With some injuries piling up on the left side of the blue line, the Pittsburgh Penguins made a roster move Sunday to give them another body for the last leg of their current Western road swing.

The Penguins recalled defenseman Ilya Solovyov from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) Penguins, and on the same day, re-assigned newly acquired blueliner Ryan Johnson to WBS.

These moves come a day after defenseman Sam Girard was injured during the second period of the Penguins' 6-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, when Girard was tripped by Vegas forward Brett Howden and flew awkwardly into the bottom of the wall shoulder-first.

In addition, Trevor van Riemsdyk is still working out in Pittsburgh and rehabbing from a lower-body injury. He is currently on injured reserve. 

Penguins Complete Trade With Sabres To Acquire Former First-Round PickThe Pittsburgh Penguins addressed their defensive logjam at the minor league level with a blue line swap involving the Buffalo Sabres Monday

Solovyov, 26, began the season on the Penguins' NHL roster. After failing to appear in a game, the Penguins waived him on Oct. 9 in hopes that he would pass through waivers and join WBS to have an opportunity to be in the lineup every night. In three games for WBS, Solovyov had one assist and was a plus-6, largely playing top-pairing minutes with right defenseman Harrison Brunicke. 

The 6-foot-3, 229-pound defenseman was traded to Pittsburgh during the second half last season and appeared in 14 games, registering five points to go along with a plus-1.

Johnson, 25, is a former first-round pick (31st overall in 2019) who was acquired from the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 12. He has yet to appear in an NHL game this season, and he has seven assists in 47 games across three season, all of which were accrued in 41 games during his rookie season in 2023-24.

Report: Penguins Are Willing To Deal Veterans. What Does That Mean?According to a new report Saturday, the Pittsburgh Penguins and GM Kyle Dubas are ready to open the doors for a youth movement.

Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!    

The Buffalo Sabres had a tough test Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens, but they ultimately fell to the Habs in a 4-3 overtime win for Montreal. The ‘loser’ point was beneficial to the Sabres, but against arguably the Atlantic Division’s top team, Buffalo had an opportunity to send a shot across the bow to the Canadiens, and they failed to do so.

The Sabres are by no means a perfect team, but they are very much a work-in-progress. You might say the same about every team, but Buffalo’s pressure is different in that their15-year Stanley Cup playoff drought ended last season, and they now have to take the next step forward – and that’s getting beyond the second round next spring.

But what the Sabres really need to do – something they owe their loyal, long-suffering  fans – is pull off a blockbuster trade involving one player or another.

Could that be current Winnipeg Jets malcontent goalie Connor Hellebuyck? It could be. Could it be Detroit Red Wings star center Dylan Larkin? Highly unlikely, but stranger things have happened. Or could there be a star player who suddenly appears on the trade block? That’s the most-likely development for Buffalo. 

The Sabres have $1.8-million in salary cap space, so if they are going to acquire a name-brand player with a high salary, they’re going to have to move out money, either in the blockbuster trade, or in a subsequent move. But the other thing Buffalo GM Jarmo Kekalainen could use in a blockbuster swap is his first-round draft picks. The Sabres have all of their first-rounders in the next three drafts, so peeling off one of them wouldn’t hurt a win-now team like Buffalo.

The Sabres don’t need any high-end talent on ‘D, but their current goaltending setup doesn’t inspire much confidence. Veterans Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Colten Ellis have sub-.900 save percentages, and that’s why Buffalo has been linked to Hellebuyck. But the other area Buffalo could target is their top-six group of forwards. If the Toronto Maple Leafs had the assets to acquire star winger Kirill Marchenko from the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Sabres have enough trade capital to pick up a similar type of player.

Kekalainen has yet to orchestrate a blockbuster move of any sort in his one year (approximately) running the team. The truth is, Buffalo played so well that Kekalainen didn’t have an acute problem to deal with. But now that the Sabres have settled in a little bit, they could significantly shift the balance of power by bringing in a Grade-A talent.

You can give a player like Ryan McLeod his due for being an above-average NHL talent, but is he a star? No. And that’s what Buffalo needs – star power. That’s what Buffalo fans deserve – a player who can impose their will on games and electrify long-suffering Sabres fans. Some of Buffalo’s youngsters could evolve into superstars some day down the line. But in this moment in the Sabres’ competitive cycle, they need to be swinging for the fences on the trade market.

Sometimes, you never know what players come available. And if Kekalainen shakes the trees in the coming weeks and months, a high-end player could fall into Buffalo’s lap. The Sabres have every reason to bring in a star-caliber player, and if Kekalainen can acquire a top forward or goalie, that could prove to be the final piece of Buffalo’s championship puzzle.

Even though the Philadelphia Flyers are badly hurting due to injuries, especially at forward, they just created some intrigue by cutting loose more healthy bodies than they replace them with. 

On Sunday, shortly after the conclusion of the Flyers' practice session, head coach Rick Tocchet revealed that forwards Tyson Foerster and Sean Couturier are game-time decisions ahead of Monday night's game against the Colorado Avalanche.

They join a growing list of Flyers players ailing and out of the lineup, with Travis Konecny, Cam York, Rasmus Ristolainen, and Owen Tippett all injured at the moment as well.

Later Sunday, the Flyers placed York on injured reserve, creating a free roster space, while sending forward Jack Studnicka and defenseman Helge Grans to the AHL.

The only corresponding move the Flyers made was calling up defenseman Hunter McDonald, a 6-foot-4, 240 pound defenseman who made his NHL debut last season against Montreal, recording an assist, a +3 rating, and four penalty minutes.

With the 24-year-old McDonald now on the roster, the Flyers still have two free roster spots available for use, though it's curious that they haven't made use of them just yet.

For instance, in Studnicka's case, the journeyman had recently overtaken the fourth-line center position with Couturier moving up higher in the lineup, as the Flyers preferred Studnicka at center over the versatile Noel Acciari.

