How good, Rasmus Dahlin?

[Brawndo]

Botterill said he's "Blown away by Dahlin's on ice presence, then when sitting down with him he's a very humble individual. Confident and a student of the game. Blown away by his hockey iq."

[thewookie1]

 

http://www.thehockeynews.com/news/article/sabres-savior-meet-do-it-all-defender-rasmus-dahlin

 

The last part makes me imagine Dahlin hip checking McDavid in his first match up :)

[sabills]

The last part makes me imagine Dahlin hip checking McDavid in his first match up :)

“He’s a little like a Peter Forsberg character. He gets really mean. He has a high temper. That gives him a competitive edge at practices and especially in games. He doesn’t lose his head, but he competes. He’s going to have more dirty tricks than people think. He’s not going to take anything for granted, and he’s going to battle for everything.”

 

I know they'll probably be split up for good reason, but I like picturing Angry Risto and Angry Dahlin out there at the same time like

Only, you know, more blonde.

Edited June 22, 2018 by sabills

[darksabre]

A Finn and a Swede as defense partners could be tough. Neither would be able to cross into the other's half of the ice. Bad for line changes.

[LGR4GM]

A Finn and a Swede as defense partners could be tough. Neither would be able to cross into the other's half of the ice. Bad for line changes.

Dahlin only line changes when his team scores. Then he rests for 1min and goes back out. It is known.

[Brawndo]

Jason Botterill on Rasmus Dahlin: "I think Mr. Dahlin could improve pretty much 31 teams in the National Hockey League."

[Brawndo]

https://twitter.com/buffalosabres/status/1010223160493395969?s=21

[darksabre]

Dahlin only line changes when his team scores. Then he rests for 1min and goes back out. It is known.

It is known.

[Mustache of God]

Exactly. He's seen tons of doctors at this point so they would know. 

He was 16 then... 

 

Do they hand out gift bags each time someone scores in that league? Why is he given a gift bag? I've seen this clip a bunch and am always baffled by the end of it.

[LGR4GM]

Do they hand out gift bags each time someone scores in that league? Why is he given a gift bag? I've seen this clip a bunch and am always baffled by the end of it.

You must appease the hockey Gods

[ubkev]

Do they hand out gift bags each time someone scores in that league? Why is he given a gift bag? I've seen this clip a bunch and am always baffled by the end of it.

No, they were just cleaning 4 jock straps off the ice. The bag was just handy.

[Kelly the Dog]

Two things that seem contradictory:

 

One, I agree that the term "generational talent" is overused, and that there should only be 1-2 players in twenty years that warrant that moniker. That criticism of overuse seems to be true.

 

Two: The last several drafts of the top defenseman, even Ekblad, Seth Jones, Ryan Murray, Hedman, Ekman-Larsson, Heiskanen, Makar, Joulevi, Hanifan, Adam Larsson, Gudbranson, Doughty, etc, which covers ten years, none of them were even close to the prospect that Dahlin is. Really not even in the same ballpark, and it really doesn't seem to be because writers or pundits or execs were throwing around undeserved superlatives about him.

 

He seems a cut above everyone, by a significant margin, that we have seen as a prospect.

[IKnowPhysics]

I take Craig Button's exuberance with a grain of salt. But when he says Dahlin's ceiling is the best since Denis Potvin, who was drafted 45 years ago, that's notable.

 

Several folks project Dahlin's ceiling at Lidstrom. Even more folks project his ceiling as better than Karlsson or Hedman or Ekblad.

 

Even if different folks draw the line for "generational" differently, someone somewhere has projected this kid capable of achieving it.

 

And no matter the label, I believe.

[LGR4GM]

Dahlin's media scrum after being drafted 1st overall. I love this kid. 

https://www.nhl.com/sabres/video/rasmus-dahlin-media-scrum/t-277437090/c-60650103

[GASabresIUFAN]

So when is development camp? Are the tickets sold out yet?

[TrueBlueGED]

Two things that seem contradictory:

 

One, I agree that the term "generational talent" is overused, and that there should only be 1-2 players in twenty years that warrant that moniker. That criticism of overuse seems to be true.

 

Two: The last several drafts of the top defenseman, even Ekblad, Seth Jones, Ryan Murray, Hedman, Ekman-Larsson, Heiskanen, Makar, Joulevi, Hanifan, Adam Larsson, Gudbranson, Doughty, etc, which covers ten years, none of them were even close to the prospect that Dahlin is. Really not even in the same ballpark, and it really doesn't seem to be because writers or pundits or execs were throwing around undeserved superlatives about him.

 

He seems a cut above everyone, by a significant margin, that we have seen as a prospect.

