New Sabres Alternate Captain Becomes Core Piece

This new Buffalo Sabres alternate captain is now officially a core piece of the club's roster.

It is a new era in Buffalo Sabres history, as the club named superstar defenseman Rasmus Dahlin as their next captain. In addition, Alex Tuch, Dylan Cozens, Tage Thompson, and Mattias Samuelsson are now alternate captains for the Atlantic Division club. 

Samuelsson is arguably the most surprising out of the quartet of Buffalo's new alternates. The 24-year-old defenseman has only 150 games of NHL experience, with 55 being the most he played in an entire season. He also generated trade interest during the early stages of the off-season. However, the Sabres clearly value the left-shot defenseman immensely, as evidenced by him receiving an 'A.' 

With Samuelsson now being an alternate captain, he is officially a significant part of the Sabres' core. He will now be a crucial piece of Buffalo's roster as they look to take that next step and become a playoff team again. 

Samuelsson should also be a long-term part of the Sabres' core, as he is under contract until the completion of the 2029-30 campaign. 

It will now be fascinating to see what kind of season Samuelsson puts together as an alternate for the Sabres from here. Now that he has an 'A' on his sweater, he will have more significant responsibilities, both on and off the ice.