"It's a fresh start for me," Bjork said. "I don't think my time in the NHL has gone the way I wanted it, but this is a great opportunity for me to start over and begin working even harder to become the player I believe I can be. I'm excited to do it here.
"There's definitely some opportunity. I think this organization really cares about developing the players and making the players better, so I'm excited for that."
Bjork has familiarity with interim head coach Don Granato from their time together at the US National Team Development Program. Bjork did not play for Granato personally but said he recalls the respect Granato earned from players who did.
Bjork was also teammates with Sabres captain Jack Eichel at the USNTDP and said they have already communicated via text since the trade. He was able to meet with Granato in person on Monday night.
"I'm looking forward to establishing [an identity] and building my game," Bjork said. "Already, the people here, the players and coaches and all the staff, I've talked to a lot of people about doing that and working at that and they're all about helping guys do that. So, this is a great place for me."
Bjork will skate on the left wing of a line with Dylan Cozens and Arttu Ruotsalainen, two rookies who are similarly looking to carve out a role in the NHL over the final 15 games this season.
"He plays a very high speed, high-tempo game," Granato said. "He has a lot of skill. And as far as expectations for him, we need to get him to settle into what we're doing, and that's going to take a little bit of time. On the coaching side, as always, we're looking to speed that process.
"But in all fairness, he just has to play and play hard. He's very comfortable with that."