statistic that season.

No. 30 Ryan Miller, G

Ruff’s first thought: “Just the backbone of the team. He played great in goal and gave us a chance to win every night. A top-quality guy.”

A career that would end with his No. 30 hanging in the rafters began in 2005-06, when Miller received Calder Trophy votes despite playing just 48 games. He played every game in the playoffs.

“I think right off the bat he played with this confidence like he’d been in the league for 20 years,” Ruff said.

No. 13 Jiri Novotny, C

Ruff’s first thought: “A big, solid, two-way centerman.”

The 6-foot-4 Novotny split the 2005-06 season between Rochester and Buffalo. He totaled 18 games for the Sabres, including four in the playoffs.

No. 27 Teppo Numminen, D

Ruff’s first thought: “Oh, God. Just an unbelievable player. Great defender. Unbelievable feet, stick. Pucks didn’t go through him. You looked at his size you’d think maybe he wouldn’t be that good a defender. But he was one of our top defenders. Great first pass. He was just one of the smartest players I’ve been around.”

Numminen, at age 37, was the elder statesman of the 2005-06 team. That didn’t stop him from being one of the team’s key contributors. He played 75 games and ranked third on the team with 38 assists.

No. 76 Andrew Peters, LW

Ruff’s first thought: “That’s a guy who provided a safe working environment for the rest of the guys.”

The Sabres’ enforcer had a team-high 100 penalty minutes in 2005-06, including eight fighting majors.

No. 29 Jason Pominville, RW

Ruff’s first thought: “Oh, God. A scout told me one time, and this line sticks in my mind, ‘the hands of a surgeon.’ His hands were that good. His shot was lethal. Quick shot, find any mark, great one-timer. But probably that line – hands of a surgeon – sticks in my mind more than anything.”

Pominville’s rookie season ended with the defining goal of 2005-06 and one of the most famous in Sabres history: his shorthanded series clincher in overtime of Game 5 against Ottawa. The moment produced one of Rick Jeanneret’s most replayed lines: “Now do you believe? These guys are good! Scary good!”

No. 24 Taylor Pyatt, LW

Ruff’s first thought: “Oh, big, strong – like, a Marcus Foligno-like kid who could run over people, could score some goals for you, skated really well.”

The 24-year-old Pyatt was a consistent factor in the lineup during the playoffs, appearing in 14 games with five assists.

No. 9 Derek Roy, C

Ruff’s first thought: “Could do everything. Penalty killer, power-play guy. Dynamic playmaker. Real long stick for a small centerman.”

Roy would go on to become an 80-point player during his Sabres career. The 2005-06 season was his first full campaign in the NHL and offered a first glimpse at a fan-favorite line: Vanek - Roy - Afinogenov.

No. 10 Henrik Tallinder, D

Ruff’s first thought: “I think one of the best guys moving east-west with his feet. Great skater, great defender.”

Tallinder formed a shutdown defense pair with Toni Lydman in 2005-06. The duo led the Sabres in ice time and Tallinder played in all 82 regular-season games.

No. 26 Thomas Vanek, LW

Ruff’s first thought: “One of the best goal scorers I’ve ever been around. One of the best net-front guys I’ve ever been around. Greatest laugh. Greatest little giggle. An unbelievable sense of humor and great wit.”

Vanek ranks fifth in Sabres history with 254 goals. It all began in 2005-06, when he burst onto the scene with 25 goals and 48 points as a 22-year-old rookie.