Dahlin feels love from fans as Sabres struggle in loss to Bruins

BUFFALO -- Rasmus Dahlin was welcomed by thunderous applause as he stepped onto the ice at KeyBank Center for his first NHL game on Thursday.

Three hours later, he and his teammates heard jeers.
The Buffalo Sabres had just lost their
season opener 4-0 to the Boston Bruins
and were loudly booed as they headed for the dressing room.
"We didn't win, so I'm not satisfied with my game," Dahlin said. "I need to be better."
RELATED: [Bruins shut out Sabres, spoil Dahlin debut]
The rookie defenseman, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, was not the target of the fans' wrath. There was polite applause for him when he completed a couple of nice passes late in the game.
Sure, there were mistakes, but the fans gave him a pass for those.
They weren't as forgiving of the Sabres veterans. Neither was coach Phil Housley.
Asked about Dahlin, Housley said, "He looked like a rookie early on, but he got better as the game went on."
The same could not be said of many of his teammates.
"It wasn't our younger players so much that I have issue with, it was our veterans," Housley said.
"Was it disappointing in front of a good crowd that was here to support us? You're dang right. It's disappointing. So what can we control? We can control how we come to the rink tomorrow and work because we are not going through this again."

Buffalo finished last in the NHL with 62 points (25-45-12) last season and won the NHL Draft Lottery. Dahlin was the consensus choice to go No. 1, and his selection was embraced by supporters of the Sabres, who have not made the Stanley Cup Playoffs since 2011.
They showed him that love during the introductions when the 18-year-old received easily the loudest greeting for any Sabres player.
"That was great," said Dahlin, who was minus-1 in 22:37 of ice time. "They have been so good to me. We want to win for them so bad."
On this night, it was not to be.
Bruins defenseman Zdena Chara silenced the crowd by making it 1-0 at 6:33 of the first period, converting a cross-ice pass from Brad Marchand. Ryan Donato, David Pastrnak and Patrice Bergeron also scored for Boston, which played with an edge after losing 7-0 at the Washington Capitals on Wednesday.
Marchand (four assists), Bergeron (goal, assist) and Pastrnak (goal) combined for seven points and drew the admiration of Dahlin.
"It doesn't seem like so long ago that I was watching that line on TV and seeing how good they were," Dahlin said. "Now I played against them and learned that for myself."

Marchand said he was impressed with Dahlin.
"He's young and he'll learn things," Marchand said. "But he can really skate. And when you see some of the crisp passes he made, his upside is obvious.
"You can see he has the makings of a franchise player one day."
Chara, 41, said young defensemen entering the NHL usually take longer to develop than forwards.
"Some go quicker than others," he said. "But when you can skate as well as [Dahlin] does, it's definitely an advantage."
Dahlin said he is as determined as ever to improve. The loss to Boston is merely the beginning of his learning curve.
Housley and Sabres fans understand that. They took exception with the performance of some of Buffalo's more experienced players.
"I thought [Dahlin] was good," Sabres captain Jack Eichel said. "And he's only going to get better.
"But [as a team], we've all got to be better for [the fans] and put a better product on the ice. ... Their fuse is a bit short for us and rightfully so.
"We haven't played well the last few years."
Dahlin can't change that by himself. Even so-called saviors need help.