Dahlin not worried about high expectations with Sabres

BUFFALO -- Rasmus Dahlin had completed his first on-ice session as a member of the Buffalo Sabres on Monday, when he found out even No. 1 draft picks have to do grunt work.
The session at the Sabres practice facility had ended and someone needed to pick up all the pucks in the net. Might as well be the new kid, who was more than eager to do it.

So there was Dahlin, sitting in one of the goal creases, scooping about two dozen pucks into a bucket.
He couldn't stop smiling.
"Awesome," said Dahlin when asked about his initial skate in a Sabres jersey.
Sabres fans feel the same way about him.
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Three days after the Sabres made the slick puck-moving defenseman the No. 1 pick at the 2018 NHL Draft in Dallas, the love-in between this hockey-crazed city and the blonde-haired teenager from Trollhattan, Sweden, was on full display.
Showing the spirit of his new hockey home, Dahlin arrived in Buffalo on Sunday wearing a Buffalo Bills cap. "Just shows that we're all one Buffalo," general manager Jason Botterill said.
Dahlin's introduction to the local media and fans came Monday during a press conference in the atrium of KeyBank Center. The highlight of the festivities was when Botterill handed him a No. 26 Sabres jersey with "Dahlin" on the back.
Dahlin wore No. 26 with Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League. No. 26 was freed up last season when the Sabres assigned forward Matt Moulson to Ontario of the American Hockey League.
"It's an amazing feeling," Dahlin said. "Just to actually put on this jersey with this logo on, it's amazing. I've been waiting to do this for so long, so yeah, like finally I'm here."
He wasn't the only one who was thrilled with his new jersey. After the press conference ended, his parents, Asa and Martin, brother Felix and sister Ella raced to the nearby Sabres store to buy their own.

Dahlin items are hot sellers among a fan base that has been thirsting to see the Sabres land the No. 1 pick. They had the best odds to win the NHL Draft Lottery in 2014 but lost to the Florida Panthers, which took defenseman Aaron Ekblad. The same scenario occurred in 2015; the Sabres lost the lottery to the Edmonton Oilers, who picked generational forward Connor McDavid.
Botterill is just as enthused with Dahlin's arrival as the fans are. At the same time, he said Dahlin will not be expected to carry the team on his shoulders, no matter how much hype accompanies him.
"He doesn't need to be the savior," Botterill said. "It's a situation where we're excited about our young players such as Jack [Eichel], Sam [Reinhart], Rasmus Ristolainen. He can be part of this group and sort of grow together.
"We certainly have to have better results on the ice. But I think, communicating and talking with other players, we're certainly excited to bring Rasmus into our group here and just how they can grow together as a core.
"A big part of our job now is to [manage] all of these expectations of where Rasmus' career's going. We have help him there. We have to be a part of that development process with him."
That process will formally start when the Sabres development camp begins at HarborCenter on Wednesday.
"It's been a busy time, so to finally get on the ice and start developing me and start to train with the Buffalo Sabres, it's going to be better," Dahlin said.
Even with so many expectations on him?
"I don't actually think that way," he said. "I'm just so motivated to win hockey games so I'll bring everything I can to this team and try to win hockey games. That's what I think about."
He's also been thinking about the Toronto Maple Leafs, his new team's biggest rival, who are a 90-minute drive north of Buffalo at Air Canada Centre.

When asked what he is looking forward to, Dahlin replied: "I heard that Buffalo and the Toronto Maple Leafs are having some hard games, so that will be fun. I'm looking forward to that."
The Sabres and Maple Leafs have two of the past three No. 1 picks. Toronto selected forward Auston Matthews No. 1 in 2016.
"I'm excited about that, I'm excited about all of it," Dahlin said. "It's just awesome to be here."
The city of Buffalo couldn't agree more.