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

It’s been a long and crazy ride since June 21, 2013 when Lindy Ruff was hired as head coach of the Dallas Stars. But it was definitely an adventurous one with plenty to follow and experience.

Take a second and think about all that has happened to you in the past 24 hours. What about the past week? Month? Three months?

Chances are there are plenty of noteworthy things that come to mind from your everyday life. Maybe you got a promotion or moved into a new house. Maybe you welcomed in a new member of the family.

Whatever the case may be, something big has more than likely happened to you in the recent past.

But can you think back to the big things that have happened to you over the past four years? Your list is probably either a mile long or has a good number of blanks on it. That’s perfectly alright because four years is a very long time.

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For Lindy Ruff, there has been one primary point at the top of his “four year” list: head coach of the Dallas Stars. On Sunday afternoon, that title was scratched off of his list, leaving him without a head coaching title for the first time since June 20, 2013.

It’s been a long four years and there’s been plenty of exciting moments to follow. There are probably some that you remember fondly and there might be some that have slipped your mind.

Here is a quick little trip down memory lane highlighting some of the bigger things that happened during the tenure of head coach Lindy Ruff. It’s been an eventful four years, that’s for sure.

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

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.

Lindy Ruff’s Second Season in Dallas

After a season filled with immense excitement and promise, Ruff embarked on his second season behind the bench with the Dallas Stars. Though the results seemed bleak, the Stars still had plenty of bright spots in 2014-15.

Spezza’s arrival

Jason Spezza was traded to the Dallas Stars on July 1, 2014, and Ruff knew just where to put him. Using him as a second-line center, the Stars quickly went from being slim down the middle to having arguably the best one-two punch in the NHL with Seguin and Spezza. Ruff definitely knew how to use Spezza to his advantage.

Offensive firepower

The Stars actually finished second overall in the NHL in 14-15 in the goals for department. They scored a total of 257, which is just two less than the Lightning who claimed first place. That gave them an average of 3.13 goals per game. They would only go up from there.

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Stars improve on 2013-14 performance

It might seem crazy considering the Dallas Stars missed the playoffs in 2014-15, but they actually improved on their record from the year before by one point (92 points).

With all of the defensive deficiencies and the lack of a competent two-goaltender set in the crease, Ruff still found a way to salvage the season and make a tiny step in the right direction.

Benn wins the Art Ross Trophy in dramatic fashion

In a game 82 that was disappointing because of the lack of playoffs following it, there was still a bright spot involved. Jamie Benn, who had quickly become one of the most dynamic players in the NHL, had a chance to win the Art Ross Trophy, which is awarded to the player who tallies the most points in a season, on the final night.

With 8.5 seconds to go in the third period, Benn tallied an assist which pushed him into first place in the league with 87 points. It was a great end to Ruff’s second year in Dallas.

Lindy Ruff’s Third Season in Dallas

2015-16 was hands down the obvious choice for Ruff’s best season as coach of the Dallas Stars. Practically everything that could have gone right did go right.

Stars come out firing

On the Stars’ exit interview day in April 2015, there was one clear phrase that everyone stuck to: starting fast in 2015-16.

And start fast they did. After a 3-0 shutout of the Pittsburgh Penguins on home ice on opening night, the Stars were off and running. They quickly made their way out to a 19-5-0 record through the first two months of the season and were first place in the NHL standings for a little while. Ruff must have lit the right fire that got them up and moving.

Pucks and Pitchforks

Molding a brand new team into something beautiful

With GM Jim Nill, the Dallas Stars have learned that a substantially different looking roster each season is nothing out of the ordinary.

For a head coach, trying to incorporate multiple new players and fill the void of players who have departed can be a trying exercise. But even with Patrick Sharp, Johnny Oduya, and Antti Niemi entering the fold, Ruff made it all work into a beautiful mixture.

New banners for the rafters

Under Ruff’s leadership, the Dallas Stars finished the 2015-16 season with an impressive 50-23-9 record with 109 points. These results helped Dallas secure their first ever Central Division champions title along with a Western Conference regular season champions title. It also propelled Dallas into the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second time in three years.

Winning a playoff series ain’t easy

The Stars also broke an eight-year drought without a playoff series win by defeating the Minnesota Wild in six games in the Western Conference quarterfinals.

Jack Adams nomination

Due to Ruff’s success and contribution to the Stars’ massive turnaround, he was nominated for the Jack Adams Award, which is given to the NHL’s best coach each season.