In their opening night game, the New Jersey Devils went 0-4 on the power play,

Including 0-3 in first period. At the end of their third opportunity, defenseman Dougie Hamilton lost the puck at the point, forcing the Devils to touch up to avoid offsides. 

The fumbled puck brought a round of boos from the crowded Prudential Center, more so than a typical error at the blue line from a defenseman. The fans weren’t just venting on the play; they were venting at the player, the contract, the tenure he’s put together with the Devils thus far. 

Hamilton responded with a goal in the second period, the Devils’ first in the game, that woke up the building. “He fires away, gets a second look, fires again. It's a great shot,” head coach Sheldon Keefe stated after the game, acknowledging the accuracy but, more importantly, the effort to keep firing away and giving the Devils a chance. His goal got the offense going and kickstarted the 3-2 overtime win over the Philadelphia Flyers. 

The 33-year-old defenseman has become a lightning rod for the Devils, certainly for the fans in recent years. Hamilton is a favorite when the team is playing well and a scapegoat when they struggle, whether he deserves the criticism or not. It’s the life of a defenseman, especially an offensive-minded defenseman, yet he’s taken a lot of heat over the years because of who he is and what he brings to the lineup. 

Hamilton Has Always Had The Hype (Or Overhype)

Hamilton’s lofty expectations go back to his early playing days, back when he was drafted with the ninth overall pick in the 2011 draft by the Boston Bruins. He was a highly regarded prospect at the time and was a regular on the defense by the time the 2012-13 season rolled around. There are high expectations for a defenseman when they are on the team at 19 years old. 

Yet, the Bruins traded him three seasons later to the Calgary Flames, giving up on a young defenseman well before they knew how he’d pan out. The Flames are where he found his footing, but they traded him as well in the 2018 offseason. While the Flames moved him as part of a blockbuster trade that landed them Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin, the move said a lot about Hamilton. He was traded twice before turning 25, a sign that teams are willing to give up and move on from him. 

That said, Hamilton still had the talent to be a great defenseman. All it took was for a team to believe in him. The Carolina Hurricanes saw the talent and were willing to take a chance on him. They not only acquired Hamilton in the blockbuster trade but made him a cornerstone of their rebuild. 

The Hurricanes Created A High Bar For Him

The Rod Brind’Amour system is kind to defensemen. It allows them to have great seasons as long as they buy in. The defensemen must be great skaters, specifically, to play man-to-man defense, plus, they must be patient with the puck, valuing possession and quality looks on the net. Hamilton was always a great skater, making him the first of many to benefit from Brind’Amour’s style. 

Hamilton looked great at a pivotal time for the Hurricanes. Brind’Amour came in, took a team that was going nowhere, and made them a perennial playoff team. Hamilton was a pivotal part of the resurgence as well, with 121 points and 13 defensive point shares on the other end in three seasons.

Devils Needed Their Defense To Give Them Life & Their Scoring Will All SeasonWith the offense struggling, the Devils got a spark from their blue line in a 3-2 overtime win against the Philadelphia Flyers. They’ll need that offense all season from them all season.

While Jaccob Slavin was the emerging shutdown defenseman, slowly becoming one of the best in the game at his craft, Hamilton was the scoring defenseman. Hamilton was the one adding another layer of offense and fueling the playoff runs, especially the 2019 run where the Hurricanes appeared in the Eastern Conference Final. 

It made Hamilton a top player when he went to free agency in the 2021 offseason. The Devils needed a two-way defenseman who they could lean on and thought he’d be the answer, the fix to their woes at the point. 

Hamilton Hasn’t Lived Up To That Contract

The Devils gave Hamilton a seven-year contract with a $9 million average annual value, expecting him to play like a number one defenseman. While they weren’t asking him to lead their rebuild, he was expected to become a big part of their success. After all, he was part of the successful rebuild with the Hurricanes. 

In his five seasons with the Devils, he hasn’t lived up to that contract. It’s the combination of injuries, bad luck, and being a good but not great defenseman that’s left the Devils searching for more. 

