Dahlin Practices Before Sabres Depart For Europe

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin was anxious to get started under head coach Lindy Ruff after the club took a step back last season. He got together with a number of teammates and friends and skated in Switzerland over the summer and stepped on to the ice at Key Bank Center for the club’s first practice, only to leave early with an undisclosed injury.

"I was probably too excited, but that stuff happens sometimes," Dahlin said on Tuesday. "You've just got to deal with it and work hard to get back and that's what I've done, so I'm very happy to be back on ice."

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The 24-year-old blueliner participated in an hour-plus-long practice on Tuesday, going through a series of drills and manning the top power-play unit while wearing a yellow non-contact jersey.

Ruff appears to have settled on his defensive pairings after a week of camp and two exhibition games, with Dahlin partnering with right-handed Henri Jokiharju on Tuesday. Bowen Byram partnered with Owen Power playing his off-side against Pittsburgh and Columbus, while former defense partner Mattias Samuelsson is slotted on the bottom pairing with Connor Clifton.

The new head coach has also brought in a new strategy to take advantage of the club's offensive talent on the back end, which resulted in a dozen points from the blueline in the wins over the Penguins and Blue Jackets.

"I absolutely love it. You can really see where the guys work. We have something really good going on." Dahlin said. "We're working really hard without the puck, we're doing the little things right, and we're starting off on the right page here."

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