In His First Interview, Rasmus Dahlin’s Father says: “It’s been overwhelming”

Over the last couple of weeks we have been working with a number of Swedish journalists on scouting reports for a number of Buffalo Sabres prospects. Henrik Sjöberg, a journalist for HockeyNews.se had previously spoken to us giving us some insight on how the Sabres were building from within.

Sjöberg recently published an interview with the father of Buffalo 2018 number 1 draft pick Rasmus Dahlin in the Hockey News, and wanted to share his interview with Martin Dahlin with the Die By The Blade readers.

When the NHL Entry Draft finally took place in Dallas, Dahlin had his parents and two siblings there to capture the moment with him. Following the Draft, it was off to Buffalo and Dahlin’s father spoke with Sjöberg regarding the unique experience the family went through together.

“It has been very overwhelming. But he has a natural calmness in some way and it’s hard to say exactly what it’s like to do it (be the top Draft pick). “

He does as well as he can and he knows it’s impossible to do more than that.”

Rasmus was the first selection of the draft and the highest Swedish player selected since Mats Sundin. His father discussed the hectic days that followed as they traveled to Buffalo right afterwards.

“It was very fast also in some way, and when Rasmus came to Buffalo, there were so many press conferences and sponsorship commitments. So, it was fast paced all the time.”

What does his father remember the most from the moment Rasmus was announced as the top pick?

“Everyone said Rasmus would go as one but it was not clear. It was really fun, when it was.

“It was something that nevertheless we were not prepared for and it was very emotional when it happened. Even if we thought we were prepared, it became a special situation. Everything was built up in the days before, so it was an exciting day when it was time.”

Rasmus has a calm demeanor to him and his father offered this on how he manages everything:

“In some way, he’s naturally feeling that, I do not know…it’s hard to say exactly what it is. He is himself and he does as well as he can and he knows he can not do more than his best and that is what he does.”

Shortly after, the Dahlins took in the Sabres Development Camp which garnered interest amongst fans.

“It didn’t feel like training camp right away, but the camp was held in a smaller stadium that you play junior hockey in. For every training session there were around 2,000 fans and the club had planned very well. They know how to build interest.”

With several Swedish players on the roster, Rasmus is delighted to be here. Buffalo feels right for him. For the Dahlins, Buffalo has left its own impression on them. His father discussed his opinion of his son’s new city.

“I’ll stay with you all the way. One has heard Buffalo is a bad city, but it’s a bit of an unseen reputation. There is a great sporting interest here and there are good and bad parts of the city like in all cities. Then you have had some tough times like many other cities over there as it’s an old steel city, but it has turned there too and it’s built a lot and there’s positive spirit. Despite the lack of success, Buffalo still has good and faithful supporters.”

While expectations of Rasmus are high, his father put things into perspective.

“There are many who say he will be successful but nobody knows. I also do not know and Rasmus does not know either so we will see. But the club will do everything possible to develop its young players and Rasmus is working hard every day, so we’ll see how it goes. He will do everything he can and then see what happens. It’s one day at a time.”

A special thanks to Henrik for sharing his interview with us