Including Tippett, Foerster, and Couturier, the Flyers have 12 forwards on their roster, and they would assuredly need to call up at least one forward to help close the gap.

What are the Flyers' options?

Perhaps Travis Konecny, who is now eligible to return from injured reserve after missing seven days of action, is ready to hit the ice, though he wasn't spotted at practice on Sunday.

If needed, players like Jett Luchanko and Alex Bump are candidates to be called up by the Flyers, though, again, it's interesting they haven't already done so.

Bump, 22, would be especially interesting given that he has seven goals in five AHL games this season, including an overtime winner on Saturday night.

It's no secret the Flyers are starved for offense, and Bump would easily be the most deserving candidate for a call-up amongst the forwards.

Luchanko, with six points in six games, has been no slouch either, but the Flyers may prefer their top center prospect to have more development time in the AHL rather than serve as a band-aid solution for a rash of injuries for a game or two.

As for someone like Carl Grundstrom, the Swede was unavailable for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms due to personal reasons on Saturday night, so he might not be an option for the Flyers at the moment.

Other veterans in the AHL, like Nolan Foote and Danila Klimovich, are banged up and likely unavailable, too.

Also of note, the NHL no longer allows paper transactions, so Studnicka must return to the AHL and report for at least one game before he returns to the NHL; the Flyers can't assess Tippett, Foerster, and Couturier and then decide that they need Studnicka back for the Avalanche game.

This latest roster move from the Flyers is clearly a precursor to something more, though it is just unclear what that is at this time.

It didn’t take long for Alberts Smits to provide a glimpse of what Mike Sullivan had hinted at. 

Late in the first period Thursday, less than a minute before the Devils goal that began the Rangers’ unraveling at Prudential Center, Smits slammed his stick on the ice four times from the left circle. As play cycled behind the net, Smits knew he had an open shooting lane. Alexis Lafrenière slid the puck over. And Smits, the No. 5 pick in June’s draft, sent a shot toward the net around traffic that Nico Daws turned aside. 

So much of Smits’ acclimation to the NHL, as a rookie who skated on the third pair from the first day of training camp and never looked back, has revolved around the defensive layers. But the Rangers also think he has “an offensive dimension to his game that might be untapped,” Sullivan said. 

There have been flashes through 10 games, even as Smits has yet to log a point — and, entering Monday’s game against the Ducks, remains the last Blueshirts regular without one. But the Rangers, who remain impressed with how he has performed with inevitable growing pains and mistakes mixed in, think that part of his game will eventually emerge too. 

“I think the offense is gonna come,” Smits said Thursday. “Just gotta take care of the defense first. So that’s what I’m focusing on right now.” 

Smits, who recorded a pair of assists with Latvia across four games at the Winter Olympics while stringing together six goals and 13 points in 38 games with Finland’s Jukurit last year, picked up his first unofficial point in the preseason — sending a nifty pass toward the slot that Taylor Raddysh deflected into the net. Sullivan has continually raved about Smits’ passing and physical poise, about how he doesn’t look like an 18-year-old on the ice, and that served as a tangible example in a game setting. 

The Rangers have waited for the first instance of that in the regular season. They entered play Sunday with 20 points — two goals and 18 assists — from defensemen this season, tied for the eighth most in the NHL, according to StatMuse, but have gotten 19 of those from their top four and the 20th via an assist from Braden Schneider. There hasn’t necessarily been a drop-off with Smits, though. Smits rank second on the Blueshirts in expected goals per 60 minutes (0.22) behind just Adam Fox this season, per MoneyPuck, and when Smits was on the ice Saturday, the Rangers carried an expected goals for percentage of 82.94, which marked the highest rate on the team, according to Natural Stat Trick. The Blueshirts also had a team-best expected goals against number (0.25) during Smits’ shifts in the team’s 1-0 overtime loss in Columbus too. 

Smits was on the ice for the Blue Jackets’ winning goal at 4-on-4 in overtime — unable to disrupt a pass fully in the neutral zone and unable to get his stick on two others in the Blueshirts end before Kent Johnson’s winner — and only logged five shifts after the second period. 

Part of the ice time issue, Sullivan said, stemmed from the Rangers being on the power play three times in the final frame. He has yet to carve out a role on either special teams unit, limiting his availability, and Smits skated just 14:46 — the lowest number among Rangers defenseman by over four minutes — in Columbus. 

“That’s [assistant coach David Quinn’s] call back there,” Sullivan said of Smits’ limited shifts in the third. “He’s running the defense.” 

The sentiment echoed by the Rangers since the start of training camp hasn’t strayed from Smits looking like he belongs. Sullivan reiterated that again Thursday, labeling miscues as “mistakes of enthusiasm.” 

Smits, when asked about evaluating his game so far, said Thursday that he has continued to try and get better each game, to stay on the right development track. The Rangers have given him the runway for that, opting for Smits’ upside over more experienced left-handed defensemen such as Matthew Robertson or Urho Vaakanainen. They embraced the potential for growing pains and learning curves that’d inevitably follow. 

“The biggest challenge [for young defensemen] is the reads,” Sullivan said. “When to be aggressive. When to cut your losses, stay inside the dots, manage the dots, let the play come to you a little bit. That’s the hardest part, I think, of playing defense in this league, and that’s, I think, Smitty’s challenge moving forward. But we love his aggression.” 

The defensive play, for the most part, has transferred to the regular season. The offense, for now at least, remains a work in progress from a production standpoint, with Sullivan believing that the Rangers — over time — could unlock more.

Marcus Pettersson knows Mike Sullivan’s structure and philosophy better than most with the Rangers, since the defenseman spent parts of seven seasons with the Penguins from December 2018 through February 2025 after Sullivan had already arrived and won a pair of Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh.

And in the early portion of this season, Pettersson has noticed this iteration of the Rangers starting to adopt a similar identity to what those Penguins teams had with Sullivan as head coach, he told The Post before a 1-0 loss to the Blue Jackets in overtime where the Blueshirts largely flashed the same principles of checking and forechecking while earning their 13th point of the young season.

