Rasmus Dahlin named to the NHL Second All Star Team

[Brawndo]

 

[Taro T]

15 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

 

Makes sense.  3rd in the Norris voting.  2 1st team D-men.  Leaves him a 2nd teamer.

Good for him.  Hopefully he bumps that up a squad next year.

[...]

[dudacek]

First time we’ve had an all-star since Ryan Miller’s Olympic year?

[inkman]

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

[Taro T]

1 minute ago, inkman said:

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

But the end of year AS squads are NOT the same as the ASG squads (not even starters from one are necessarily the same as the other).

And 1 year, Ovechkin was the 1st team RW and the 2nd team LW.  Great system you have there, Mr. Bettman.

[dudacek]

57 minutes ago, inkman said:

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

This has nothing to do with the all-star game.

It’s a post season honour voted on like the Hart and the Norris, etc. Been around forever.

[shrader]

7 minutes ago, dudacek said:

This has nothing to do with the all-star game.

It’s a post season honour voted on like the Hart and the Norris, etc. Been around forever.

And it carries a lot more weight than an all star. 

[SwampD]

1 hour ago, inkman said:

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

16 minutes ago, dudacek said:

This has nothing to do with the all-star game.

It’s a post season honour voted on like the Hart and the Norris, etc. Been around forever.

7 minutes ago, shrader said:

And it carries a lot more weight than an all star. 

I don't know if I have ever heard of this.

[inkman]

30 minutes ago, shrader said:

And it carries a lot more weight than an all star. 

But they call it the same thing 

[shrader]

17 minutes ago, SwampD said:

I don't know if I have ever heard of this.

It’s just like the all pro team in the NFL. Contract stuff is going to be based on this over all star games. 

[Pimlach]

23 hours ago, Taro T said:

Makes sense.  3rd in the Norris voting.  2 1st team D-men.  Leaves him a 2nd teamer.

Good for him.  Hopefully he bumps that up a squad next year.

Almost makes sense.  He somehow got less votes than Bouchard.  

[Pimlach]

Yes, mid-season All Star Game rosters are completely separate from the 1st and 2nd team All Stars.  

There are always anomalies.  Jason Robertson is a First Team All Star for the second time.   Yet he was not selected for the US Olympic team.  

[GASabresIUFAN]

22 hours ago, inkman said:

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

It’s like being an all-pro in football vs being selected to the pro bowl.  
 

 

[Nacho Libre]

On 6/12/2026 at 6:35 PM, inkman said:

So during Olympic years they don’t play the all star game they just announce them after the season? 

The way the league words these things is frankly stupid, this type of confusion is expected 

no, this is the second all star designation in a normal year. Dahlin’s on the second team. Of the second time all stars would usually be announced. He’d have been on the first all star team but those were cancelled for olympics, but THOSE first all star teams would have been announced earlier and are different from the first all stars listed now. Quite straightforward 

why they don’t just call THIS all-pro or whatever is beyond me 

Would be like the NFL saying you are a pro bowler and also you are a first team pro bowler. There’s a reason they say “all pro” instead, so it’s reasonably differentiated 

Edited June 14 by Nacho Libre

[Nacho Libre]

On 6/12/2026 at 8:16 PM, inkman said:

But they call it the same thing 

NHL be nhl 

[inkman]

15 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

It’s like being an all-pro in football vs being selected to the pro bowl.  
 

 

Calling them two different things helps 

[dudacek]

It’s supposed to represent the best players in the league at each position over the course of the year:

1st team:

Robertson McDavid Kucherov

Makar Werenski

Vasilevskiy

2nd team:

Caufield McKinnon Pastrnak

Dahlin Bouchard

Thompson

 

Language aside, I’m a little surprised some of you are unfamiliar. It was a big deal to me when Perreault was a 2nd teamer when I was 8 and had the hockey card to prove it. 😁

It never used to be unusual for a Sabre to be named. Rick Martin was a two-time 2nd and a 2-time 1st. Hasek a 6-time 1st.

