As Rasmus Dahlin watched teammates depart for greener pastures over the first seven years of his NHL career, the All-Star defenseman decided to stick with the Buffalo Sabres through the endless frustrations involved with the longest playoff drought in league history.
Dahlin isn't satisfied with a single postseason trip, though. The Sabres captain made that clear Thursday following the first practice of training camp ahead of the 2026-27 season.
"Great year last year but it's a new year and if you thought last year was hard, this year's gonna be harder I think," the 26-year-old reigning Norris Trophy finalist told reporters. "We gotta make sure we come prepared. We gotta make sure we have a good camp."
He added: "We have high expectations on ourselves. High expectations around the league. We're not the old Sabres anymore in other teams' eyes."
Dahlin's comments echo those made by Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekalainen and head coach Lindy Ruff on Wednesday. They both stressed the importance of playing highly competitive hockey right away after getting off to a slow start last season.
Buffalo went on one of the best runs in NHL history to surge back toward the top of the Eastern Conference. It ultimately claimed the Atlantic Division title.
Now everybody is back to zero points, however, and the Sabres are facing an incredible amount of competition for the eight playoff spots in the East. There are at least 13 clubs with serious postseason aspirations with puck drop right around the corner.
So, it's going to take a more sustained effort across the 84-game schedule for Buffalo to make a second straight trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
That point is clearly being hammered home by Sabres leadership, and the fast pace of the first practice of camp showcased that sense of urgency. There's no margin for error.
Dahlin has always led by example for the Blue and Gold with an elite compete level, but it's clear he's starting to find his voice, too. That'll be key over the next eight or nine months.
Early projections show the Buffalo Sabres on the NHL playoff fringe for 2026-27
The Sabres finished with 109 points last season, the fourth-highest total in the league, but reaching that mark again may be difficult given the strength of the Atlantic and lingering questions about how the team will replace two key departures, Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram.
So, where will Buffalo end up? Well, HockeyStats.com currently projects the club to land third in the division with 96 points, good enough for a playoff berth.
Yet, it leaves the Sabres tied with the Boston Bruins, two points ahead of the Ottawa Senators, three clear of the Toronto Maple Leafs and four above the Montreal Canadiens. Four teams within four points, and that's not even factoring in members of the Metropolitan Division for the wild-card race.
Things are going to change, of course. Some clubs will exceed expectations, while others fall short of their preseason targets, but it illustrates how tight the battle could be as spring arrives.
That's why Kekalainen, Ruff and Dahlin are pushing that immediate urgency. They're creating a sense that an extra two points in October may come back to loom extremely large in April, and there's a realistic chance that's the truth.
The Sabres are well constructed to navigate the 84-game journey thanks to their ample forward depth, elite blue-line core and three trustworthy goalies — the Connor Hellebuyck rumors linger despite no signs of movement on that front as of late — but they still own of the NHL's youngest rosters, and some of those emerging contributors will surely endure some growing pains in bigger roles.
Buffalo should be a better team by the end of the regular season than it will be when Opening Night arrives Oct. 1, but finding a way to bank enough points early on is crucial to make sure it finishes about the postseason cut line when the dust settles in mid-April.
Nothing is guaranteed, though. That's why the Sabres are treating camp practices with game-like intensity. They want to make sure a repeat performance of last season, when they occupied last place in the East in early December, is avoided.
A stronger start this time around should put Dahlin and his teammates on a path toward bringing playoff hockey back to Western New York for a second straight year.
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