It was a career season for several Buffalo Sabres defensemen last year as Rasmus Dahlin set a career-high in points, and Mattias Samuelsson seemingly setting a career high in every statistical category.
This was the strength of the Sabres last season, and they have some new additions to the group in Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier with the departure of Bowen Byram. When looking ahead to the upcoming season, several of these players are going to be chasing personal milestones during the 2026-27 season.
Rasmus Dahlin - 500 points and 600 games with the Sabres
Rasmus Dahlin is the leader of the Buffalo Sabres and has arguably been their most important player since they drafted him first overall in the 2018 NHL Draft. It seems like every season, Dahlin just gets a little bit better, and that was the case last season with 74 points after registering 19 goals and 55 assists.
The fact that he has now had 65 or more points in each of the past two seasons puts 500 points within reach in 2026-27. He currently has 434 points, so it won't be guaranteed that he'll reach this milestone, but it is possible.
One milestone he is almost certain to hit is 600 career NHL games, as he currently has 586 and could be playing in his 600th career game on Halloween night if he plays every game to begin the season.
Mattias Samuelsson - 100 points and 300 games with the Sabres
Many who watched Mattias Samuelsson at the beginning of his career believed he had yet to reach his ceiling. However, even the most optimistic couldn't have envisioned what he was able to do last season with 13 goals and 28 assists.
Entering 2025-26, Samuelsson had only 43 career points, but after his 41-point season, he should be able to easily surpass 100 career points this upcoming season with only 16 points needed.
In addition to that, he has a games played milestone that he should reach fairly early in the season, similar to Dahlin. He currently has 290 career games played, all with the Sabres, and only needs 10 to reach 300.
Olen Zellweger and Conor Timmins - 200 career games
The final two players with personal milestones within reach this season are Olen Zellweger and Conor Timmins, with both expected to surpass 200 career NHL games.
Timmins would have reached this mark last season but played in only 39 games and currently sits at 198. He has been in the league seven seasons, and it has taken him some time to get to this point as he has never played 70 or more games in a single season.
Meanwhile, Zellweger is new to the Buffalo Sabres after they traded for him this offseason. He was a second-round pick by the Ducks in 2021 and has played in 164 career games entering this season. The expectation is that Zellweger is set to replace Bowen Byram on the blueline next to Owen Power. If he is able to win that role in training camp, he should surpass 200 career games.
Last season was memorable for the Buffalo Sabres' blueline, and this group did a lot of great things that helped them end their playoff drought. It could be another season they won't forget for several of these players.
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