“[Identity is] always the word on people’s mouths, I feel like, early in the year where it’s — some teams find it early, some teams are searching for that identity,” Pettersson, who was acquired in exchange for a top-10 protected first-round pick in the 2030 draft, said Saturday. “I think when you look throughout our lineup, our system and everything, I think everybody’s really bought in so far this season. … We’re a really good checking team. I feel like, and if we can do that well, it’s gonna be tough to beat us every night.”

With five years remaining on his contract, Pettersson, 30, will likely be part of shaping the Rangers blue line into the future, and outside of a pair of giveaways in Saturday’s game, he’s mostly been impressive with Sean Durzi on a revamped second pairing. Pettersson has collected a pair of assists offensively too while settling into a critical role on the Blueshirts penalty-kill unit.

His current group of Rangers teammates, who are now 6-3-1 through their opening 10 games, and his former Penguins teams contained different types of players, he said, but there are still some similarities in how they play. They both had centers who could read the game. They both had speed. They both paired that with checking that in turn has allowed the Blueshirts to create opportunities for their most dynamic players.

They’ve learned how Sullivan wants to play away from the puck, Pettersson said, and have witnessed how that ultimately creates offense. Defensively, he added, both teams understood what puck movement means too.

“It doesn’t mean that you’re highlight reel, doing spin-o-rama, wheeling outside the zone every shift,” Pettersson said. “It’s effective puck moving where you get the pucks to our game-breakers up there.”

The power play was supposed to be a definitive strength of the Rangers this season, but instead, through their opening 10 games, their other special teams unit has emerged as one of the league’s best — and that, given their reliance on 24-year-old goaltender Dylan Garand with Igor Shesterkin out for the season, has been crucial.

In their 1-0 loss to the Blue Jackets on Saturday, the Rangers killed all three of their penalties, including one by Will Cuylle at the end of regulation that forced them to operate at 4-on-3 for the first 1:27 of overtime.

They entered play Sunday with a unit that has killed all but two of their 31 penalties, hasn’t allowed a goal on the road and sat in a tie for the second-best success rate in the NHL at 93.5 percent — which is even with the Hurricanes and trails just the Maple Leafs’ 96.4 percent.

“They’ve been aggressive,” Sullivan said. “There’s been a lot of collective effort when they are aggressive. It’s cooperative pressure. … They’re doing a lot of the little things, the thankless jobs. They’re winning faceoffs, they’re getting clears, they’re blocking shots, but they’re making good reads.”

Last week, the Buffalo Sabres traded defenseman Ryan Johnson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for blueliners Caleb Jones and Daniel Laatsch. 

Now, after one week on Pittsburgh's NHL roster, he is heading back to the AHL. This is because the Penguins have announced that they have assigned Johnson to the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. 

While Johnson was on the Penguins' NHL roster before this demotion, he has not made his debut for Pittsburgh. Instead, he was scratched while on Pittsburgh's roster. Now, with him being sent down to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, he will get back into game action. 

Johnson appeared in four AHL games with the Rochester Americans this season before being traded to the Penguins. This was after he had five goals and 19 points in 56 games with Rochester this past season. 

Johnson was selected by the Sabres in the first round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, 31st overall. In 47 games over three seasons with Buffalo from 2023-24 to 2025-26, he posted seven assists and a plus-1 rating. 

The Montreal Canadiens defeated the Buffalo Sabres in overtime by a 5-4 final score in their most recent game on Saturday. 

Canadiens forward Zachary Bolduc contributed in Montreal's win, as he scored a power-play goal at the 11:45 mark of the first period to tie the game up at 1-1. 

With this goal, Bolduc now has four goals to go along with six points in eight games so far this season with the Canadiens. He is also on a hot streak right now, as he has recorded a point in each of his last three games.

With the way Bolduc is playing right now, he is showing clear signs of being ready to break out for the Canadiens. The young forward putting up strong offensive numbers like this at the start of the season is very encouraging. Now, he will be aiming to keep it from here for Montreal.

If Bolduc can continue to chip in offensively while making an impact with his physicality, it would be huge for the Canadiens. At just 23 years old, there is reason to believe that he has not hit his full ceiling yet. Due to this, he will be a very interesting player to keep watching as the season carries on. 

It’s not breaking news that Ondrej Palat struggled when he got to Long Island last season. And it was understandable to assume, at age 35, that this season wouldn’t be much different for a player who had taken a step back during his tenure as a New Jersey Devil.

The Islanders’ win Saturday night over the Maple Leafs, though, was the latest and most emphatic piece of evidence that no such thing is happening.

Palat had arguably his best game as an Islander in the 4-1 victory, despite not making it onto the scoresheet. The Islanders were up ice on nearly every one of his shifts. He won battles and played nearly perfectly on breakouts and in his own end. In his 13:01 of ice time, the Islanders out-attempted Toronto by an absurd 19-1 margin, per Natural Stat Trick’s count.

“He’s been great all year,” coach Pete DeBoer said. “I think he’s come back with something to prove. I think from training camp, he’s been engaged and ready. He wants more. If anything it’s on me to give him a little bit more than what he’s even got so far. He’s been that good.”

Of course, the opportunity for more minutes may become something like a necessity. Palat has been on the Islanders fourth line for six of eight games, but would be an obvious candidate to move up in the lineup should Calum Ritchie or Matias Maccelli miss time with lower-body injuries sustained Saturday night.

While he’s unlikely to fill the Islanders’ scoring gaps, Palat’s two-way play and forechecking make him a positive force.

“We all knew he had game left in him,” Kyle Palmieri told The Post. “I think he just came into camp with a clear mind and was ready to go. It’s awesome to see.”

