Jim Nill executed one of the NHL's biggest heists a few months after being hired as Dallas Stars general manager.
He traded for budding Boston Bruins star Tyler Seguin, who in three years in Dallas has scored 107 goals and 234 points, numbers that would be even more impressive if not for late-season injuries the past two years.
But talk to Nill — the longtime Detroit Red Wings talent evaluator credited for many of their genius draft discoveries that led to four Stanley Cups — and the Seguin blockbuster isn't his proudest acquisition.
"My best move was getting Lindy Ruff," Nill said.
In a league where coaches are hired to be fired within a few seasons, Ruff spent 15 years coaching the Buffalo Sabres before coming to Dallas in 2013. Ruff will be the first to admit that he could have been gassed multiple times along the way, but former Sabres GM Darcy Regier remained loyal throughout ownership changes and a bankruptcy.
But Ruff's longevity was unique, and in three seasons in Dallas, he ended a five-year playoff drought in 2014 and coached the Stars to the regular-season Western Conference crown this season. Heading into Game 4 on Wednesday, Ruff's Stars have a 2-1 series advantage over the Wild.
Ruff guided the Sabres to the 1999 Stanley Cup Final and suffered a controversial conclusion when his current employer, the Stars, won Game 6 in triple overtime despite Brett Hull's toe being in the crease. As ludicrous as it was, that type of goal was routinely overturned via video replay throughout that season.
When Nill first approached Ruff about interviewing for the Stars' gig, Ruff agreed as long as they "didn't meet in a crease."