Ruff and his new team wasted no time attacking Wednesday's practice. With a preseason game just three days away and a trip to Europe next week, the Sabres have to make the most of their time together.

The Buffalo Sabres are ignominiously in the middle of the longest playoffs drought in NHL history, and their offseason activity shows that they are plainly aware of that fact. General manager Kevyn Ad

Lindy Ruff already has the Buffalo Sabres feeling the difference between he and Don Granato with intense and physical practices.

At the end of last season, Buffalo Sabres players said they wanted to practice harder and be pushed by their new coach. Lindy Ruff granted that wish on the first day of training camp. There was a clear emphasis on pace and back-checking in a lot of the drills Ruff ran in the first 30 minutes of practice.