Which Devils Will Benefit The Most From A Rising Salary CapThe salary cap is only going up, and it’s changing the NHL landscape. The Devils are in a good spot cap-wise, yet have a few players who can cash in big because of the market.

It’s made Hamilton someone the Devils have wanted to trade but can’t. The previous front office wanted to send him to the San Jose Sharks and offload the contract, but his no-trade clause got in the way. It’s left the player and the team in a difficult spot where they must wait out the contract, or hope that he rediscovers his game to make that contract worthwhile in the end. 

The Frustration Is That The Devils Go As He Does, Certainly On The Blue Line

The one season with the Devils that Hamilton was healthy and played all 82 regular season games was 2022-23, the best one they’ve had in the past decade. Everything went right for the Devils that season, and it started with Hamilton.

Hamilton not only played every game, but he also scored 22 goals and added 52 assists to the offense, both of which were career highs. He gave the Devils the boost that they needed from the point, opening up the offense when Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and Nico Hischier couldn’t. 

What Can An Unproven Devils Defense Look Like? Flyers Provide A GlimpseThe Devils hope their defense isn’t a mess because, with question marks, it can easily become one. Just ask the Flyers, who were trounced 7-0 in their opener.

For the Devils, they rely on Hamilton. He’s not their best player, but they go as he does, especially on defense. It’s what made his performance on opening night an optimistic sign, that’s he’s poised for a big season, a season where he proves he was worth the $9 million AAV contract. 

“He’s scored in every game I played with him,” rookie forward Amadeus Lombardi joked after his NHL debut, and the Devils are hopeful that he’s a constant threat for the offense. “They should be in the rush like that all year and giving us offense,” Jack Hughes stated, including his brother Luke, who also scored on opening night. With two defensemen making an impact offensively, the conversation around the Devils will change quickly, going from a murky middle team to a top-of-the-division one 

The Chicago Blackhawks wasted no time being shut out for the first time in 2026-27, as the Utah Mammoth defeated them on Thursday by a final score of 6-0. If you can believe it, the Blackhawks were significantly more outmatched in Utah than against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday. 

Vegas defeated Utah in the first round last year en route to the Stanley Cup Final, but the Mammoth gave them a scare. This year, it appears that the latter can give anyone a run for their money as the season goes along. The Mammoth showed their dominance against the Blackhawks to kick off their own season on Thursday. 

Dylan Guenther scored the first goal of the game, and it was the first of two for him. Utah managed two goals in the first, three in the second, and one in the third. For the entirety of the game, Chicago had no answers for Utah in the defensive zone. 

Their top pair, consisting of Alex Vlasic and Bowen Byram, struggled in a big way, as their game scorecard showed them to be much worse than the rest of the defense corps. Sam Rinzel also had a tough night, which makes you wonder if Kevin Korchinski or Ethan Del Mastro will get a chance in Buffalo. 

NHL Game Score Impact Card for Chicago Blackhawks on 2026-10-01: pic.twitter.com/26EZ0OmorV

— HockeyStatCards (@hockeystatcards) October 2, 2026

Patrick Kane scored a goal in the first game against Vegas, but he didn't produce much of anything in this one. He wasn't the only Blackhawks forward who had a rough go, however, as the entire group struggled to possess the puck, create any pressure, or look even a little bit connected as a group. 

Teuvo Teravainen had a chance to prove himself as he entered the lineup in place of the injured Andrew Mangiapane, but there wasn't much there for him either. At least he had a shot, which is something that six Blackhawks forwards can't say. 

One line can say that they weren't horrific, and that was once again the 4th line of Ryan Greene, centering Jordan Greenway and Cole. They were the best trio against Vegas, and they repeated their play in this match against Utah. Can their play be due to the fact that it's the only line that hasn't been put in the blender? Maybe, but the top three lines must start living up to their roles sooner rather than later. 

There was a moment in the game where MacKenzie Weegar hit Oliver Moore hard. In response, Ryan Donato dropped and fought Weegar. Both Donato and Moore hit the dressing room after the sequence, but they each eventually returned to the game. 

