Rick Dudley’s Bold Move for Tortorella

In 1989, Rick Dudley fought hard to bring John Tortorella onto his Buffalo Sabres coaching staff — despite the team’s doubts about Tortorella’s lack of NHL playing experience. Dudley, who understood the skepticism, stood firm, recalling how he’d championed Tortorella before in the minors. His passion paid off: Tortorella earned the players’ trust and helped turn the Sabres into a playoff team every year he was there. Years later, Dudley, now a Panthers advisor, still takes pride in that bold move — a gamble that launched Tortorella’s legendary NHL coaching career. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/fca479c5e024d581