NASHVILLE – Rasmus Dahlin arrived in the National Hockey League with immense expectations, endured difficult stretches that are common for young defensemen and has begun to flourish with the Buffalo Sabres under coach Don Granato.
Now, Dahlin can call himself an all-star.
Dahlin, 21, was announced Thursday as a member of the Atlantic Division’s all-star team for the NHL’s annual 3-on-3 event, which will be held in Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on Feb. 5. The league's weekend showcase will also include the skills competition, pitting Dahlin against some of the best players in the world.
“It’s a dream come true, for sure," Dahlin said late Thursday night. "It’s awesome."
It was clear that Dahlin hadn’t given much thought to possibly representing the Sabres on the Vegas Strip.
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Center Tage Thompson, 24, made a compelling case for selection with a breakout first half, totaling a career-high 12 goals with 23 points while leading all Sabres forwards in average time on ice (17:34) across 34 games. Currently in Covid-19 protocol, Thompson also leads the club’s forwards in shots on goal (105) and ranks second in individual shot quality at 5 on 5, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
Thompson can still make the roster if he wins the league's "Last Men In" voting, which ends Jan. 17.
The plethora of talented forwards in the Atlantic Division, and Dahlin’s rapid ascent over the past five weeks, helped him emerge as the Sabre most likely to be selected.
Drafted first overall by the Sabres in 2018, Dahlin’s development has been impacted negatively by the turnover on the bench and a lack of continuity within the team’s defense corps. He began to perform well under former coach Ralph Krueger, only to struggle mightily during a 2020-21 season in which Buffalo had a franchise-record 18-game winless streak.
Dahlin has rebounded in a big way since Granato took over as coach on March 17, 2021. Entering the Sabres’ game Thursday night in Nashville, Dahlin had six goals and 22 points in 35 games. He was on pace for career highs in goals (14), assists (38) and points (52), and he could become the first Sabres defenseman since Alexei Zhitnik in 1997-98 to reach the 15-goal plateau.
“I always knew he was a (heck) of a player, but it’s fun to get to know him as a person, see how his life is outside the rink, too,” fellow Sabres defenseman Robert Hagg said. “His personality on the ice, too, he’s a competitive guy, he wants to win every single battle. He’s kind of the same thing outside the rink, too. If you do something, he wants to win. ... I have only positive things to say about Dahls as a human being and as a player. He’s an unbelievable player, as you guys have seen here.”
The latest chapter in Dahlin’s development has been his promotion to a top-pairing role this season. Entering Thursday, Dahlin was averaging a career-high 23:56 of ice time per game and ranked 10th among all NHL defensemen in total ice time at 5 on 5. Dating back to Nov. 21, Dahlin was also tied for 10th with 14 points and 52 shots in 19 games.
Despite facing the opponent’s top players every game, Dahlin leads all Sabres in on-ice shot quality at 5 on 5, according to NaturalStatTrick.com. He’s carrying the puck with the same confidence and dynamism we saw during his draft-eligible season when scouts were comparing him to Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom.
Most important, Dahlin is making fewer mistakes in the defensive zone, using his strength to knock opponents off the puck to begin the Sabres’ transition game. In the past, Dahlin was sheltered with more offensive-zone starts, but he and Henri Jokiharju are now asked to be on the ice for defensive-zone faceoffs because of their ability to break the puck out cleanly.
“It’s a great feeling,” Dahlin said of the increased responsibility. “That’s what you want and that’s what you work hard for, to be the guy you can trust and to be a leader out there. It takes time, but if you work hard enough you will eventually get there. To see when you get a lot of minutes, it’s a great feeling.”
There are still some difficult nights for Dahlin. One mistake typically leads to two or three, as Dahlin tends to become more aggressive to overcompensate. It’s a balance he’s still learning in his fourth NHL season. The offensive talent has been there since Dahlin arrived in the NHL in 2018.
Dahlin was a Calder Trophy finalist as a rookie in 2018-19, leading all first-year defensemen in points (44), the second highest mark by an NHL blueliner before his 19th birthday since Phil Housley’s 57 points with the Sabres in 1982-83. Dahlin had 40 or more points in each of his first two seasons and failed to repeat that total during the shortened 2020-21 schedule.
Even with recent success, Dahlin is determined to reach new heights. He’s often the first player on the ice at Sabres practice, working one-on-one with assistant coach Marty Wilford on various nuances of playing defense. And an all-star nod will likely push Dahlin to want and demand more from himself.
“He has earned it and he deserves it," Granato said. "He’s earned it. He’s in that class and he’s just going to keep getting better. He was great again for us (Thursday night). But there’s no question he’s All-Star caliber.”
Levi under consideration
Sabres prospect Devon Levi's remarkable season at Northeastern and record-setting performance at the IIHF World Junior Championship last year has him on Canada's radar for the Winter Olympics.
Sources told The Buffalo News that the 20-year-old goalie was invited to represent his home country and join fellow Sabres prospect Owen Power on Canada's roster for the Olympics, which begin Feb. 4 in Beijing.
Levi, who was acquired by the Sabres in the Sam Reinhart trade with Florida, has a .953 save percentage and 1.38 goals-against average as a sophomore for Northeastern.
Sabres prospect Ryan Johnson, a defenseman at the University of Minnesota, was not selected to USA Hockey's initial roster for Beijing.
