Sabres select Swedish defenseman with draft's top pick

The Buffalo Sabres selected Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlin with the No. 1 overall pick of the NHL draft on Friday night at American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Dahlin, 18, is the reigning Swedish Junior Hockey Player of the Year after playing last season for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League. He helped his country earn a silver medal at this year's World Junior Championship, where he was named Best Defenseman in the tournament.

The 6-foot-2, 181-pound blue-liner became the second Swedish-born player to be selected with the first overall pick. The first was Mats Sundin, who was taken by the Quebec Nordiques with the first pick in 1989 and went on to enjoy a Hall of Fame career.

"It's amazing," Dahlin said to NBC Sports Network shortly after his name was called. "It's my dream come true, actually. Especially the Buffalo Sabres. I heard such great things about the fans. I just want everything to start. I'm so excited."

Dahlin has drawn comparisons to Erik Karlsson, a five-time All-Star and two-time Norris Trophy winner with the Ottawa Senators. Karlsson also played for Frolunda in Sweden before reaching the NHL as a 19-year-old.

The Carolina Hurricanes used the No. 2 overall pick to select forward Andrei Svechnikov, 18, who led all rookies in the Ontario Hockey League with 72 points (40 goals, 32 assists) in 44 games with the Barrie Colts last season. He was born in Russia but moved to the United States before the 2016-17 campaign to play for the Muskegon (Mich.) Lumberjacks, where he notched 58 points (29 goals, 29 assists) in 48 games and earned USHL Rookie of the Year honors.

The Montreal Canadiens picked next, selecting Finnish center Jesperi Kotkaniemi at No. 3. Scouts have compared the two-way playmaker with Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings.

A familiar name followed at No. 4 as the Ottawa Senators selected forward Brady Tkachuk, the son of 500-goal scorer Keith Tkachuk and the younger brother of Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk. The family's latest draft pick played last season for Boston University, tallying 31 points (eight goals, 23 assists) in 40 games as a freshman.

"I'm just happy for Brady," Keith Tkachuk said with a grin to NBC Sports Network. "Brady wants to play hockey, he wants to win. Finally getting to see him get some recognition -- it's always been his brother growing up -- he's a hard-working kid, and Ottawa is going to get a high-skilled, gritty, character guy."

The Arizona Coyotes used the fifth pick to select center Barrett Hayton from Sault Ste. Marie of the OHL. The 18-year-old Canadian had 60 points (21 goals, 39 assists) in 63 games last season.

At No. 6, the Detroit Red Wings added forward Filip Zadina of the Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The 6-foot, 195-pound Czech Republic native could challenge for an NHL roster spot this fall after posting 82 points (44 goals, 38 assists) in 57 games last season.

The Vancouver Canucks used the seventh pick to select University of Michigan defenseman Quinn Hughes.

The rest of the top 10 included the Chicago Blackhawks taking Swedish defenseman Adam Boqvist at No. 8; the New York Rangers selecting Russian forward Vitali Kravtsov at No. 9; and the Edmonton Oilers choosing Canadian defenseman Evan Bouchard with the 10th pick.

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville happily welcomed Boqvist to his group of blue-liners.

"You can never have enough 'D,'" Quenneville said to NBC Sports Network. "He moves the puck, he's very active in the play, very dynamic in a lot of ways. I think he can help our power play down the road. I'm looking forward to seeing how he does over the summer and going into camp."

Most of the players selected Friday could be several years from making their NHL debuts. But several of the top picks, including Dahlin at No. 1, could have a chance to play right away.

Dahlin has an opportunity to join Sabres blue-liners such as Rasmus Ristolainen, Marco Scandella and Zach Bogosian. His new coach, Phil Housley, is a Hall of Fame defenseman who earned seven All-Star selections and scored 1,232 points in 1,495 career games.

"Obviously, he's a special player," Housley said to NBC Sports Network. "We don't want to put too much pressure on him. He's a young man. We're going to put him in areas to succeed. But obviously, with his talent and skill level, he's going to really have an impact on our team and our organization.

"I went and watched some more film of him, and I said, 'Boy, this guy is very mobile, can skate, gets up in the rush, defends well, does everything.' He checks all the boxes in today's evolution of the game. I'm really excited to have him on our team."

--Field Level Media