Palmieri, who was rehabbing an injury when Palat was dealt to the Islanders last season, noticed at the start of camp that he was in “great shape” — something Palat has credited to changes in his offseason routine, while declining to get into specifics.

“I know what kind of an impact play he can make. I watched firsthand what he was like in Tampa. Saw his years in Jersey. I thought he’s a guy you always see on the ice, you always notice,” Palmieri said. “I think the impact he’s making this year is a really positive thing for our group. Hopefully he continues to be that.”

Throughout their history, the Vegas Golden Knights have earned a reputation as a team willing to do whatever it takes in pursuit of the Stanley Cup. The organization prioritizes winning above all, and they’re unafraid to sacrifice futures to accomplish their goals.

In nine years, the Golden Knights have won one Stanley Cup and reached two additional Stanley Cup Finals. However, that perpetual excellence came with a cost; they sacrificed almost all of their futures to remain in win-now mode.

Only one notable prospect remained in the organization as the Golden Knights mortgaged their future: Trevor Connelly, the 24th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. Very few players in the league are truly untouchable, but the organization never hid how highly they valued Connelly, a California-born playmaking winger with talent for days. They saw something special in him, and their belief never wavered.

“Trevor is different from any player in our organization,” said Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon at the start of training camp. “Elite hockey sense, elite talent. What he did last year in the American Hockey League as a 19-year-old… his ceiling is tremendously high.”

Now, their belief is paying off. The 20-year-old rookie scored just 15:22 into his NHL debut— a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks— and never looked back.

After 10 games, Connelly is emerging as a potential dark horse for the Calder Trophy. He leads all rookies in goals (4) and points (7), all while averaging just 13 minutes and 45 seconds of ice time a night. Connelly is a regular on the third line with Tomáš Hertl and Raphael Lavoie, and was recently elevated to the top power play unit. 

It’s still early in the season, and Connelly could come back down to earth. He is a first-year player, and the NHL’s grueling schedule and constant physicality have worn rookies down in the past.

However, nothing about Connelly’s game suggests that his hot start is unsustainable. His defensive game improves every game, and he’s not cheating for offense. He has a great shot, and he’s shown he can drive play. He can even score against some of the greatest players in the game– on Saturday, he read and intercepted Sidney Crosby’s pass, went back the other way, and scored an unassisted goal.

Penguins have a rush, but Trevor Connelly reads Sidney Crosby like a book, picks him off, takes it back the other way, and goes top-shelf with Kaedan Korczak draped all over him.

4-1, Golden Knights

pic.twitter.com/9FWLgYMoGA

— Hannah Kirkell (@h_kirk6) October 18, 2026

Connelly is a rare talent, and everyone can see it. His teammates have nothing but great things to say about the talented young rookie.

“I have such confidence in him,” said Mitch Marner. “He’s such a good player. You see it daily, just the plays he makes, those little three-foot plays… You see his hockey sense out there. He just reads the plays so well. He makes so many great offensive plays, and he’s really building his defensive game as well.”

“I think he’s got incredible edge work and high-end skill,” said Golden Knights captain Mark Stone. “He’s done a really good job adapting to the game. He’s a competitive little guy. He’s only gonna get bigger as time moves on as well, so he’s just gonna be more and more effective.”

While the Montreal Canadiens ultimately got the two points out of their tilt with the Buffalo Sabres, they still gave up a point, and that point means the Sabres are in eighth place in the Eastern Conference while the Canadiens are ninth. Yes, it’s early, but the Habs are falling in the same pattern that cost them home-ice advantage in the playoffs last season. They had 106 points, like the Tampa Bay Lightning, but regulation wins are the tiebreaker: Jon Cooper’s men had 40, while the Canadiens had 34.

The problem is the Canadiens can't stay focused for a full 60 minutes to close out a regulation game. Saturday night’s game against the Sabres was a good example. When Montreal led 3-1 and was on the power play, Jack Quinn cleared the puck deep into the Habs zone. Zach Benson beat Dobson to the puck and moved it before the Canadiens’ defenseman could do anything. The puck made its way to the front of the net, and it was the same Quinn who was first to the puck in front of Jacob Fowler, a step ahead of Lane Hutson, who could only watch. Those are the kind of small mental errors the coach talked about in his post-game media availability:

It has to be better than this from that angle: how we behave on the ice. We play good games, but small mental errors creep in at times and hurt us. I’m generally proud of how we play as a team and all that, but those small mental errors…you lead by two; it should be over.

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Then, on Buffalo’s third goal, three Habs were between Josh Doan and Tage Thompson, and none could cut the cross-zone pass Doan sent to Thompson on the doorstep. The puck even crossed the crease on that play. After the game, Fowler also explained:

I feel like we played pretty good, kind of like it was awesome, a lot of big blocks tonight. We’ve been playing a lot of these games where the other goalie makes some big saves, and it comes down to textual hockey there. I feel I could have got a couple of sticks on a couple of those passes there not to give up some of those goals, but you know, Cole doing what he does on Saturday.

Asked about his team’s power play and the fact that the Habs had once again surrendered the lead, the bench boss added:

It was okay, but we’re better than this. […] It would be fun to put the final nail in the coffin. Buffalo is not an easy team to play with a lead; they play a wide-open game, and you have to be calculated in your actions. Even in the offensive zone, you can’t make a risky incomplete play; they thrive on that. They’re just waiting for you to try a play and fail, and then they take it the other way. You have to be patient and manage the puck in the offensive zone. It’s not necessarily about manufacturing a scoring chance, but it’s about managing the puck and forcing them to defend. When you can extend your time in the offensive zone and force them to defend, even if you make a risky play that ends up incomplete, they’re too tired to take advantage of it. But if you do that early, they pounce on the attack, and it’s not three guys attacking; it’s all hands on deck.

