Dahlin items are hot sellers among a fan base that has been thirsting to see the Sabres land the No. 1 pick. They had the best odds to win the NHL Draft Lottery in 2014 but lost to the Florida Panthers, which took defenseman Aaron Ekblad. The same scenario occurred in 2015; the Sabres lost the lottery to the Edmonton Oilers, who picked generational forward Connor McDavid.
Botterill is just as enthused with Dahlin's arrival as the fans are. At the same time, he said Dahlin will not be expected to carry the team on his shoulders, no matter how much hype accompanies him.
"He doesn't need to be the savior," Botterill said. "It's a situation where we're excited about our young players such as Jack [Eichel], Sam [Reinhart], Rasmus Ristolainen. He can be part of this group and sort of grow together.
"We certainly have to have better results on the ice. But I think, communicating and talking with other players, we're certainly excited to bring Rasmus into our group here and just how they can grow together as a core.
"A big part of our job now is to [manage] all of these expectations of where Rasmus' career's going. We have help him there. We have to be a part of that development process with him."
That process will formally start when the Sabres development camp begins at HarborCenter on Wednesday.
"It's been a busy time, so to finally get on the ice and start developing me and start to train with the Buffalo Sabres, it's going to be better," Dahlin said.
Even with so many expectations on him?
"I don't actually think that way," he said. "I'm just so motivated to win hockey games so I'll bring everything I can to this team and try to win hockey games. That's what I think about."
He's also been thinking about the Toronto Maple Leafs, his new team's biggest rival, who are a 90-minute drive north of Buffalo at Air Canada Centre.