‘”I’ve got to be better,” Krueger said during his end-of-season Zoom conference call with reporters Friday. “I’ve got to be better as a coach. I’ve got to be better as a leader. That’s where it starts. And then I have to drive that into the people around me. I have to drive it into the staff, into our high performance staff, into our players and that’s how we will build a winning culture for all, no matter how you judge it.”‘
Archives for May 30, 2020
Sabres’ Ralph Krueger says it’s ‘healthy’ for Jack Eichel to vent about losing
‘“Our core has a youth that they’re willing to reach for higher standards. … I like the anger. I have no problem with people outing frustration on the past. But then let’s move that conversation forward real quick and let’s figure out what we’re going to do about it.”’
Krueger knows there’s pain and anger, but feels ‘so many positives’ after Year 1
‘”We don’t think after these 11 weeks that there’s one player who isn’t embracing the journey. That’s how I sit here after one year. Encouraged by a lot of signs, encouraged by the buy in, encouraged by the culture we’re evolving and growing into and the habits that are forming. But we’re extremely disappointed with our placing after a season that saw us quite competitive on almost every night, and yet we fell much below the mark that we set. May that pain and may that disappointment help us grow.”‘
Reinhart not worried about his next contract
‘”I think at this point, you’ve got to take a lot of the positives and a lot of things that have gotten better for us this year,” Reinhart said. “We know it’s not what we ultimately wanted, a disappointing ending, for sure. However, all we can do right now is focus on the things that went well and really try to utilize this long offseason to our advantage. It’s all how you handle it and all how you prepare the best way you can, and [the way we] utilize the extended offseason it’s going to come back even stronger.”‘
Krueger believes disappointment from this season will help Sabres down the road
‘”If we’re going to be angry and complain about the past, we need to work extremely hard right now because the only people who are going to change it is us, we have the opportunity to change it.”’
Ralph Krueger hopes Sabres channel this year’s frustration into results next season
‘“That there’s pain and anger and that Jack [Eichel] is at the lead of that, that’s a really good sign and it’s very healthy and it also shows that our core has a youth that they’re willing to reach for higher standards. They’re willing to reach and now we need to do the work,” Krueger said Friday on a zoom call with reporters.’
Sabres Ralph Krueger calls Rasmus Ristolainen a ‘centerpiece’ and ‘core player’
‘“Risto always comes with a little bit of bite but that’s what we love about him and I’m expecting to see him as a centerpiece and a core player in our group next year.”’
Krueger: “I take responsibility for how we finished”
‘While Krueger is angry and frustrated with the Sabres situation, he knows his players are too, especially captain Jack Eichel who said Thursday he was “fed up with the losing.” Krueger said, “there’s pain and anger and that Jack is at the forefront of it is a really good thing. We have the opportunity to change that. It will be a tough grind. I have no problem with people outing frustration on the past. But then let’s move that conversation forward and let’s figure out what we’re going to do about it. We need to continue to grow out of the challenges with each other and grow out of the frustration,” Kruger added. “Jack’s wonderful to coach because he just wants to get better every day, at everything.”‘
Ristolainen will remain with Sabres next season, coach says
‘”I want to coach ‘Risto’ next season. I would enjoy coaching Risto next season,” Krueger said Friday after Ristolainen said earlier in the week he knows he could be traded if the Sabres make changes during the offseason. “So that’s probably all I need to say to you. That Risto always comes with a little bit of bite is what we love about him. I’m expecting to see him as a centerpiece and a core player of our group next year.”‘
Krueger left strong mark on players during 1st season as coach
‘”I think being around him every day, the way he handles himself and being able to learn from him, being able to build a relationship and go to him for things and advice, I think it’s been so big for me,” Sabres captain Jack Eichel said.’