The coach explained how hard it is to balance killer instinct with patience and calculation. Of course, padding your goal total is always the aim of a team that’s playing with the lead, but you need to pick your moment to attack without leaving yourself vulnerable. In a boxing match, if you try to land a big uppercut and take too much of a wind-up, you leave yourself open to a quick jab, which you must avoid. There’s no magic recipe for avoiding that; it comes from experience, and while the Canadiens’ core has been together for a few seasons, they remain one of the league's youngest and least experienced teams. St-Louis knows they shouldn’t be dropping points like that, especially not to division rivals, but that’s part of the team’s growing pains.

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It’s eight games into the 2026-27 NHL season. So, how do we feel about the New Jersey Devils? No, really, how does everyone feel about this team? Honestly, it’s hard to read much into this team one way or another. 

It’s where this week’s Devils Notebook starts. The Devils look like an average team. It’s not good or bad, but it’s hard to make sense of this team. They look different from a roster perspective, with new players in key roles, yet they look like a similar team to the ones from the past: not good enough to compete for the Stanley Cup and not bad enough to be in a lottery spot. 

Eight Games In & The Devils Are Average: What Does That Mean In The Big Picture?

No matter how you dice or slice it, the Devils are, as the kids say, “mid” (if the kids are still saying that). It’s only eight games in, which is a small sample size. However, it’s enough to get a sense of how this team looks and where they might stack up by the end of the season. 

The Devils are 4-4 overall. They are 2-2 against their division, split the two games against their Western Conference opponents (the Utah Mammoth and Vancouver Canucks), and are 3-3 against the Eastern Conference. It doesn’t get more average than that. 

And it’s hard to deny that the Devils fit right into the middle of the NHL. Are they a top team in the league, one that can beat the best in a playoff series? No. Are they a bottom feeder, a team fighting with the Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Philadelphia Flyers for lottery position? Also, no. 

Devils Defensive Woes Are Becoming A Red Flag: Should Mehta Address It?The 4-2 loss on Saturday afternoon was another display of the shortcomings on the defensive end. The Devils must find fixes. The question is whether the fix comes from within or if a change is needed.

The Devils have an exciting forward group led by Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and Nico Hischier that can take over games and carry them all season. Conversely, the defense has been a weakness, while the goaltending has disappointed. Add it all up, and the plusses cancel out the minuses, leaving the Devils in the middle of the pack. 

Based on how the season plays out, it will be fascinating to see where an average Devils team stacks up in the division, the conference, and the NHL. They aren’t better than the Carolina Hurricanes or the Washington Capitals (Saturday’s 4-2 drubbing was a case in point). That said, they’ll be in a fight with their New York rivals and the Pittsburgh Penguins for that third spot in the division, which someone might back their way into. 

The good news is that the Devils are only eight games into the season. It’s still early, and a lot will change. An average team is only a short-term issue for the Devils. If this trend continues, of course, then the big-picture questions must be asked about this roster, and the core specifically. 

Gritsyuk, Meier & A Handful Of Devils Are Heating Up At The Right Time

The line change at the start of the week changed everything for the Devils, specifically their offense. It’s not a coincidence that the Devils scored 19 goals in their last five games (3.80 per game) and have won games because of their forwards. 

Devils Offense Finally Sets The Tone: Can They Do So All Season? A seven-goal game against the New York Rangers, which they controlled from the start, suggests they can set the tone and control the play in games. Is their scoring surge sustainable throughout the season?

Arseny Gritsyuk moved to the Hughes line and started to find his footing. It makes sense since he’s a fast-skating winger who keeps up with Hughes and Bratt while feeding into their rush game. Gritsyuk has three goals in the last four games and has made the most of the open looks that come from playing alongside two skilled forwards. 

At the end of the recent game against the Capitals, Timo Meier found the back of the net for his first goal of the season. It’s viewed as a garbage-time goal or meaningless in a 4-2 defeat, but goals like those go a long way for a player like Meier. Like Gritsyuk, he’s building up his confidence, and as a scorer, goals come in bunches. A few more might be around the corner, and it will make a difference for the Devils' top six. 

It’s also fascinating to see whether the depth scoring remains or drops off. Anthony Mantha, who started the season on the Hughes line, was moved to the Evan Rodrigues line, and it gave the Devils a viable third line. Luke Evangelista, who was a pivotal part of the top six before he was sidelined with an illness, hopes to pick up where he left off as he looks to return to action this week. 

The Devils Reconfigured Lines Work & Might Change The Season’s Outlook The Devils saw their offense explode in recent games and it comes after some adjustments from head coach Sheldon Keefe. Not only do the lines work, but they might also change the outlook for the season.

Ideally, the Devils have scoring depth that can step up when the star players aren’t delivering. This season, it looks like they have it. 

Making Sense Of Some Devils Analytics 

One scout noted a few weeks into the season that the Devils are passing the puck and not shooting it on net. From a visual perspective, it looks that way more often than not, as the Devils will pass the puck through the offensive zone and into high-danger areas. 

According to NHL Edge, the Devils are tied with the Utah Mammoth for the second-most high-danger shots in the league with 88. That should result in more goals, right? After all, the Mammoth average 3.67 goals per game, the seventh-most in the NHL. 

The problem is that the Devils’ shooting percentage in high-danger areas is 13.6%, which is 26th in the NHL. The Devils' shooting percentage is also well below the league average in all areas, as they score on 8.9% of attempts, which is 28th in the NHL. It's why the Devils average 3.13 goals per game despite generating plenty of scoring chances on most nights (that's tied for 14th in the league for those wondering). 

In short, the Devils are creating their chances and not finishing them. It ties back to the same issues they’ve had in the past. They have the playmakers but not the finishers. They can pass the puck into high-danger areas, but they won’t shoot there. While Hischier sets the tone, as a center who gets to the net front and powers home goals (all four of his goals this season have come from high-danger areas), the rest of the team follow suit. So far, they haven’t, and it’s a big-picture issue with the Devils. 

Quick Hits

After playing half of their first eight games within the division, the Devils have a heavy Western Conference slate ahead. The next eight games are against Western Conference teams, including two meetings against the Colorado Avalanche. 