All in all, this defensive recipe is not it. Not only will they never get anything going offensively if they waste all of their energy skating around their own zone, but they will put their goaltenders in a bad spot. Soderblom was not incredible in this game, but it's hard to place the blame on him when the final shot count favored Utah 32-15. This wasn't a competitive game in any way, shape, or form. 

Whether it's making a change to the lineup on defense ahead of the next game, switching pairs, or adjusting their style in practice, something has to be done if they don't want another performance like the first two. 

Watch Every Chicago Goal

The Chicago Blackhawks did not score a goal, so there is nothing to show in that regard. 

What’s Next For The Blackhawks?

The Chicago Blackhawks are now 0-2-0. They will wrap their season opening three game road trip with a game out east against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night. After that, they will head to Chicago for their home opener, which will take place on Tuesday. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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Although the score indicated otherwise, the Philadelphia Flyers were completely outclassed by the New Jersey Devils in their 3-2 overtime loss on Thursday night.

By the end of the night, the Devils out-attempted the Flyers 74-34 at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick, and 96-41 overall thanks to four power play opportunities courtesy of the Flyers.

Generally speaking, the Flyers played within their structure much better than they did in Wednesday's 7-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in a dreary home opener, but the Devils' talent was far too much for the Flyers to handle.

That is especially true when the Flyers themselves have struggled to make basic passes and connect on plays, whereas the Devils looked like the Harlem Globetrotters in contrast.

"Still some hockey IQ mistakes, not some smart hockey. We got to really buckle down here," Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet said after the loss.

Rasmus Ristolainen opened the scoring for the Flyers on Thursday night, scoring with an surprisingly deft deflection in front of Jake Allen on a long-range shot from Travis Sanheim on a delayed penalty.

New Jersey's Dougie Hamilton scored the only goal of the second period to tie the game at 1-1, though Sanheim uncorked another blast at the top of the third period to restore the Flyers' one-goal lead.

To tie the game for the Devils once again, Luke Hughes found soft ice in the slot, received a tidy pass from Luke Evangelista, and buried a bullet past Joseph Woll, who made an outstanding 41 saves on 44 shots (.932%) in his first start of the season.

Flyers Make Surprise Trade, Swap Underperforming Prospects with KrakenThe Philadelphia Flyers have ended the Devin Kaplan experiment after one professional season.

"They feed off the rush, and if we keep turning it over, neutral zone, they're gonna go down and make their plays," Flyers forward Christian Dvorak assessed. "We're lucky we got a point because of Woller."

Sanheim agreed: "If it wasn't for Woller there, it could've been a lot worse ... What a performance from him, and obviously good to see and happy for him and the way that he was able to play, [the result is] unfortunate."

Jack Hughes ended the game in overtime, racing down the ice in transition, recognizing Travis Konecny was the lone man back on defense, and tapping in the game-winner.

Forwards Alex Bump, Porter Martone, and Carl Grundstrom effectively ended the game benched for the Flyers; Bump and Grundstrom each played just one shift in the third period, while Martone played four.

"I needed some lines to somewhat control Jack. He was caving some of our lines, and I just tried to get the best nine, I thought, for tonight," Tocchet said of the line changes.

The Flyers at least earned their first point of the young 2026-27 season, but the overall outlook is bleak through a two-game winless start and very little offense generated.

After a day off on Friday, the Flyers will be back at it at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Saturday night, hosting the Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m.

The San Jose Sharks faced a tough test to begin the 2026-27 season, as they hosted the Florida Panthers, a team widely considered to be one of the NHL's top Stanley Cup contenders. For a team looking to make the playoffs and kickstart a new era, the Sharks had an instant opportunity to show that they could hang with the top teams in the league. 

Yaroslav Askarov was called into work early, as he was forced to save a tough cross-crease pass, but he did so with ease. That save helped the Sharks get a rush, as Igor Chernyshov's speed helped him get past the Panthers' defense and get a shot on net, even though it was from a tight angle. 

Kesselring had a nice defensive zone exit early in the period, chipping the puck off the boards for a self-pass that helped him spring the Sharks up the ice. 

