Sabres begin Rasmus Dahlin era with entry level contract

The first overall pick from the 2018 NHL Entry Draft Rasmus Dahlin has signed his first NHL contract, and the Buffalo Sabres are hoping it will be the beginning of greatness.

Let the Rasmus Dahlin era officially begin in Buffalo.

To nobody’s surprise, the Buffalo Sabres have locked up the number one overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, Rasmus Dahlin, to an entry-level contract.

The entry level contract will be a length of three years, carry a cap hit of $925,000 and an overall maximum salary value of $11.325 million over that time.

Dahlin is the third player to be taken first overall by the Sabres, joining Gilbert Perreault and Pierre Turgeon. He is also the second player from Sweden to ever be drafted first overall, joining the highest scoring Swedish player in NHL history, Mats Sundin.

Dahlin was a member of Sweden’s 2018 World Junior Championships team that finished with a silver medal, and was named Best Defenseman of the tournament. Dahlin also joined the Swedish Olympic team as the youngest ice hockey competitor at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang at 17 years old.

The now-18-year -ld Dahlin is considered to potentially be a once in a generation two-way defenseman, drawing comparisons to current Senators star Erik Karlsson and former Red Wings legend Nicklas Lidstrom. The expectation is for Dahlin to not only make the team out of camp, but to make an immediate impact right away with his dynamic skill set and turn the fate of the lowly Buffalo Sabres around into a product that their loyal fans can be proud of again.

Dahlin won’t be the only young player for the Sabres to build the future around. The Swedish defenseman will be joined by the Sabres up and coming young core, led by budding star Jack Eichel, Casey Mittelstadt, Alex Nylander and Tage Thompson.

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It’s been a long time since the Sabres have really been a playoff threat, last making the postseason in 2011. The Buffalo Sabres finished in last place last season with a measly 62 points, but things are really starting to look up with the addition of Dahlin. Could this finally the beginning of something special in Buffalo, a diehard hockey city deprived of success? Only time will tell, but it’s starting to look like hope is well on the way.