These are the teams that the Devils don’t see often and aren’t familiar with. It’s why this is the best time of the season to play them. They’ll wrap up their season series against the Avalanche while they are still figuring things out on their roster. It’s best for the Devils to face their divisional opponents later in the season, when the games are more consequential. 

The Utica Comets have only played four games so far and will only play seven in October. The American Hockey League affiliate for the Devils has a light start to the season, which is fascinating considering the heavy schedule most teams face early on. The contrast is the Hartford Wolf Pack, who already have eight games under their belt. 

One conversation at the arena was about how the rest of the NHL is getting better while the Devils have stayed in the same spot. While the offseason moves upgraded this team, there’s some truth to the rest of the league catching up with the Devils. Their strengths, notably their speed and skill, aren’t significant advantages anymore. The rest of the league has speed that can keep up with them. Likewise, teams are built to defend those burners like Bratt and Hughes. The game against the Capitals was another reminder of that. 

Hughes scored his second overtime winner of the season in the 5-4 win over the Red Wings. Interestingly, he has yet to score a five-on-five goal, or a goal in regulation, for that matter. Presumably, that will change soon. 

What’s on your mind from the past week? What will you keep an eye on in the upcoming matchups? Comment below!

Although they now have the first win of the season under their belts, it will be difficult for the Philadelphia Flyers to build or otherwise sustain momentum with the number of injuries they are dealing with.

Rasmus Ristolainen has been out since Oct. 3 with an upper-body injury, while Cam York and Travis Konecny have each been out of commission since the Oct. 8 game against the Ottawa Senators.

NBC Sports Philadelphia's Jordan Hall reported that Ristolainen and York skated separate from the rest of the team ahead of Sunday's Flyers practice, but the Flyers still don't have an update on Konecny.

Owen Tippett, who sat out Saturday night's 3-1 win against Ottawa with an upper-body injury, wasn't at practice on Sunday, and he wasn't the only one.

Although both players finished Saturday night's game, Sean Couturier and Tyson Foerster weren't on the ice for Sunday's practice, and Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet wouldn't commit to either player being available for Monday night's game against the visiting Colorado Avalanche.

Foerster blocked a shot off his hand in the first period against Ottawa and went down the tunnel immediately, but returned for the second period and toughed the night out.

"We evaluated him after, he couldn't have gone on the ice today. We'll see how he is tomorrow. Another game-time guy," Tocchet said.

The ailment Couturier is dealing with is less apparent, and the Flyers' captain conducted his postgame media availability on Saturday night as normal, something that is highly unusual for injured players or players who need treatment after a game.

"He got banged up, same thing. We're in that stretch right now. We're getting injuries. I don't know if they're playing tomorrow, so it's one of those things," Tocchet added. "We'll see how it goes tomorrow."

Flyers have nightmare matchup on tap

The Flyers were already struggling with and without injuries, and now they've gotten further injuries to add to what is now a CVS receipt.

On Monday, they'll have to face the high-flying Avalanche, the team with the third-most goals in the NHL (36) behind Edmonton (37) and Vegas (42).

The Avalanche, of course, boast star talents like Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, and Cale Makar, and the Flyers will have to defend against them without two top-four defensemen in Ristolainen and York.

And, in terms of keeping the game within reach, both Dan Vladar and Joseph Woll have been good for the Flyers this season in goal, but will whoever starts against Colorado be good enough to buoy a team that ranks last in the NHL with 1.4 goals scored per game?

Having just earned their first victory of the season, the Flyers are back in business for now, but much work is still left to be done, starting on Monday night. 

It’s been a tough road trip for the Penguins, three games have resulted in three losses. Suddenly the type of adversity the team saw last December has showed up earlier in the season this time around.

“It’s on us. It’s on us together,” coach Dan Muse said after last night’s 6-2 loss to Vegas. “We can’t be feeling bad for ourselves. It’s on all of us, myself included. So, together as a group, we got to dig in. We have to find consistency in our game. There’s a lot coming off of tonight that we have to clean up from a structural standpoint, across the board, a number of things.”

Sidney Crosby repeated much the same sentiment.

“Nobody likes to lose,” Crosby said. “We know there’s areas we got to improve on. We’ve got to fix it quick.”

A 1-5-1 slide over the last seven games has sent the Penguins down towards the bottom of the standings. They better get to cleaning up soon.

The good news for the Pens is that after Monday night’s game against Utah, five of their following next six games will be at home. The home/road record splits speak for themselves on why that should be beneficial. Going back home could help get their season on track, perhaps at the right time in that department after a season start that will have seven of the first 10 games going on the road.

Beyond that, there’s something to be said that inconsistent teams in the middle of the pack this year. Some, like the Rangers right now, get hot and lift up towards the top of the heap. Then over time will drift back down when the back of the pack teams end up winning a few games and bunching back up.

Consternation might be the name of the game around the division right now. Aside from Carolina, anyways, where everything is on cruise control all the time. Here’s something everyone has to gripe about:

