Team USA forward Brady Tkachuk took down Sweden defenseman Rasmus Dahlin late in the Americans' 2-1 overtime victory in the quarterfinals of the men's hockey tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics. It's a moment the Buffalo Sabres superstar likely won't soon forget.
Dahlin was slow to pick himself up off the ice and skated one brief shift after that hit as the Three Crowns decided to lean heavily on Erik Karlsson for the rest of the game. Whether it's viewed as a dirty play, possibly a slew foot, pretty much depends on your allegiances.
Regardless, Dahlin and Tkachuk are going to shed the jerseys of their home countries and will soon be back playing for the Sabres and Ottawa Senators, respectively.
Buffalo's captain will surely spend the plane ride back from Italy circling April 2 on his calendar. That's when the Blue and Gold will visit Canadian Tire Centre to face off with Tkachuk and the Sens in what could ultimately become a key game in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Rasmus Dahlin is an ultimate competitor and won't let Brady Tkachuk off the hook following Olympic controversy
Dahlin maintains a calm demeanor off the ice. The moment he laces up his skates, however, he turns into a completely different person. He becomes a fiery leader who's willing to do anything to stand up for both himself and his teammates.
Tkachuk is likely going to find that out the hard way in early April. It wouldn't even be a surprise if they end up dropping the gloves to settle the score from the Milano Cortina Games.
Dahlin can't lose focus of the main goal, though. The Sabres are desperate to finally bring an end to the franchise's 14-year playoff drought, the longest such streak in NHL history. He'll need to play elite hockey down the stretch to make that possible.
The Senators are one of the club that will be trying to chase Buffalo down. Ottawa is currently 11th in the East with 63 points (28-22-7 record), which is seven points behind the Blue and Gold, who own the top wild-card spot in the conference at 70 points (32-19-6).
Even though that's a decent cushion for Dahlin and Co. by no means is it insurmountable with 25 games left for both teams. That's especially true since the Sabres started fading a bit before the Olympic break, losing three of their final four games.
If Tkachuk's squad can get hot, and the Sens have showed some promising signs with a 6-3-1 record over their last 10 contests, and the Sabres aren't able to rediscover top form, that head-to-head battle in early April could become vitally important for the Atlantic Division rivals.
So, while Dahlin may be aiming to exact a bit of personal revenge, he'll have to do it in a smart way. The last thing Buffalo will be able to afford is him getting a misconduct for going overboard, and Tkachuk will be trying to bait him into it, and then the Sabres are without a critical player.
That's why the best course of action for the Swedish blueliner will simply be winning the game to keep his team on a path toward the playoffs while keeping the Senators on the outside looking in.
In the bigger picture, the return of an entertaining Sabres-Sens rivalry would spark a bit of nostalgia for longtime Buffalo sports fans, who've seen that story play out in a few different eras.