Jacob Trouba got his first fighting major less than half a period into his Sharks stint, dropping the gloves and standing up for his captain after a heavy off-the-puck hit by Brady Tkachuk knocked Macklin Celebrini's helmet off. 

Darnell Nurse took the first minor penalty of the season for the Sharks as he was called for slashing, giving the Panthers' high-powered power play a chance early on. The penalty kill looked solid on the first shift, which ended with a two-on-one rush with Nolan Allan and Barclay Goodrow heading toward Akira Schmid. Allan opted to keep the puck and shot it straight at the Panthers' netminder. 

Matthew Tkachuk hit the inside of the post with the penalty close to expiration, but Askarov was able to cover the puck. 

Mason Marchment lit the lamp three quarters of the way through the opening frame, causing the Sharks' new goal song, "Holiday" by Green Day to blare throughout the SAP Center.

A Holiday in San Jose: Mason Marchment Debuts Sharks' New Goal SongWhen Mason Marchment scored the Sharks' first goal of the season against the Florida Panthers in the first period on Thursday night, he ushered in a new era of Sharks hockey. The new goal song, "Holiday" by Green Day blasted throughout the SAP Center to a huge applause. 

Shortly afterwards, Askarov once again came up big in his own end of the ice. 

The Sharks got their first power play of the season when Seth Jones sat for interference with just under a minute remaining in the first period. They ran out of time before they were able to convert though, so the power play continued into the second period and was killed off by the Panthers.

Kiefer Sherwood, using his special "Kiefer" branded Sherwood stick, was called for high-sticking when he made contact with Aleksander Barkov. Barkov was cut by the stick, resulting in a four-minute double minor. 

While the Sharks were killing off the penalty, Will Smith netted his first goal of the season on a rush with Macklin Celebrini, doubling the Sharks' lead. Considering Smith has had limited shorthanded ice time throughout his career, Ryan Warsofsky's decision to throw him out there on this occasion surely looked like a brilliant move. 

Shortly after the goal, Barkov left the ice in substantial pain for the Panthers. He missed all of last season with a knee injury, as a result there is likely substantial concern in the Panthers organization. 

Moments after he got out of the penalty box, Marchment was sent right back, this time for slashing. Once again, the Sharks' penalty kill was able to neutralize the Panthers' dangerous power play. 

It was a period full of special teams, as shortly after Marchment left the penalty box for the second time, the Sharks earned a power play as Sam Bennett sat for hooking. The Sharks took advantage, as the captain, Macklin Celebrini seemingly scored on a wraparound to put the team in teal up 3-0 just over halfway through regulation, but the goal was later changed to Smith who had his second of the night. 

After a hard hit by Uvis Balinskis on Ivar Stenberg, Collin Graf dropped the gloves to avenge his teammate. Graf lost his footing and immediately fell to the ice though. After all was said and done the Sharks got a power play, which was shortened after about a minute when Luca Cagnoni was called for interference. The Sharks once again killed it off, and remained perfect on the penalty kill so far this season.

Darnell Nurse handed the Panthers their sixth power play of the night when he was called for his second cross-checking penalty of the night. They finally capitalized on this opportunity, as Eetu Luostarinen got his first goal of the 2026-27 campaign. As a result, the Sharks' lead was cut to 3-1. 

Early in the third period, Tyler Toffoli had a very nice breakout pass that found Michael Misa in the neutral zone and gave him a bit of a breakaway. Unfortunately for the Sharks, Misa was unable to capitalize on the chance. 

Not long afterwards, the Panthers did capitalize on a scoring chance though, as Luostarinen scored his second of the night. Then, just 17 seconds later, Matthew Tkachuk scored his first of the season to tie things up at 3-3. 

The Sharks responded well after the equalizer, as they should. Given the fact that they had a 3-0 lead in the third period, they couldn't afford to leave this game without any points. 

Kiefer Sherwood was taken down hard in the offensive zone late in the first period by Niko Mikkola and skated gingerly to the bench where he was immediately evaluated by medical staff. 

The Sharks ensured one point, as they pushed the game to overtime. They still had almost a full power play heading into the extra frame as well. 

The Sharks had some strong chances on the power play, but the Panthers' defense and goaltender were even stronger as they made some big plays to keep the game tied. 