• Goaltending wasn’t the reason the Rangers lost a 1-0 game last night, but they’re 0-1-1 in the last two and the reality of losing Igor Shesterkin might be growing enough to cause concern about how they’re going to handle things in the long run.
• Washington has an illness sweeping through the team, which has kept PL Dubois out for four games and put four regulars on the shelf for last night. Never happy times when the an invisible opponent is laying waste to the team and more players are turning up sick.
• The Islanders don’t have too much to complain about right now, though injuries to forwards Cal Ritchie and Matias Macelli last night will bring some uncertainty and worry, especially since Macelli has been their second-highest scoring forward early in the season.
• New Jersey has had a trend of often giving up the first goal of a game, and often losing the game since the start of 2025-26 when they do give up that first goal. Then again, the Devils scored first yesterday against the Capitals, but the problem was the Caps scored second. And the third goal. And fourth. And fifth.
• The Penguins, well, we all know the issues they’re dealing with. Rickard Rakell hasn’t scored a goal this season. The team defense is poor at times and often forced to pay for it with goals flying into their net. As mentioned above, coach and captain have to find a way to get the team out of an early-season rut in a hurry.
• Columbus earned a 1-0 shutout win last night, badly needed since it sounds like Rick Bowness is itching to have a meltdown over his team’s performance. Between bashing some players summer conditioning and now going on about the defensive effort, it doesn’t seem like Bowness is having a good time professionally these days. However, with just six games in the books so far, the Blue Jackets have barely had the chance to do much to get in a rhythm.
• Any team is on a red alert when a winless streak to start the season goes into the 10th game. The Flyers finally got in the win column last night, the last team in the NHL to secure a victory. Philadelphia forwards, combined have 25 points on the season – that’s barely more than Connor McDavid having 23 all by his lonesome. Add in defensive issues and Rick Tocchet’s seat might be starting to get a little warm.

Early season blues and concerns almost all around. That’s NHL hockey for you, what looks in shambles today could show signs of improvement before too long. Many teams around the Metropolitan Division right now are hoping to settle things down and try to keep up with the Hurricanes who are already starting to pull away given their .833 points percentage putting them in smooth sailing territory to lead the pack.

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Daemon Hunt's journey with the Minnesota Wild has been anything but ordinary.

The 24-year-old defenseman was originally drafted by Minnesota in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft before being traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in November 2024 as part of the deal that brought David Jiricek to the Wild.

Less than a year later, Minnesota reclaimed Hunt off waivers from Columbus, bringing him back to the organization that drafted him.

Now, with the Wild dealing with several injuries on their blue line, Hunt is getting an opportunity to prove he belongs in the NHL. And fittingly enough, that opportunity continues Sunday when Minnesota hosts Columbus at Grand Casino Arena.

With Brock Faber, Jared Spurgeon and Olli Maatta sidelined, Hunt has been asked to take on additional responsibilities, including penalty-killing duties and an increased role at even strength.

For Hunt, it's an opportunity he doesn't intend to waste.

"I mean, I've come so far in the past three or so years," Hunt told The Hockey News in a one-on-one interview. "I think it's just like being comfortable out there, being comfortable with having the puck on your stick."

Hunt has spent considerable time developing his game in the American Hockey League, where he's become accustomed to playing significant minutes. But translating that experience to the NHL presents an entirely different challenge.

"I log a lot of minutes in the AHL, so I'm familiar with it. But obviously, this is another level," Hunt said. "I think over the past couple years, my skating has gotten even stronger and better."

The biggest adjustment, however, has been finding the consistency required to earn the trust of an NHL coaching staff.

"I think just trying to find that consistency of bringing it every night and having the coaches being able to rely on you has been big for me," Hunt said. "So every day I'm just kind of working at it, trying to be more consistent with everything."

That development was on display Thursday against the St. Louis Blues.

Hunt logged 16:27 of ice time, including 1:42 on the penalty kill, during Minnesota's 5-4 victory. It was his highest ice-time total of the young season.

He also recorded two shots on goal while taking on a larger role with several regular defensemen unavailable.

"Yeah, it definitely feels good," Hunt said of the increased responsibility. "That's one of my strengths, penalty kill, but we're short-staffed on the back end, and I've got to step my game up. Everyone does. It doesn't really matter who's in the lineup."

For a young defenseman still trying to establish himself as an everyday NHL player, the opportunity to play more minutes has helped him settle into games.

"To be an NHL player, it is very challenging. So I'm still trying to learn how to bring it every day," Hunt said. "Last game was nice to be in a top-four role and be in the flow of the game, so that was really nice. And I thought last game was one of my better games this season so far."

While the increased playing time has been valuable, Hunt has also benefited from the experience surrounding him in Minnesota's locker room.

One player in particular has been veteran defenseman Zach Bogosian, who has served as Hunt's defensive partner.

Bogosian, a Stanley Cup champion with the Tampa Bay Lightning, has provided Hunt with another resource as he continues learning the finer details of playing defense at the NHL level.

"I've learned a lot," Hunt said. "He's a guy that's been around forever. Obviously, he's won a Cup. Just the little things, you know, the little questions on the bench, or whether it's during practice, just little things."

And Bogosian isn't the only veteran Hunt has leaned on.

"We've got a lot of veteran guys, though. Obviously, Quinn and Spurge has been around forever, so, even Jimmy Brodin," Hunt said. "They're great at what they do, and so I think just continuing to ask questions around those guys goes a long way, and those little details add up in your game."

Those conversations aren't limited to practices or meetings. Hunt frequently seeks feedback during games, sometimes immediately after returning to the bench following a shift.

"I'd say it's a bit of both," Hunt said when asked whether those conversations happen during games or practices. "After a shift on the bench, you just ask them a little question, or we look at the iPad."

Hunt also mentioned working on specific details with assistant coach Patrick Dwyer during practice.

"I really appreciate when guys come up to me and tell me what I need to do better," Hunt said.

But while Hunt has become increasingly comfortable handling the puck and playing against NHL competition, there's one part of the NHL experience he's still trying to figure out.

The iPads on the bench.

Unlike in the NHL, where players can review video of their shifts during games, Hunt said he didn't have access to the same technology in the American Hockey League.

And apparently, there's a bit of a learning curve.

"No, no. That's not in the AHL," Hunt said. "It's kind of new for me. Growing up, I never really used the iPads, so I don't know. I'm trying to be dialed on the game, but then guys bring out the iPads, and I'm like, I don't know how to use this thing and work it."

Hunt joked about trying to locate a specific play while also preparing for his next shift.

"Like, what time was the play I was in at?" Hunt said. "So, I like it. I'm just trying to get used to it still."

Despite the technological challenges, Hunt understands how valuable instant video feedback can be, particularly when trying to correct mistakes.

