 Despite a two-month rally that began in February along with the emergence of rookie forward Marcus Foligno, the Sabres lost the last two games of the regular season and fell three points short of a playoff spot.The 2012–13 NHL lockout eliminated the first part of the 2012–13 season, which ultimately began with a scheduled 48 games.After a 6–10–1 start to the season, the contract of long-time head coach Lindy Ruff was terminated by general manager Darcy Regier on February 20, 2013, ending 16 seasons as head coach.