[Nacho Libre]

29 minutes ago, dudacek said:

It’s supposed to represent the best players in the league at each position over the course of the year:

1st team:

Robertson McDavid Kucherov

Makar Werenski

Vasilevskiy

2nd team:

Caufield McKinnon Pastrnak

Dahlin Bouchard

Thompson

 

Language aside, I’m a little surprised some of you are unfamiliar. It was a big deal to me when Perreault was a 2nd teamer when I was 8 and had the hockey card to prove it. 😁

It never used to be unusual for a Sabre to be named. Rick Martin was a two-time 2nd and a 2-time 1st. Hasek a 6-time 1st.

It’s a good and meaningful recognition. I think the language is gaining traction here because, at least for me, I do find it particularly annoying this time - because while it’s already sort of ambiguously worded, at least they used to say “second team all star”. 

“second all star team”, getting “all star team” in there exactly the same way it’s worded for the regular all star game is even less effort than normal 

[Alaska John]

Dahlin has been playing at this high level for a few years, but the Sabres weren't relevant so most fans never saw him play or heard about him.  Team success is part of it, but team EXPOSURE is a bigger part.  Also, for defensemen, scoring somehow becomes more important than, you know, defense.  A shutdown D-man is valued by his team but usually overlooked by the rest of the league.  

Kudos to Dahlin, and let's hope that more Sabres deserve league-wide awards in the years to come.

[Pimlach]

21 hours ago, Alaska John said:

Dahlin has been playing at this high level for a few years, but the Sabres weren't relevant so most fans never saw him play or heard about him.  Team success is part of it, but team EXPOSURE is a bigger part.  Also, for defensemen, scoring somehow becomes more important than, you know, defense.  A shutdown D-man is valued by his team but usually overlooked by the rest of the league.  

Kudos to Dahlin, and let's hope that more Sabres deserve league-wide awards in the years to come.

So true about NHL defensemen.   Jacob Slavin is one of the best players on a  Stanley Cup winning team, as he was on an Olympic Gold Team, and he got ZERO votes for the NHL All Star team.  

[inkman]

On 6/14/2026 at 9:58 AM, dudacek said:

It’s supposed to represent the best players in the league at each position over the course of the year:

1st team:

Robertson McDavid Kucherov

Makar Werenski

Vasilevskiy

2nd team:

Caufield McKinnon Pastrnak

Dahlin Bouchard

Thompson

 

Language aside, I’m a little surprised some of you are unfamiliar. It was a big deal to me when Perreault was a 2nd teamer when I was 8 and had the hockey card to prove it. 😁

It never used to be unusual for a Sabre to be named. Rick Martin was a two-time 2nd and a 2-time 1st. Hasek a 6-time 1st.

There is probably a direct relationship between Sabres making all star teams and fans having a thorough understanding of the accolades the NHL heaps upon them. 

[Doohickie]

On 6/12/2026 at 6:39 PM, Taro T said:

But the end of year AS squads are NOT the same as the ASG squads (not even starters from one are necessarily the same as the other).

And 1 year, Ovechkin was the 1st team RW and the 2nd team LW.  Great system you have there, Mr. Bettman.

Don't they do something similar in the NFL?

[K-9]

On 6/13/2026 at 6:20 PM, GASabresIUFAN said:

It’s like being an all-pro in football vs being selected to the pro bowl.  
 

 

A good comparison. The post season NHL All Stars are voted on by the select Professional Hockey Writers Association and there is no requirement that at least one player from each team has at least one player selected, unlike the mid season All Star teams are voted on by a combination NHL Dept. of Hockey Operations who make sure each team is represented and then the fans who vote to fill the remaining spots. The post season All Star recognition is a much more prestigious honor.

[Taro T]

48 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

Don't they do something similar in the NFL?

Yes.  Pro bowl is the NFL's version of an All Star game.  (Or it was before it became a flag football event.)  Being named an All Pro is far more prestigious.  And considering how they were getting down to the 5th or 7th alternate (however low in the pecking order Tyrod Taylor was) actually accepting the opportunity to play in the game it really wasn't much of an honor anymore.

Being named a 1st or 2nd team All Pro means you are considered the 1st or 2nd best player in the league at your position by those that do the voting.  Just like being named to the 1st or 2nd Team All Stars means your the 1st or 2nd best at your position in the NHL.  (Still find it hilarious that Ovechkin was voted to both the 1st and 2nd team AS's one year.  Which points out just how poor the quality control is.)