NHL Player News

Eklund scored a goal and added an assist in Saturday's 6-0 win over the Devils.

Eklund made his 20th birthday particularly memorable by recording his first NHL goal. He initially picked up an assist on Brayden Schenn's second-period tally before beating Nico Daws from the slot at 11:32 of the third, extending New York's lead to 4-0. The youngster was elevated into a top-six role alongside Schenn and Calum Ritchie ahead of the contest, and he immediately rewarded the Islanders with the first multi-point performance of his career.

Roy scored a goal on three shots, added an assist, doled out three hits and logged two PIM in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Blues.

Roy is off to a hot start this season despite filling a fourth-line role. He's picked up two goals, one helper, five shots, five hits, two blocked shots and a plus-2 rating over two contests. There's a little extra ice time to go around among the forwards since the Avalanche have rolled out a lineup with seven defensemen in both games, though one or both of Zachary L'Heureux or Logan O'Connor could come back from their respective lower-body injuries next week to fill out the forward group.

Schaefer recorded two assists, including one on the power play, in Saturday's 6-0 win over the Devils.

Schaefer played a key role as the Islanders broke open a scoreless contest in the second period. His shot created the sequence that ended with Brayden Schenn's goal at 5:00, and the defenseman later set up Bo Horvat's power-play tally at 12:08 to make it 3-0. Schaefer is coming off a spectacular rookie campaign in which he recorded 23 goals and 59 points across 82 regular-season appearances en route to winning the Calder Trophy, and these assists were his first two points of the 2026-27 campaign.

Lehkonen scored a goal on two shots, added an assist, blocked two shots and went plus-3 in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Blues.

Lehkonen has put together back-to-back multi-point games to start the campaign. He's up to three goals, one assist, five shots, three hits, four blocks and a plus-4 rating across those games. As long as Lehkonen is seeing time alongside Nathan MacKinnon on the top line, the winger will be in a great position to contribute on the scoresheet.

Sorokin stopped all 37 shots he faced in Saturday's 6-0 win over the Devils.

Sorokin was perfect in the Islanders' home opener, turning aside seven shots in the first period before his offense broke through three times in the second. He remained sharp as New Jersey generated 30 shots over the final 40 minutes and finished 0-for-5 on the power play. The shutout was Sorokin's 30th career blanking, establishing a new Islanders franchise record. It was also the first win for Sorokin this season, who has allowed just two goals on 63 shots to open the 2026-27 campaign.

Necas scored twice on four shots, added an assist and went plus-4 in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Blues.

The Avalanche's top line dominated the contest, with Necas leading the charge. He was held to one assist in the season opener, but he's capable of popping off for multiple points at any given time. Necas has four points, eight shots and two hits across two contests this season while filling a top-line role.

Luukkonen made 12 saves in a 4-3 win over Chicago on Saturday.

Luukkonen is kryptonite to Chicago -- he's now 7-0-0 in his career against the team. But he's still finding his feet this season. UPL has allowed eight goals in two games (1-1-0), and his 4.03 GAA and .784 save percentage are a touch queasy. Backup Colten Ellis will get a shot at the blue paint soon and Alex Lyon (upper body) isn't supposed to miss much time. Luukkonen needs to lay down some strong performances to keep the net.

Blackwood allowed one goal on 26 shots in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Blues.

The Blues were on the second half of a back-to-back, and the Avalanche capitalized on it. Blackwood did much better in this game than in his first start of the year, when he allowed four goals on 31 shots against the Kings on Wednesday. He's made both starts for the Avalanche this year, but it's unclear if that's part of a larger trend for him to function as the starter. Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood should split the next two games, as the Avalanche are set to visit the Jets on Wednesday and the Flames on Thursday in a pair of winnable matchups.

Thompson had a goal and an assist in a 4-3 win over the Blackhawks on Saturday.

His goal was classic big man hockey. Thompson won the draw, drove the net and deflected the point shot past Spencer Knight. The big pivot is coming off his third 40-goal season in his last four campaigns and an 81-point, 85-hit season. Thompson is also fourth on the goal scorer's list in the last three seasons with 85 behind Leon Draisaitl (90), Cole Caufield (90) and Nathan MacKinnon (87).

Kulich scored a goal Saturday in a 4-3 win over Chicago.

Cue the tears -- it was Kulich's first goal in 11 months after the talented young player missed most of last season with a blood clot. He last scored Oct. 24, 2025; his last game was Nov. 1. "That was probably the main thing I was dreaming about the whole year (after) not playing," Kulich told reporters after the game. "After that one, it was a lot of emotions. So, yeah, that one is going to be special for sure." Kulich returned to hockey Thursday in the season opener. The competitive forward has a fantastic shot and 25-30 goal upside if his development curve resumes. The Sabres will ease him back into the game on the fourth line for now.