Dahlin places 2nd in hardest shot, 'soaking in' All-Star Weekend

SUNRISE, Fla. - Rasmus Dahlin had triple digits on his mind as he wound up for his first attempt of the hardest shot competition. When the speedometer read 97, he became more motivated.
"I kind of knew I had more in me," Dahlin said. "I got pumped after my first shot."
Dahlin's second shot clocked in at 102.3 mph, good for second place. Vancouver Canucks forward and fellow Swede Elias Pettersson won the event with a speed of 103.2.
"We're strong guys, you know?" Dahlin said when asked about the Swedish connection. "Vikings."

Dahlin has made it a point to soak in his second consecutive All-Star Weekend, which began in whirlwind fashion after the Sabres played the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday. Tage Thompson - who had been Buffalo's lone selection - did not play the third period due to an upper-body injury.
Dahlin was selected that night as his replacement. He pushed back his vacation plans, called his brother to get on a flight from Sweden, and flew to Fort Lauderdale Thursday morning.
It was well worth the scramble. Dahlin spent the afternoon jet-skiing with his girlfriend, Carolina, and his brother, Felix. He spent the evening rubbing shoulders with Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, and more of the NHL's elite during the All-Star Skills event at FLA Live Arena.
"It's amazing to be a part of," he said. "I'm trying to enjoy every second."

Here's more from Day 2 of All-Star Weekend.

A long walk on the beach

Dahlin shared which teammate he would like to walk the beach with and why he loves the sand between his toes during this oceanside interview. Watch in the tweet below.

Catching waves

Dahlin spent the afternoon jet-skiing in the Atlantic - and yes, there's more footage to come in a future Embedded.

Beach casual

Up next

The 3-on-3 All-Star Game begins Saturday at 3 p.m. on ABC and ESPN+. Dahlin will skate on the Atlantic Division roster alongside forwards David Pastrnak, Dylan Larkin, Aleksandr Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Nick Suzuki, Brady Tkachuk, Nikita Kucherov and Mitch Marner along with goalies Linus Ullmark and Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Asked who he's looking forward to playing alongside, Dahlin singled out Kucherov - who was similarly complimentary of him on Thursday.
"Every single one of them," Dahlin said. "But it's cool to play with Kucherov. I want to see what he's all about."