 Another first-round playoff loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in the lockout-shortened 1994–95 season was followed by a fifth-place finish in the Northeast Division in 1995–96, as the team missed the playoffs for the first time in nine years.It was the first season under head coach Ted Nolan and the last for the Sabres at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.Nolan brought an exciting brand of hockey to Buffalo.