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Dallas Stars: What All Happened During Lindy Ruff’s Tenure

By Josh Clark

Apr 11, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars left wing Jamie Benn (14) and head coach Lindy Ruff celebrate the win over the St. Louis Blues at the American Airlines Center. The Stars shut out the Blues 3-0 and clinched the final playoff spot in the western conference. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 11, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars left wing Jamie Benn (14) and head coach Lindy Ruff celebrate the win over the St. Louis Blues at the American Airlines Center. The Stars shut out the Blues 3-0 and clinched the final playoff spot in the western conference. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 19, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars head coach Lindy Ruff argues a penalty call during the second period against the Vancouver Canucks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 19, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars head coach Lindy Ruff argues a penalty call during the second period against the Vancouver Canucks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

Lindy Ruff’s First Season in Dallas

There was plenty to follow in Ruff’s first season with the Stars. The great overhaul of Dallas hockey had just begun, and Ruff was one of the main orchestrators behind all of it.

Let’s see exactly how much you remember.

Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars /

Dallas Stars

Stars draft Valeri Nichushkin with 10th overall pick

The big 18-year-old Russian was nothing more than a bright-eyed forward with a dream and few English skills before the Stars scooped him up in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.

The draft happened no more than a week after Ruff was hired, and the Stars’ new head coach was given the task of developing and finding the right fit for Nichushkin.

Though the recent past did not show the strongest relationship between the two, Nichushkin’s successful rookie season was due in large part to Ruff’s moves.

Ruff makes a defense of six left-handers work

In today’s NHL, balance is everything. When a six-man defensive group is made up of six left-handed skaters, plenty of problems can arise. But even with Alex Goligoski, Trevor Daley, Sergei Gonchar, Brenden Dillon, Patrik Nemeth, and Jordie Benn on the blue line towards the home stretch of the season, Ruff found a way to make it work. That cannot be overlooked.

The Rich Peverley story

Though this one tugs more at the heartstrings than anything, Lindy Ruff happened to be the bench boss for the Stars on the night of Rich Peverley’s near fatal cardiac incident. His quick actions along with those from the players and medical staff helped save Peverley’s life.

The playoff drought ends

Taking over the reins of a team that is currently in the midst of a five-season playoff drought doesn’t sound like the ideal job. But for some reason, Ruff took it and blew everyone away.

Instead of taking on a rebuild, Ruff helped right the ship in a mere 82 games and push the Stars back into the playoffs, successfully restoring hope in Big D. This might be considered Ruff’s biggest accomplishment in his tenure in Dallas.

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