Sabres hire Ralph Krueger as head coach

The Buffalo Sabres officially hired former Edmonton Oilers bench boss Ralph Krueger as their head coach, the team announced Wednesday.

Krueger has taken an unconventional path to his newest job. He was the head coach of the Swiss national team from 1997 to 2010 and then served as an assistant coach with the Oilers for two seasons before taking over for the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season. After compiling a 19-22-7 record, he was relieved of his duties.

He was also on the bench as a consultant for Team Canada's gold-medal triumph at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

The 59-year-old then ventured into associated football and was director - and chairman shortly thereafter - of Southampton FC. In 2016, Krueger briefly returned to the ice and coached Team Europe to an unlikely second-place finish at the World Cup of Hockey.

Krueger will replace Phil Housley, who was fired on April 7. The Sabres interviewed six other candidates before ultimately deciding on Krueger, reports TSN's Pierre LeBrun.

The Sabres boast plenty of young star power with Jack Eichel and Rasmus Dahlin but finished as the fifth-worst team during this past regular season and own the NHL's longest active playoff drought at eight seasons.