Former Buffalo Coach Dudley Chosen to Lead the Gulls : Hockey: Sabre skipper, fired last season, gets two-year contract with the International Hockey League team.

The Gulls hired former Buffalo Sabre Coach Rick Dudley as their new coach, after signing him Wednesday to a two-year contract via fax machine. Dudley will be introduced today at an 11 a.m. press conference at the San Diego Sports Arena.

Dudley, 43, one of two finalists for the job, the other unidentified, agreed to an undisclosed salary and bonuses early Wednesday afternoon. He answered a proposal sent that morning from the Gulls to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, where he was en route to San Diego, said Don Waddell, Gulls vice president of hockey operations. Dudley could not be reached for comment.

Dudley coached two-plus seasons with the Buffalo Sabres before being fired 28 games into the 1991-92 season when the club was 9-15-4 with 22 points.

However, that was the only time a professional team coached by Dudley had a losing record in 10 years. He has a .541 winning percentage in the NHL and a .636 mark lifetime. He brings a 400-229-69 record to the San Diego Sports Arena. Waddell says Dudley will return to the NHL ranks.

“No doubt he’ll get back to the NHL,” Waddell said. “If he wants to, he will.

“I’m real excited to have him. I think it’s a great move by the franchise to hire an NHL coach. There’s no doubt this is another move toward stability and professionalism and another indication of where the franchise is going.”

“I’m ecstatic if he’s signed,” said Gull owner Fred Comrie, who was unaware of the hiring when contacted. “I think he’s fabulous. He has a lot of strengths, as a (former) player and a coach at all different levels and different leagues.”

A former left winger who played parts of six seasons with Buffalo, Dudley had a 85-72-31 mark while coaching the Sabres since the beginning of the 1989-90 season. He was replaced by veteran coach John Muckler, who had joined the club as director of hockey operations.

The shuffle came as no surprise. Many expected Dudley to be fired as soon as the team hit the skids, which came quickly after center Pat LaFontaine suffered an injury. The club had traded four players for LaFontaine in the off-season.

Dudley worked for the Gulls in April as a scout during the IHL playoffs, reuniting with Waddell, his former understudy. Waddell was a player-coach under Dudley for two seasons with the IHL Flint Spirits. In 1987-88, Flint finished fourth in the East Division with 93 points but reached the Turner Cup finals, losing to Salt Lake in seven games. Waddell and Dudley have been close friends since.

“It’s great for Don,” Comrie said. “You have two great hockey men right there. Rick’s technical background and his aggressive system will attract players. He’s very well prepared. That’s the thing Don never had time to do last year.”

Waddell, formerly vice president/general manager before a front-office restructuring last month, took on the head coaching duties as well last season because he couldn’t find a satisfactory replacement for Mike O’Connell. Waddell found himself working 12- and 16-hour days during a season in which the Gulls finished third in the West Division with a 45-28-9 record before being swept by Peoria in the first round of the playoffs.

Waddell, 33, had hinted that he would coach again if none of the 1992 hopefuls met his standards, but Dudley has been his No. 1 choice since he vacated the position.

“He brings an attitude of hard work to the table,” Waddell said. “He wants his players to come out and work hard. I worked for him. I played for him. So I know how he is.”

Dudley, who lives in East Amherst, N.Y., had recently been considered for jobs with two NHL clubs, the Kings and the expansion Ottawa Senators.