Luca Cagnoni came through big time for the Sharks, scoring his first career NHL goal in overtime to win the game for San Jose 4-3.

New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin did something Thursday night no NHL goalie did all of last season: score a goal.

Shesterkin sealed the Rangers' win over the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning when he scored an empty-net goal at 17:26 of the third period. His length-of-the-ice goal made him the first Rangers goaltender with a score, MSG's Kenny Albert said on the Rangers' broadcast.

The goal gave the Rangers a 5-1 lead in what became their first win of the 2026-27 season.

THREE DAYS INTO THE SEASON AND WE ALREADY HAVE A GOALIE GOAL!! pic.twitter.com/4EeZoqz3Wv

— NHL (@NHL) October 2, 2026

Shesterkin, who captured the Vezina Trophy in 2022, stopped 24 of 25 shots in his full-time role.

The last goalie credited with a goal in an NHL game was Ilya Sorokin of the New York Islanders, who last touched a puck the Nashville Predatorsput into their own net during a game on March 1, 2025. Alex Nedeljkovic was the last goalie to shoot the puck in the net when he scored during a Jan. 17, 2025 game for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Despite happening more in recent seasons, a goalie goal is still a bit of a rarity. Shesterkin is just the 18th different goalie to score, and his was the 21st goalie goal in NHL history, per NHL.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Goalie goal! Rangers' Igor Shesterkin scores against Lightning

Blake Coleman didn’t have to wait long to make an impact with his new team.

Coleman scored his first goal as a member of the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night against the Nashville Predators, finding the back of the net in his first regular-season game with Minnesota.

The Wild acquired Coleman from the Calgary Flames during the offseason as part of an effort to add more scoring, experience and toughness to their forward group.

The 34-year-old winger entered the season coming off his fourth 20-goal campaign and his second with Calgary and has reached the 30-goal mark once in his NHL career.

He picked up a beauty of a goal in the second period on the power play from Bobby Brink and Danila Yurov.

Coleman is the 34th player to score a goal in his first game in a Wild sweater.

That's a smooth way to score your first goal with the @mnwild, Blake Coleman! 😎 pic.twitter.com/VH1tKefEVU

— NHL (@NHL) October 2, 2026

Coleman has also brought a championship pedigree to Minnesota. He won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 2021 before signing with Calgary.

It took just one game in a Wild sweater for Coleman to get on the scoresheet — and into the goal column.

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New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes was taken aback by an ESPN analyst's off-hand comment about his injury history, calling it a "weird joke."

Hughes, who cut his finger and needed surgery in November 2025, was being interviewed on the ice by A.J. Mleczko in the first intermission of ESPN+'s broadcast of the Devils-Philadelphia Flyers game on Thursday, Oct. 1.

After the U.S. Olympic hero answered some hockey questions, Mleczko said she was glad Hughes was healthy.

"Let's wrap you in bubble wrap and use plastic cutlery this year, that sound good?" she asked.

"I think that's a weird joke. Big game, but ...," Hughes said as he skated away.

Mleczko, a two-time Olympian, said on camera: "No sense of humor here in a big game, but I appreciate his time and he had a good start here this season."

Welp that was awkward pic.twitter.com/surGRvDYtu

— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) October 1, 2026

Hughes would go on to score the overtime goal to beat the Flyers 3-2. He tossed his stick into the stands and it was caught by a fan wearing a Jack Hughes Team USA jersey.

The Devils' response to Hughes' goal on social media? "Can't keep him wrapped up."

Can't keep him wrapped up. pic.twitter.com/CbMfEV2Pmp

— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) October 2, 2026

Jack Hughes injury history

Hughes had started the 2025-26 season coming off shoulder surgery in the previous season and got off to a strong start. But he needed surgery after cutting his finger at a team dinner in Chicago.

He returned in time for the Olympics and scored the overtime goal in the gold-medal game against Canada. He had teeth knocked out by a Canadian high stick earlier in the game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Devils' Jack Hughes taken aback by AJ Mleczko's 'weird joke' about injuries

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On Wednesday morning, news broke that Detroit Red Wings defenseman Simon Edvinsson, who remains a restricted free agent without a contract, had returned to his native Sweden and is training with Frölunda of the SHL. 

