Buffalo Sabres Officially Name Don Granato as Head Coach

The Buffalo Sabres are embarking on a very busy offseason, as the franchise just came off one of its worst seasons. The Sabres finished dead last in the NHL during the 2020-2021 regular season, which included captain Jack Eichel missing most of it with a neck injury and former head coach Ralph Krueger getting fired in March.

The Sabres interim head coach for the remainder of the season was assistant Don Granato and today, the Sabres made it official, removing the "interim" tag.

Granato has officially been named the new Sabres head coach.

Granato went 9-16-3 in his 28 games as head coach in 2021, but the team played better with him at the helm.

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Granato is a U.S.-born coach, who played a few years professionally in the early '90s. He's the brother of former NHL player and head coach Tony Granato and the brother-in-law to former NHL player and current analyst, Ray Ferraro.

I think this is the right move by the Sabres. Granato was well-liked by both the players and media when he took over for Krueger and worked well with the younger players. Rasmus Dahlin played MUCH better when Granato took over and it felt like the team was having fun again, even though the roster was still not up-to-par.

The Sabres are in a rebuilding phase now, and captain Jack Eichel is likely to be traded before the NHL Draft on July 23rd. Maybe Granato can be the long-term answer as head coach, but for right now, he's the best candidate for this team.