BUFFALO -- Throughout even the toughest times, Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson always believed that better days were ahead for the Buffalo Sabres.
Now, the two veterans finally are experiencing them firsthand, preparing for their first career Stanley Cup Playoff appearance and the Sabres' first since 2011. Buffalo will host the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round at KeyBank Center on Sunday.
"We've had some dark days, a lot of conversations throughout the years, but we knew sometime it will turn around," said Dahlin, the Sabres captain. "We just knew we had to grind every single day to make it work and make it happen. You can't go your whole career without turning it around, so we kind of knew eventually it was going to turn around. We have so much talent in this room, so that was what gave us hope."
Dahlin, Buffalo's top defenseman, and Thompson, its top center, are the current Sabres who have played the longest for Buffalo, each in his eighth season. The Sabres selected Dahlin No. 1 in the 2018 NHL Draft and, just over a week later, acquired Thompson from the St. Louis Blues in the trade for center Ryan O'Reilly. (Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen goes back longer with the organization; it selected him in the 2017 NHL Draft but the goalie is in his sixth season with Buffalo.)
Dahlin and Thompson have endured six losing streaks of at least seven games, including a 13-game slide last season and an 18-game skid in 2020-21. Some seasons, they and the Sabres have been in a playoff position around midseason only to see it slip away, dropping them to the bottom third of the overall standings.
Lindy Ruff is their fourth coach over their eight seasons. Jarmo Kekalainen, who replaced Kevyn Adams as general manager on Dec. 15, is their third GM.
"A lot of years of doubt and negativity, and not fun hockey," said Thompson, an alternate captain. "I think any time you let negativity creep in, it just snowballs and gets bigger and it's pretty tough to shake. I think 'Dahls' and I talked a lot about the ability we have in this room to turn it around and find a way to get ourselves back in the playoffs."
Buffalo clinched a playoff berth on April 4, ending an NHL-record 14-season drought, and secured the top seed in the Atlantic Division and second place overall in the Eastern Conference on April 13.
"It hasn't been easy, but I can only speak for Tage. I mean, he's so deserving of it," Dahlin said. "So many ups and downs and so many (lousy) years, but now finally we did it. It's unreal to be in the playoffs now."
The Sabres found themselves at a bit of a crossroads in early December. They had lost two straight to open a six-game road trip, giving them four losses in their past six games. They hadn't won more than two games in a row to that point.
The leadership group -- including forward Alex Tuch and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, both alternate captains -- went to dinner the night before their Dec. 8 game against the Calgary Flames to talk about how to get on the right track and stay there.
They lost to Calgary 7-4, falling to 11-14-4.
The following night, though, the turnaround began. Tuch scored 33 seconds into overtime to lift the Sabres to a 4-3 win against the Edmonton Oilers. Buffalo led 3-0 after two periods before Edmonton rallied in the third, scoring the tying goal with two seconds left.
That was the first of a 10-game winning streak, matching the longest in Sabres history. It also spurred a 39-9-5 run through the end of the regular season, with Buffalo's 83 points and .783 points percentage over that span leading the NHL.
"We knew it was just a matter of time if we did the right things and put in the work that we'd find ourselves there," Thompson said. "Obviously, this group we have is extremely easy to lead. Guys that are hungry to get better, that want to win and are after the same goal, so the group's made our job really easy."
The Sabres had heard about the passion of the fan base and have been experiencing it as their success has continued. There have been 18 consecutive sellouts at KeyBank Center from Jan. 15 through the regular-season finale on April 15, and the energy has fueled the players.
"I've heard for a lot of years -- and seen it now too -- that Buffalo's a hockey city," Dahlin said. "I've heard a lot of stories from the Aud (Buffalo Memorial Auditorium) and back in the days when they were in playoffs. I'm sure it's going to be a crazy night (Sunday)."
Said Thompson: "I'm not really sure what to expect honestly. I know there's been so much talk about it. The sellouts here have been pretty electric and I'm told that it's going to be another level."