Sabres Part Ways With Peter McNab After Another Forgettable Season, Rod Shutt Rumored as Successor

Buffalo, NY — The winds of change are once again blowing through the halls of the HSBC Arena, and this time it’s Head Coach Peter McNab who finds himself on the outside looking in. While the Sabres haven’t released an official statement yet, sources close to the organization indicate that McNab will not be returning for the 1997 NFHL season and will instead be allowed to enter Free Agency.

The writing has been on the wall for some time. McNab’s second one-year stint behind the Sabres bench ended in familiar fashion as the first. The team finished dead last in the league for a third consecutive year, stumbling to a 13-62-5 record and just 31 points in 80 games. And while the Sabres have been knee-deep in a scorched-earth rebuild during McNab’s tenure, the numbers are hard to ignore: a combined coaching record of 23-131-6 over 160 games. That’s not just a cold streak. It’s a legacy of losing that may prove impossible to overcome when future head coaching opportunities are discussed.

McNab first coached the Sabres during the 1994 NFHL season, setting a humiliating league record for futility with a 10-69-1 campaign. His return in 1996 brought only a slight improvement, but not nearly enough to justify a third shot. Even the most patient of rebuilds can’t endure results this dire without consequences.

While fans await an official announcement from the front office, the buzz around town is that help may already be on the way, and from just down the I-90. Rod Shutt, Head Coach of the Rochester Americans and a former Sabres forward, is reportedly being considered as the frontrunner for the vacant position. Under Shutt’s guidance, the Amerks finished third in the Wales Conference this season with 93 points and tied for fourth place league-wide, which was a staggering contrast to Buffalo’s struggles.

Shutt’s knack for player development and his ability to get the most out of a young, hungry roster in Rochester is exactly what the Sabres could use right now. With a pipeline of young talent getting closer to making the jump to the big club, bringing in a coach who already understands their strengths could be a crucial step in accelerating the rebuild.

For a city that lives and breathes hockey, the last few years have tested even the most loyal fans. But if the rumors are true, and Rod Shutt is next in line to lead the Sabres, there may finally be a glimmer of hope on the horizon.

Stay tuned, Buffalo. Change may be coming, and not a moment too soon.

-Buffalo, NY