Dahlin is taking a leave of absence to return to Sweden

[Archie Lee]

23 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Perhaps there are additional reasons he went back to Sweden.  There almost certainly are additional considerations that went into the calculation.  His seeming inability to focus on his job 100% while he's performing it almost definitely being part of that calculation.

BUT to try to say (or more accurately, imply) those other reasons trump the reason that is the elephant in the room seem to be disingenuous.

When dealing with difficult personal matters, work can sometimes be a refuge, and sometimes a weight. 

[Big Guava]

45 minutes ago, Archie Lee said:

When dealing with difficult personal matters, work can sometimes be a refuge, and sometimes a weight. 

I think the difference usually is if you feel there is something you can be doing about it or not or at least help with it in some way.

Many times things may be weighing on you but there is little you can actually do.  In this case there is a lot he can do.

[PASabreFan]

What happened had to be life-altering. "Life is short." He might be coming at this from a decidedly unAmerican cultural perspective. Maybe he's not interested in grabbing every last dollar. He's made a fortune. If he or his fianceé does not want to live in this country ... and you don't need a wild imagination to envision that, especially given that many Americans feel the same way right now ... maybe Ras says, hey, I fulfilled my dream and made a lot of money, but being home is most important. They play hockey in Sweden, I heard. The hockey wasteland that is Buffalo would surely play into this scenario.

Am I wrong to speculate? Then you all are wrong, too. The only official reason we have is "tending to a personal matter."

Edited 5 hours ago by PASabreFan

[LGR4GM]

Dahlin has made about 33 million to date before taxes. He's got 77 or so million left on his current contract. 

[Porous Five Hole]

I’m not overthinking this. His heart and brain are focused on something other than his job right now, so he’s tending to that.  
 

Sorry to be blunt, but Rasmus watched his soulmate die. CPR means no heartbeat and no breathing. From his statement:

”While on vacation in France early this summer, Carolina began to feel sick for a few days, which quickly turned into her experiencing major heart failure. Fortunately, she received CPR on multiple occasions, and up to a couple of hours at a time to keep her alive, which ultimately saved her life.”

”She was transferred to a hospital where she remained on life support for weeks before she was a beneficiary of a heart transplant while still in France.”

Hockey is just a game. I hope he gets his heart and head right and I hope he takes as long as he needs. 

[PromoTheRobot]

16 hours ago, SwampD said:

Dude. What more do you want from me? It's been 14 years of crap. I'm still here. I love the Sabres. They are trash again and their star defensemen is out long term. If you can be positive about that, god bless you. They are not .500. They are 5 and 9. That's bad. I truly hope for a run of wins that surprises us all. That would be awesome, but this season has become a tire fire that I did not see coming, but have come to terms with. Apparently you have not.

I can be positive. You are all-in on finding the negative. You can't look at the now without dredging up the past. God bless you. Whatever gets you off.

Edited 3 hours ago by PromoTheRobot

[PerreaultForever]

5 hours ago, Pimlach said:

What would be nice is to see Owen Power step up. 

It would be nice but I wouldn't look for that to happen. Only way for them to have success right now is to play a tighter more grinding team system and get some good goaltending. If they try to rely on star power and individual play it'll fail miserably. Everybody has to get on the boards and grind. Battle. This is part of the Thompson problem too. He's just looking for the shot again. Every team knows this. He needs to grind as well. Stop being so predictable. 

[SwampD]

1 hour ago, PromoTheRobot said:

I can be positive. You are all-in on finding the negative. You can't look at the now without dredging up the past. God bless you. Whatever gets you off.

That's ridiculous. I'm all in on being realistic. If that happens to also be negative then so be it. If the Sabres end up in the playoffs this season, I will be shocked,… and thrilled.

I get tired of the posters here who talk about other posters more than they talk about hockey. I've actually liked some of the hockey we've seen the Sabres play this year and have said as much. I guess you ignored those posts. Some people only look for the negative, I guess.

[pastajoe]

They’ve got 3-5 NHL capable goalies. Time for Adams to trade one and acquire a veteran defenseman or center on a short term contract. Using Dahlin’s absence as an excuse for going on a losing streak is unacceptable.