The evolution of the Buffalo Saber Rasmus Dahlin: From Top Draft to Elite Defenders – Hockey Writer – Buffalo Perak

After winning the lottery draft, Buffalo Sabres selected Rasmus Dahlin for the first time in the 2018 NHL entry draft. Dahlin was the first choice of consensus at that time, and was considered a franchise and a player who had the potential to reverse the franchise. That hasn’t happened yet, but it’s not his fault that management hasn’t built a team around him. Despite this, he is the best player on the team.

This is Darling’s career from draft day to today.

Draft Day Hype: The Weight of Expectations

Dahlin is the first defensive player to be selected for the first time since Aaron Ekblad in 2014. Darling is considered a generation of Blueliner and already has high expectations for his teenage shoulders. His transformation, elite skating ability, hockey and high hockey IQ are just a small part of why expectations are so high. He also compared historic greats like Niklas Lidstrom and Erik Karlsson, who were one of the best defenders in the league at the time.

From 2016 to 2018, Dahlin played for Frolunda in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) of Sweden’s top professional leagues. Especially in 2017-18, he played 41 games and scored 20 points, which is impressive for one of the European top league defensive players.

When Saber won the lottery draft and knew they could choose Darling, fans, organizations and media all wanted him to change the culture in the organization. He failed the hype.

Early NHL: Talented, Growth Pain

Entering his rookie season, Darling is already expected to be one of the best defenders in Saber history, and he immediately showed potential. During the 2018-2019 season, the 18-year-old looked like an experienced veterinarian. In all 82 games, he recorded 44 points (9 goals and 35 assists). He also broke the Saber and NHL rookie defensive player record.

Saber Rookie Records (Defensive Player)

• Rookie defensive player scored in one season (44)
• Most assists from rookie defensive players (35)

Rookie milestones in the NHL range

• An 18-year-old defensive player has scored most of the points since his head coach Phil Housley (1982-1983).
• The second year defensive player reached 30 assists in a season (Bobby Orr)
• The third highest score total of 18-year-old defensive players (ORR, Housley) in NHL history

Now, without bad things, we will not be able to talk about good things. Defensively, Darling did struggle. His hockey IQ is there, but he is often surpassed in front of or behind the network/net. It’s obvious that he needs to lose weight. He is not a mess on defense, but there are many areas in his game that need improvement. Despite his offense so well, he sometimes revolves around his defensive responsibilities.

He also struggled with confidence, and of course, that certainly happens when you compete at the world’s highest level of 18.

Related: Saber’s priorities in the 2025 NHL Draft

He still had defensive turnovers over the next few seasons and worked hard on his offense every night. After the 2018-2019 season, Saber fired head coach Phil Housley and hired his substitute Ralph Krueger a month later, who had never coached an NHL game since 2013. This didn’t go well for Dahlin or other Sabers.

Krueger’s first season (2019-2020) was shortened due to No. 19. Darling’s offensive season was better than his rookie season, scoring 40 points in 59 games and 55 points in the entire 82 seasons. However, the team failed to play on 24 teams, so the Saber’s historic playoffs continued.

The shortened 56-game season in 2021 was by far the worst game in Dahlin, scoring 23 points in 56 games. The team recorded just 15 wins and won the lottery draft, choosing Owen Power, the University of Michigan’s first inning defensive player. He and Darling are considered two pillars and they will help turn the franchise around.

In March 2021, Saber was one of the worst winning streaks in franchise history. They decided to fire Kruger and promote assistant coach Don Granato, which was when Dahlin took his next step to become an elite defender.

Turning point: Granato and a new system

When Granato was hired as the team’s head coach in the summer of 2021, many people knew he was an excellent coach for player development. Part of this comes from his time coaching at the U18 national team in the United States.

In the 2022-2023 season, we saw the first edition of the Norris Trophy movement. Dahlin recorded 73 points in 78 games and was close to helping the Saber break the drought, missing a point in the playoffs. Dahlin is the first sabre Blueliner to score 70 points since Housley. Not only did his offensive game explode, he also became a very reliable two-way defender who could lean on on both ends of the ice.

He is no longer a defensive responsibility, his hockey IQ is indeed showing. He grew up to be a player. He became more physical and played the advantage, we’ve never seen him play in the NHL and had more confidence when he stepped on the ice. Granato unleashed his potential. Dahlin ranked eighth in Norris trophy votes, making him a top ten defender in the league.

His competition is growing exponentially and his leadership is constantly improving. He was appointed as a replacement captain for the first time in his career, which is well deserved. Granato not only trusts him on the ice, but also trusts him on the ice. Now, he had a voice in the locker room at that time, captain Kyle Okposo and alternative captain Zemgus Girgensons. Dressed in “A”, Darling is considered a higher bar and the organization considers him a potential future captain.

Sabres fired Granato after the 2023-2024 season and brought in Lindy Ruff, who coached the team from 1997 to 2013 before entering 17 games of the 2012-2013 season.

Darling is the cornerstone of the franchise

When the Saber tries to lock in what they believe is the core, the team signs eight-year, $11 million contract extensions each year, including Matthias Samuelson, Dylan Coozins, Tagg Thompson and Power. Captains were vacant when Okposo signed with the Tampa Bay Chargers during the offseason when he was trading on the 2024 NHL trade deadline. Before the 2024-2025 season, Darling won a “C”.

Darling leads this season on ice and on ice. He was their most valuable player and he didn’t win when he went out with an injury. Hopefully management will focus on building around Darling this summer and set them to make their first playoff game since 2011.

What’s next for Darling?

Currently, the only thing missing from Darling’s resume is the Norris Trophy. The award is more offensive than ever, while players like Quinn Hughes, Cale Makar and Adam Fox are getting more and more difficult. The only downside is that Darling will have to lead all the defenders to win the award.

Darling hopes to be part of the Buffalo solution, helping to break the drought and bring the Stanley Cup to the organization. The first step is to enter the playoffs.

Darling could be the best defender in franchise history, surpassing Horsley. He has already scored 380 points in 509 games. That’s 61 points per season. By this, he will break the record. He was only behind Hughesley’s 558 points. Dahlin also had only 93 assists away from Housley’s record.

By the end of Darling’s career, he could be a team leader in defensive players’ games, goals, assists and scoring. He is already an elite defender and he has the potential to improve further. Is Darling the top five defensive players in the league?