 

Right, and I think he is. The argument over the term "generational" seems to miss the point, I think. If he "only" ends up as good as Victor Hedman, not a single person is going to care whether that counts as generational. 

 

I'd also note that it's quite rare for a prospect to hit the publicly-known scouting radar at 16 and stay there through their draft season with seemingly only positive development. I distinctly remember observers of international hockey saying "He's only 16, but I'm all-in"...and that has sustained itself for two years. That's pretty telling, I think.

[Taro T]

So when is development camp? Are the tickets sold out yet?

The non-3-on-3 portion Thursday & Friday don't require tix.

 

The Saturday 3v3 tix haven't been made available yet. (Not even to STHers that suposedly are the only ones eligible to get tgem.)

Everything I have heard has him being a combination of Hedman, Karlson and Lidstrom and better at this age than all 3. Coached well, I see him as league best in 3 years and for the next 10.

 

Therein lies the rub. Do the Sabres have a coaching staff able to get Dahlin to reach his potential?

 

Me thinks the jury is still out on that.

[Doohickie]

Therein lies the rub. Do the Sabres have a coaching staff able to get Dahlin to reach his potential?

 

Me thinks the jury is still out on that.

 

Seriously?  Come on!  Our head coach is one of the most famous purse swingers to ever play in this league!

[LGR4GM]

From April 2018: https://theathletic.com/322529/2018/04/23/breaking-down-rasmus-dahlin-the-makings-of-a-generational-talent-and-first-overall-lock/

Quote

The numbers tell part of the story. In 41 games for Frolunda in the SHL this year, Dahlin picked up seven goals and 20 points, making him the highest-scoring under-18 defenceman in the history of Sweden’s top tier. Adam Larsson, a fourth-overall pick in 2011, is the only defenceman in recent history who has even broken double digits (he posted 17 points in eight more games). Even if you extrapolate Dahlin’s production to the under-19 age bracket, only Victor Hedman (second overall in 2009) has bested him — and by a lone assist 

 

Edited August 24, 2018 by LGR4GM

[dudacek]

From the same article:

“What we can learn from Dahlin’s record-breaking offensive season, beyond the historic numbers, is that the plays he’s making are plays of skill, speed, finesse, and technique. With each extra goal, or highlight reel assist comes a reaffirmation of the transformative ability he has. It shows us that what he’s done is repeatable and that his eight per cent shooting percentage (high for a defenceman) is no fluke.

Above all else, it’s the way he makes plays, not the end results, that give us a glimpse into the unknown. That dynamism leads to wonder — wonder about the possibilities and the potential. The potential of something truly new and different.

Very few players create that kind of wonder. Ovechkin. McDavid. Karlsson.”

[WildCard]

You bastards are making it harder and harder to not just subscribe to them

[nfreeman]

8 minutes ago, WildCard said:

You bastards are making it harder and harder to not just subscribe to them

You won't regret it.  Their Bills and Sabres coverage/analysis is significantly better than any other publication's. 

[sabills]

13 minutes ago, WildCard said:

You bastards are making it harder and harder to not just subscribe to them

 

4 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

You won't regret it.  Their Bills and Sabres coverage/analysis is significantly better than any other publication's. 

 

As a rule I never read full articles on the internet. My ADHD kicks in, I can't concentrate, and I give up after a few paragraphs. Usually I just skim through and read the highlights. Since The Athletic came to Buffalo I've read about 10 of their articles top to bottom. They are excellent, interesting and engaging, but also informative. I can't tell you what's necessarily different, but whatever it is, it works.

[jsb]

17 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

You won't regret it.  Their Bills and Sabres coverage/analysis is significantly better than any other publication's. 

 

9 minutes ago, sabills said:

 

 

As a rule I never read full articles on the internet. My ADHD kicks in, I can't concentrate, and I give up after a few paragraphs. Usually I just skim through and read the highlights. Since The Athletic came to Buffalo I've read about 10 of their articles top to bottom. They are excellent, interesting and engaging, but also informative. I can't tell you what's necessarily different, but whatever it is, it works.

I don't think I've ever given an opinion on a online magazine before but I agree with the 2 above posters, it has been more than I expected when I signed up. It's just not the Bills-Sabres articles but just about every major team in Sports and it's 2nd to no-one in Sabres info and articles. I'm also a huge Houston Astros fan and it's been great there also.

Edited August 24, 2018 by jsb

[pi2000]

27 minutes ago, sabills said:

 

 

As a rule I never read full articles on the internet. My ADHD kicks in, I can't concentrate, and I give up after a few paragraphs. Usually I just skim through and read the highlights. Since The Athletic came to Buffalo I've read about 10 of their articles top to bottom. They are excellent, interesting and engaging, but also informative. I can't tell you what's necessarily different, but whatever it is, it works.