Devils fans chant apology to head coach they wanted fired as winning streak reaches eight games

It’s been a rough go for the New Jersey Devils in recent years.

They have made the playoffs just once since making the Stanley Cup Final in 2012. In all but two of the last 10 seasons, they’ve finished no better than second-to-last in their division.

The Devils have tried to revamp their roster with plenty of trades and signings for vets and had the first overall pick in both 2017 (Nico Hischier) and 2019 (Jack Hughes). But nothing was working.

They brought in coaching veteran Lindy Ruff in 2020 to finally get the franchise on the right track, but they finished in seventh place in the Metropolitan Division in each of his two seasons at the helm.

Fans had enough of Ruff despite him having the fifth most wins of any coach in NHL history. Less than a month ago, chants of “Fire Lindy” rang throughout Prudential Center, but the tone has certainly changed now that they’ve won eight straight games.

In fact, the Jersey faithful are now apologizing to Ruff, loudly and clearly.

Chants of “Sorry Lindy” rang throughout Prudential Center Saturday night during their 4-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes.

With the win, the Devils improved to 12-3-0 on the season and are being carried by youngsters Jesper Bratt, Hischier and Hughes, who are the top three point scorers on the team.

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For the first time in years, their goaltending has been solid. Vitek Vanecek and Mackenzie Blackwood were splitting time before the latter was injured last week. But, entering Saturday, Devils goalies combined for a 2.49 GAA and .899 save percentage.

The Devils will look for their ninth straight win Tuesday night in Montreal against the Canadiens.