Rasmus Dahlin is drawing comparisons to a pair of the best defenseman in the game today and to one of the best of all time.No pressure.The smooth-skating
New York Islanders Hats Authentic , play-making Swedish defenseman is expected to become just the third defenseman in the past 20 years to be picked No. 1 in the NHL draft .”He is so far ahead of anyone else available,” said Joe McDonnell, the Dallas Stars‘ director of amateur scouting. ”We didn’t pay much attention to him this year because if we picked No. 1, we probably wouldn’t have jobs right now. And if we didn’t have the No. 1 pick, we knew we wouldn’t be able to draft him.”Buffalo is expected to take Dahlin first overall on Friday night and it will be no surprise to some of the best in hockey.Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom , a seven-time Norris Trophy winner, is one of the people who think Dahlin does compare to him, and some other current star defensemen who happen to be Swedes: Erik Karlsson and Victor Hedman.”He has a lot of tools,” Lidstrom, who has seen Dahlin play and has known of him for a few years, wrote in an email. ”It will be interesting to see his development in the NHL where everyone is better/stronger/faster!”Since St. Louis selected defenseman Erik Johnson first overall in 2006, the only blue-liner taken No. 1 was Aaron Ekblad in 2014. Ekblad started strong in Florida, becoming an All-Star in his first two seasons and winning the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie, but appeared to take a step back the last two years. Johnson finished 12th in rookie of the year voting and has had a decent career with the Blues and Colorado Avalanche.”This is one of those years where there’s a generational-type defenseman available and that’s not always the case,” Hall of Fame coach Scotty Bowman said. ”Everybody says this Dahlin is the best in a while on defense.”The 18-year-old Dahlin has held his own against grown men over two seasons in a high-level European league. He had seven goals and 13 assists in 41 games this past season with Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League and was the junior player of the year. As the youngest player in the Olympic men’s hockey tournament
Custom New York Islanders Jerseys , he had an assist in two games while suiting up sparingly for Sweden.”I think I’m ready right now to play in the NHL,” Dahlin said.Dahlin is set to become the second Swede taken No. 1 overall, joining Hall of Famer Mats Sundin, who was drafted by Quebec in 1989.The Detroit Red Wings have leaned on scout Hakan Andersson for nearly three decades to decide who overseas has a chance to play in the world’s best hockey league. Andersson, who knows the hockey landscape as well as anyone overseas, said he has never seen a prospect quite like Dahlin.”It’s not easy to put him in any category with anyone,” said Andersson, the director of European scouting for the Red Wings. ”It’s hard to say someone is going to be better than Nicklas Lidstrom, but Dahlin has all the tools to be an unbelievable defenseman. He has Lidstrom’s poise with the puck. He can rush the puck up the ice like Karlsson. And, he’s big and aggressive enough to play the physical game and take people out like Hedman can.”Still, Dahlin knows he has to improve his play when the other team has the puck and perhaps when he has to push players away from the crease. He is 6-2 but only 181 pounds.”I need to get stronger,” Dahlin said.Dahlin does have plenty of strengths on his side.He can skate well, and effortlessly, in any direction while dangling the puck as if it is attached to his stick with soft hands while keeping his head up. With a left-handed shot, he can send a blur of a one-timer to the back of the net or snap off a wrist shot in a fraction of a second. He’s also a gifted passer.”I look at him obviously like a Karlsson
www.officialhockeyrangersshop.com ,” former Buffalo Sabres defenseman Mike Weber, who played with Dahlin last season in Sweden. ”He’s got the same type of skating ability, but I feel like he’s faster. He almost skates like a (Pavel) Datysuk. When you go in and try to hit Datysuk, he would open up his hips one way or the other and be able to spin off you and deke. .. I feel like Ras has that same kind of ability.”And despite the hype, the young phenom has appeared humble behind the scenes and in front of scores of reporters.”He really was able to handle that well,” said Weber, an assistant coach for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires. ”He’s mature beyond his years. And, the things he tries in practice, and the things he’ll try in a game to do, is pretty unbelievable.”—AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow in Buffalo, New York, contributed to this report.— BOSTON (AP) — David Pastrnak helped Boston escape a first-period onslaught with a lead, then turned the next two periods into a rout.Pastrnak had three goals and an assist as the Bruins overcame a sluggish start and beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1 on Saturday night.“We talked before the game that we need to be better than what we’ve shown the last couple of games,” said Pastrnak, who was held without a point Thursday night in the Bruins’ loss to Vancouver.Pastrnak and the rest of Boston’s top line bounced back nicely against the Maple Leafs.Patrice Bergeron had a goal and two assists and Brad Marchand had two assists for the Bruins
New York Rangers T-Shirts Authentic , who led 1-0 after the first despite being outshot 20-6 in the opening 20 minutes.It was the second hat trick of the season and third career for Pastrnak, Boston’s 22-year-old Czech phenom who is developing into more than just a scoring threat.“He’s obviously a great talent. He’s got great smarts and he’s so good at getting open,” Bergeron said. “When you add being tenacious on the puck and winning battles that makes a big difference.”Pastrnak took sole possession of the NHL scoring lead with 15 goals after he entered in a four-way tie for the most.Jaroslav Halak stopped 40 shots for the Bruins, who ended Toronto’s three-game winning streak and handed the Maple Leafs their first road loss of the season.John Tavares scored the only goal for Toronto, and Garret Sparks finished with 29 saves.Pastrnak scored twice in the second period and added his third of the night with a one-timer from the left circle with 5:56 left to play.Joakim Nordstrom scored again for Boston just 26 seconds later to seal it for the Bruins, who won the first meeting of the Original Six rivals after going 1-3 against the Maple Leafs last season.“We didn’t get it done when we had all those opportunities early,” Toronto coach Mike Babcock said.Halak got the start in the Bruins’ first game since the club granted a leave of absence to Tuukka Rask for undisclosed personal reasons. Halak stopped all 20 shots he faced in the first period, keeping the Bruins in it despite a slow start.“The shot count was in their favor by a big difference but I think in the second we evened it out pretty closely and we did a good job capitalizing on some scoring chances that we had,” Boston captain Zdeno Chara said.After Pastrnak set up Bergeron for the first goal of the game, Bergeron returned the favor 5:46 into the second with a pass from behind the net for a one-timer from the left circle to give Boston a 2-0 lead.Pastrnak made it 3-0 on a power-play goal 10:24 into the second, tipping in a shot by Marchand after a cross-ice pass from Bergeron with 36 seconds left on a hooking penalty on Toronto’s Martin Marincin.Tavares scored for Toronto with 30 seconds left in the second period.“We got off to a good start,” Toronto’s Mitch Marner said. “The second period, we gave up too many opportunities. We let them take the game to us.NOTES: Halak was pulled Thursday against Vancouver after allowing five goals on 19 shots. … The Leafs allowed their most goals since a 3-1 loss to Calgary on Oct. 29. … With Rask unavailable, the Bruins called up G Dan Vladar from AHL Providence on an emergency basis. … Bergeron’s goal in the first was the 298th of his career.UP NEXTMaple Leafs: At Los Angeles on Tuesday night.Bruins: Host Vegas on Sunday night.