Simon Edvinsson är tillbaka i Sverige.
Tränar med Frölunda under onsdagen. pic.twitter.com/8duvOn5iXU

— Andreas III Johnsson (@Johnssonen) September 30, 2026

Perhaps the most startling element of this saga is not only that Edvinsson is now on the other side of the world with the start of the regular season on deck, but that the club wasn't able to hammer out a new contract with him despite his reporting to Training Camp.

Edvinsson skated with his teammates during camp, taking part in non-scrimmage drills, but he did not appear in any of the team's four preseason contests.

The Swedish defenseman, whom the Red Wings selected in the first round (sixth overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, gave every indication that he wants to be part of the club, making his feelings clear by reporting to camp without a contract.

But for reasons that remain officially unknown, what appeared to be a layup for Red Wings interim general manager Shawn Horcoff has now turned into an extremely precarious situation for a club already facing more questions than answers. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

There have been unconfirmed reports that the Red Wings would like to sign Edvinsson to a bridge-style contract, which could prove to be a considerable miscalculation given that the salary cap is expected to rise in the near future, potentially making Edvinsson's next contract even more expensive.

For a club that needs to rebuild some goodwill after a turbulent offseason, this was an unfortunate missed opportunity to build positive momentum.

Dylan Larkin wouldn't confirm whether he still wants to be traded, and he won't play in either of Detroit's first two games of the season.

Meanwhile, the club still doesn't have a permanent general manager, having spent two months before naming Horcoff, its former AGM, as interim GM, following Steve Yzerman's departure from the role on July 15. 

Additionally, there has been no update on a contract extension for goal-scoring forward Alex DeBrincat, who can become an unrestricted free agent after the upcoming season. 

All of that is on top of the NHL's longest current postseason drought, 10 years and counting. 

Dylan Larkin Officially Ruled Out For First Two Red Wings Games of 2026-27 Former Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin will not play in either of the club's first two games of the regular season, as confirmed by head coach Todd McLellan.

Short of boarding a defunct Concorde jet, Edvinsson won't be in Detroit on Friday evening when the Red Wings open the season against the visiting New York Rangers at Little Caesars Arena.

For now, that means the Red Wings will have to make do without their second-best defenseman, who made it clear he wanted to be with the team by reporting to Training Camp despite being unsigned in a show of good faith. 

Unfortunately, this only adds to the mounting uncertainty surrounding the Red Wings as they begin their 101st NHL season, with the expectation of legitimate Stanley Cup contention now feeling like a distant memory and the organization facing increasingly pressing questions about where it goes from here.

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The NHL preseason was shorter this year, and I'm sure there weren't many fans complaining about that.

Everyone had four games to get through, make their cuts and start playing meaningful hockey. Sounds pretty good when you're sitting at home waiting for the regular season to start.

What about the players though?

The Edmonton Oilers lost 6-5 in overtime to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night, and Tristan Jarry brought up the shortened preseason afterward, albeit without making it an excuse.

“It's the first game of the season. It's always always tough,” Jarry said. “It was a short preseason, so I think just learning from every game, whether it's the ups, the downs, and just being better every single game.”

Well, it was definitely short.

The NHL cut the preseason to four games this year as part of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, extending the regular season going from 82 games to 84. The league's preseason schedule lasted eight days, beginning Sept. 19 and ending Sept. 26, before the regular season started three days later.

That left the Oilers with four games and a handful of practices to prepare for game No. 1.

Veteran players weren't necessarily playing all four of those games either. Under the new CBA, players with at least 100 games in the NHL are restricted to two exhibition games, meaning some players entered the regular season with two preseason games and a few weeks of practice together.

Oilers Lose Another Key Forward as Zach Hyman Not With Team In VancouverEdmonton’s mounting injury crisis hits a breaking point as the star winger joins five other sidelined forwards, forcing a depleted lineup to face the Canucks without reinforcements.

Jarry also spent the entire offseason working on his game with goalie coach Pete Aubry. Babcock talked prior to Tuesday night about Jarry improving his conditioning and stabilizing his game, but even he only got five periods of preseason before the games started counting.

That's not a lot of hockey before somebody asks you to start an NHL season. The same goes for everyone trying to learn Babcock's system. Edmonton has a new head coach, players moving around the lineup and several injuries that forced Babcock to spend camp trying different combinations. Then suddenly it's Sept. 29 and Vancouver is in town.

The old preseason certainly had its problems, though, don't get me wrong. Nobody needed weeks of random hockey, and fans weren't exactly sitting around in June counting down the days until preseason started.

Oilers Not Where They Thought They'd Be For Game No. 1The <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers">Edmonton Oilers</a> lost 6-5 in overtime to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night, so does that make them almost as bad as the Canucks?

So fans got what most of us wanted. Preseason ended quickly and the regular season started sooner.

Four exhibition games might sound like plenty when nobody cares about the score. That said, it might feel a little different for the guys expected to have everything figured out the second those games start counting.

However, it is up to the team itself to maximize it's preseason, and if the Oilers failed to properly prepare their players for this season, they can hardly blame the CBA.

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Luca Cagnoni makes history with first NHL goal in Sharks' OT win vs. Panthers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Thursday was a night of firsts at SAP Center.

In the Sharks’ first game of the 2026-27 NHL season — and a lively home opener at that — Luca Cagnoni scored the first NHL goal of his career in overtime to give San Jose a 4-3 win over the Florida Panthers.

And in the process, he became the first player in franchise history to score his first NHL goal in overtime.

Despite the Sharks blowing a 3-0 lead late in the second period and barely hanging on just to force overtime, Cagnoni sent a raucous SAP Center crowd into a frenzy to open an anticipated campaign for the young squad.

“Unreal,” Cagnoni told Tara Slone on the ice. “The atmosphere tonight is unbelievable, so credit to all the fans here. It’s remarkable.”

Cagnoni entered this season with only nine NHL games under his belt, finally breaking into the primary San Jose squad after spending most of the last two years with the San Jose Barracuda.

And while speaking to reporters postgame in the locker room, he still couldn’t seem to believe what he has just done.

“I’d say that’s probably the best goal of my life,” Cagnoni said with a nervous laugh. “Hard to write one better than an overtime winner, I think, right? … Still kind of dazing off a little bit about it.”

Sharks captain Macklin Celebrini, who along with Will Smith provided the assists on Cagnoni’s game-winner, wasn’t just impressed by the 21-year-old defenseman’s overtime heroics.

“I mean, it’s amazing,” Celebrini told reporters. “We’re all so happy for him. It wasn’t just the goal or the points that he put up today, I think just the way he was skating, making plays, keeping pucks alive — I mean, it was really cool to watch.”

Cagnoni wasn’t the only Shark to record his debut goal with the team on Thursday; offseason free-agent signing Mason Marchment lit the lamp for the first time in teal to put San Jose on the board in the first period.

While it’s far from the 31-year-old’s first NHL goal, it still is an extra special one from Marchment, now a second-generation Shark. His dad, Bryan, was a defenseman for San Jose from 1998-2003 then worked for the organization in scouting and player development for several years until his death in 2022.

Of course, for the franchise centerpiece duo of Celebrini and Smith, it’s far from their first time doing this. They posted three points each on the night — Smith scored both short-handed and on a power play in the second period, with Celebrini assisting on both.

Last season, the Sharks had 47 goals that featured both players, which was tied for the third-most ever by a duo in franchise history. After combining on three goals in the first game of the following campaign, Celebrini and Smith look as though they might smash that mark.

Not a bad way to open the year.

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At the beginning of training camp, Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek stated that they were going to react quicker when it came to their players approaching restricted free agency. They’ve done just that by tying down Tim Washe and now Tristan Luneau to long-term contracts.

Luneau’s case is a bit different from Washe’s, as the former has played just 14 NHL games over three seasons while the latter spent the second half of last season in the NHL and was an essential part of the team’s playoff performance. Luneau appeared in one NHL game last season, the last game of the regular season against the Nashville Predators, scoring a goal and helping the Ducks enter the postseason on a high note.

