Well generally I prefer locking into players while you can secure a discount, but I’m still fine with this. There are still some question marks about Dahlin and in particular his ability to defend.
Either he doesn’t hit his potential and the Sabres are stuck overpaying, or he does hit his potential and they have to pay out the nose—but they have a top player in the league.
It definitely feels likely or at least possible that this is also Dahlin showing reluctance to commit, having watched all the teams top players pout their way out. Not a good precedent to set, but it’s done. Only way to fix it is to win and pay players their money, now.