"If I make a mistake, or I thought I seen something different, and the play unfolds differently than I would, then I want to look at it because I like to visualize things and see," Hunt said.

The challenge is finding the right time to review those plays without losing focus on what's happening on the ice.

"It's kind of hard to do in the middle of a game," Hunt said. "Like, if I'm next up, I'm on the iPad. I don't really know yet. But I'm trying to figure it out."

It's another small adjustment in Hunt's ongoing development as an NHL defenseman.

From learning how to handle increased minutes to picking the brains of Stanley Cup champions and figuring out the technology available on the bench, Hunt is continuing to absorb everything he can.

And as Minnesota prepares to face the team that traded for him less than two years ago, Hunt finds himself with an opportunity to establish a more permanent role with the organization that originally drafted him.

For now, his focus remains on making the most of every opportunity.

"I'm happy about the last game," Hunt said. "Again, just trying to bring it every day and trying to enjoy the grind."

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The Vancouver Canucks are officially 10 games into their 2026–27 season. Since starting the year with a 6–5 overtime win against the Edmonton Oilers on September 29, Vancouver has posted a record of 2–7–1, most recently taking a 4–2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday. Here are 10 takeaways from their first 10 games of the 2026–27 season. 

After A Slow Start, The PK Has Started To Click 

Vancouver’s penalty-kill had a horrendous start to the season, clicking at a success rate of only 52% before going perfect against the New York Islanders for the first time in a single game this season. They’ve only surrendered one power-play goal-against since — on Saturday against Tampa Bay. The big change Vancouver made is in their personnel, with their current main unit featuring Drew O’Connor, Filip Hronek, and Elias Pettersson (both the forward and defenceman). Speaking of Pettersson . . . 

2026–27 Is Starting To Seem Like The Year Of Elias Pettersson 

Both Petterssons have had impressive starts to their respective 2026–27 seasons. The forward has looked noticeably more physically engaged through the first few games of the year, has helped drive play as a member of Vancouver’s top line alongside Jake DeBrusk and Jonathan Lekkerimäki, and currently leads his team in points with 10 in 10 games. 

Pettersson, the defenceman, has arguably been the Canucks’ most impressive player to start the 2026–27 season. Both his offensive and defensive game have looked much more solid compared to the slow stretches he experienced last year, to the point where he’s even received a promotion to Vancouver’s top pairing beside Hronek. He’s played over 20 minutes in three of his past four games.  

Meriläinen’s Making His Mark 

If Pettersson isn’t Vancouver’s most impressive player after the first 10 games, the honour has to go to Leevi Meriläinen. The goaltender, picked up off waivers by the Canucks ahead of the start of the regular season, has impressed in every game he’s played in. Three of his four starts on the season have seen him record a save-percentage of .920% or higher. Vancouver’s close scores in losses have often been due to his play. 

Early Struggles On Defence 

Vancouver’s defenders haven’t had the greatest start to the 2026–27 season, both individually and collectively. Hronek’s decision-making has raised questions early, Zeev Buium hasn’t quite demonstrated the level of flair that’s been expected of him, and rotations have seen veterans Jamie Oleksiak and Luke Schenn get subbed-out for Victor Mancini and Guillaume Brisebois. It’s early, so these struggles may not be read into too-much, but they’re definitely things to keep an eye on moving forward. 

Speed Is A Priority 

The deployment of Max Sasson and changes in Vancouver’s roster have shown that speed is a priority for the organization and Head Coach Manny Malhotra. What’s made this even more apparent is the Canucks’ deal sending Aatu Räty to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Jacob Quillan and Brandon Buhr. While Räty may have had the makings of a third-line centre at the NHL level, his developing footspeed ultimately didn’t appear to fit Vancouver’s trajectory moving forward. 

The Goals Came Early, But They’re Drying Up Quickly 

One of the positives about Vancouver early on was that they didn’t have much trouble finding the back of the net. They currently sit tied for eighth in the NHL in goals-for with 30. Five of their skaters have scored three or more goals, with Paul Cotter leading the team with four tallies after his four-goal campaign through the first four games of the season. That said, their goals-for stats are significantly inflated by their 6–5 overtime win and 9–7 loss to the Oilers at the beginning of the year — they haven’t scored more than two goals since. 

Lekkerimäki’s Hot Start  

Jonathan Lekkerimäki has taken strides since the 2025–26 season. The forward, who had question marks surrounding his trajectory during the off-season, has turned it on since the start of the year. He’s looked more confident with the puck, making good plays that have helped his team generate more offence. Lekkerimäki is currently tied with Hronek for the fifth-most points by a Canucks skater this season. 

Not Every Loss Has Been Negative

While it is true that eight of Vancouver’s 10 games have resulted in losses, not all of these efforts have been fully negative. For the most part, the Canucks’ losses have featured fair comeback efforts, such as their strong second period against the Islanders or three-goal stunner against the Oilers. As a whole, their effort level has been consistent.   

Leaders Don’t Need Letters

The Canucks named six assistant captains ahead of the 2026–27 season — Pettersson, Buium, and Brock Boeser on the road, and O’Connor, Hronek, and Linus Karlsson at home — though leadership in the room stems past these players. The on and off-ice actions of the rest of the team have proven that Vancouver’s leaders aren’t just the players with letters on their jerseys. Veterans like Schenn and Brendan Gallagher have led the way in aspects such as off-ice habits, while young players like defenceman Pettersson have shown an edge in defending their teammates. 

There’s No Question The Canucks Are In A Rebuild

As a whole, through their first 10 games of the season, Vancouver has demonstrated that they’re very much still a rebuilding team compared to the rest of the NHL. Despite strong-effort performances, such as their 3–2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, they’ve still looked vastly outmatched. Given how many expect this team to perform this year, that’s not a bad thing. As long as Vancouver shows that they’re learning and developing throughout the year, the results in the standings won’t matter as much. 

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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For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.