With the exoduses of Jacob Trouba, Radko Gudas and John Carlson, in addition to current injuries to Drew Helleson and Ian Moore, Luneau has now been handed the biggest opportunity of his NHL career. The extension that he signed on Thursday morning validates that.

“My agent called me not too long ago, saying that (the Ducks) wanted to move forward with an extension,” Luneau said. “I said I want to be part of this group, and I’m ready to get things going, too.”

This extension does carry its fair share of risk. The organization is investing $43.2 million dollars in a player who has played in less than 20 NHL games. When Jackson LaCombe signed his big-money extension prior to the 2025-26 season, he had already shown signs of becoming one of the league’s top defensemen and has now appeared in over 200 NHL games. The Ducks are hoping to get ahead of the curve by signing Luneau before his breakout has even occurred.

Luneau has been preparing for this opportunity, having made the Ducks’ opening night roster twice before only to have his NHL season cut short by both injury and a demotion. With two successful AHL seasons under his belt, both the organization and player feel that he is ready to take the next step.

“It’s a lot of trust,” he said. “(I’ve) got to live up to the expectations and trust that they put in you, and I’m ready to do that.”

Based off recent practice line combinations, Luneau will play alongside LaCombe on the top defensive pair to start the season. Both players will be entrusted to play big minutes throughout the season in all situations.

An interesting controversy has emerged from the Vancouver Canucks' season-opening 6-5 overtime win against the Edmonton Oilers. On Vancouver's first goal, many believe that Kevin Lankinen should have received an assist. Instead, Paul Cotter was credited with an unassisted goal.

According to John Shannon of the 100% Canucks With Woodley & Shannon podcast, the Canucks did submit a request to the NHL to add a Lankinen assist to Cotter's season-opening goal. The potential assist in question occurred when the 31-year-old stopped Leon Draisaitl with his blocker and deflected the puck, which led to a shorthanded marker. Shannon said, "The league reviewed it and what happened was, the league feels that if a goaltender makes a save but does not have the intent of passing the puck to a teammate than it is not a pass and therefore not an assist." 

One major issue with scoring is that the same rules don't seem to apply when awarding assists to skaters versus goaltenders. For example, if a puck bounces off a skater's skate and their teammate scores, the skater gets credit for the goal. This rule applies to almost every body part as long as the play is not an intentional hand pass. 

The same can't be said about goaltenders. As mentioned, Lankinen deflected the puck with his blocker, and it went to Cotter, resulting in a goal. There was also no change of possession and no additional players touching the puck during the play. 

FIRST GAME AS A CANUCK.
FIRST GOAL AS A CANUCK.

That's a shorthanded goal for PAUL COTTER❗️ pic.twitter.com/b6vsyXM1jZ

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) September 30, 2026

In the end, the NHL needs to review how they award goaltender assists. If a skater can be awarded an assist because a puck bounced off them unintentionally, than so should a goalie. Ultimately, there is a case to be made that the league robbed Lankinen of an assist, which would have been the eighth of his NHL career. 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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The New York Islanders released their official 2026-27 Hometown Remix Jersey scheduled games for the 2026-27 season.

The Islanders will, according to rumors, be wearing a white or crème based jersey, as multiple opponents have revealed they'll wear their Hometown Remix jerseys while on the road against the Islanders, implying New York will be in white.

The #Isles will rock their Hometown Remix jerseys 11 times this season, including 10 games at home!

Check out the full schedule and mark your calendars.

— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) October 1, 2026

New York will wear the jersey 11 times this season, with 10 of the dates coming for home games.

The jersey makes its debut against the defending Stanley Cup Champions, the Carolina Hurricanes, on November 5, a Thursday night game.

The Islanders will then wear it for marquee games against the New York Rangers, Boston Bruins, and Montreal Canadiens, with its final appearance slated to be April 1 on the road against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The official jersey is expected to be released in the coming weeks as teams continue to build excitement for the league-wide promotions of the Hometown Remix jerseys.