All young defenders struggle this really isnt anything new....Take the last great swedish defender to go top 3 in Hedman he wasnt the beast he is now at 18
LD Rasmus Dahlin (2018, 1st, BUF) Part 3
- Thread starter garnetpalmetto
- Start date
-
Xenforo Cloud is doing server maintenance Thurdsay 13th at 9 AM GMT. Downtime is to be expected during the process. Server changes were implemented recently to cope with the traffic surge last week. This seems to be affecting the user login, so please anyone experiencing this, log out and clear the browser cache. We expect to have this issue solved once the maintenance is complete.
The Norris Division
Registered User
Dahlin hasn't struggled. At all.
Not sure where this notion has come from?!
What Dahlin hasn't done yet is push his limits offensively or had flashes of brilliance. That will come... very soon.
Wasnt trying to say anything bad about the kid,I think he will be a stud,just pointing out to some of the naysayers that young defenders take more time to establish themselves,than a young forwards
Pavel Buchnevich
"Pavel Buchnevich The Fake"
I’m not sure I understand the dumb comments here.
What is he being criticized for? Having one point through four games instead of two? Does he get credit for being very good defensively or that’s not part of the position anymore?
What is he being criticized for? Having one point through four games instead of two? Does he get credit for being very good defensively or that’s not part of the position anymore?
Whatever he does this season won’t stop him from being a force 5 years down the road. I saw only the season opener for the Sabres and he looked good, especially for his age.
I don't find anything to criticize Dahlin from, but the reason some think he's a dissapointment is because of the generational, McDavid comparisons.
After that much hype, it's no wonder that some would expect some offensive flair right from the get go, even if it's not a realistic expectation for a defenceman.
After that much hype, it's no wonder that some would expect some offensive flair right from the get go, even if it's not a realistic expectation for a defenceman.
Depends on how you measure "being very good defensively". For instance, he ranks extremely poorly in terms of xGF%(-14.44% rel).
Artorius Horus T
sincerety
Hypothetical scenario: Dahlin plays full 82 game season, Sabres does not qualify to the post season,
Dahlin does not score more than 20 points, 1 goal, his +/- is in the low double digits (minus), his advanced stats does not impress
- how would you rate a season of such?
Dahlin does not score more than 20 points, 1 goal, his +/- is in the low double digits (minus), his advanced stats does not impress
- how would you rate a season of such?
Rabid Ranger
2 is better than one
I think it would be disappointing given his draft status-regardless of position.
MrHeiskanen
Registered User
- Nov 12, 2017
- 13,175
- 10,803
Snippit
Registered User
- Dec 5, 2012
- 16,693
- 10,043
Good thing using xGF% is a terrible metric to evaluate defenseman over a period of a few games...relative or not.
Not realistic for what McDavid did himself in his first 4 games.
Boring hate with little to no thought behind it.
Kid has multiple knockdown hits, but more importantly every single one was in perfect time and never took himself out of the play.
His transition passes have been great and he has already had a few odd man rushes that he started and got in on.
If anything I have been more impressed than I expected. Kid is playing over 20 minutes a night on a bad team with a bottom pairing caliber partner and he is winning his matchup consistently.
So bizarre that people think he would show up as prime Orr because people said he would project to that. Freaking Orr wasn’t Orr as a rookie in a diluted league of smokers.
ConnorMcMullet
#12 Colby Cave
- Jun 10, 2017
- 10,452
- 18,425
This thread is cancerous. You can't expect an 18 year old D to jump in and put up points without #1PP time AND play good defensively.
Kcb12345
Registered User
- Jun 6, 2017
- 32,217
- 25,676
There is no way he gets under 20 points. He is just too talented to be held off the score sheet like that that often
Aladyyn
they praying for the death of a rockstar
On-ice stats tell us what happened when a player was on the ice. But over such small sample sizes they're not reliable at all. When we have 50 games of on-ice stats with different teammates, we can start talking about Dahlin's "real" impact on the ice.
Coming in and dominating as an 18 year old defensemen is a whole different story than doing the same as a forward. I'm pretty sure there are only two defensemen ever who have done that and they go by the names of Bobby Orr and Ray Bourque.
BusQuets
Registered User
- Jul 16, 2010
- 12,109
- 3,103
Don't know what you mean with dominating but Werenski and Ekblad looked more impressive than Dahlin. Also tells you not to judge players and especially defensemen too early as Ekblad has been very average since his rookie season.
Aladyyn
they praying for the death of a rockstar
I am sure Werenski looked impressive playing for University of Michigan.
Ekblad got carried by Brian Campbell. Sabres have nobody close to that.
Dahlin has already made a million tiny plays to flip the ice and kick start transition that I haven't seen a Sabre D make in a decade.
BusQuets
Registered User
- Jul 16, 2010
- 12,109
- 3,103
Aladyyn
they praying for the death of a rockstar
What excuse does Werenski have for not playing in the NHL at Dahlin's age?
Healthy DiPietro
Registered User
- Jan 4, 2014
- 906
- 594
Something worth to remember; McDavid also had 1 point after his first 4 games, and he's a forward.
Anyway, people who were expecting 40-50 points were delusional. I'm expecting 20-30 points, just like Doughty, Hedman and Keith had.
BusQuets
Registered User
- Jul 16, 2010
- 12,109
- 3,103
Snippit
Registered User
- Dec 5, 2012
- 16,693
- 10,043
Your original post made no sense at all.
The poster said it was hard to come in and dominate the NHL as an 18 year old. Then for some reason you bring up Werenski, who was not 18 at the time they started in the league.
Last edited:
