Islanders pick among trio of top draft prospects a big decision for next GM
The hierarchy within this 2025 NHL Draft, where the Islanders vaulted into the top overall pick in shocking fashion on Monday night, looks relatively simple for the new president of hockey operations to navigate when one is hired.
The top three, it's generally agreed upon, are defenseman Matthew Schaefer followed by forwards Michael Misa and James Hagens, with Schaefer holding top billing in 13 of 17 rankings compiled by Elite Prospects.
At first glance, that is a tad confusing given Schaefer played just 17 games this past season in the Ontario Hockey League, missing time first with mononucleosis and then with a broken collarbone suffered at World Junior Championships.
It is what he did in those games, along with various international competitions over the past year, combined with his age — Schaefer doesn't turn 18 until September 5 and is one of the youngest players in this draft class — that has him at the top of all those rankings right now.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'The worst refereed game I ever saw ': Don Cherry blasts Game 2 refs in Oilers vs Panthers
An excellent episode of The Don Cherry's Grapevine Podcast is out, with legendary hockey coach and commentator Don Cherry and his co-host son Tim going over the history of NHL crease crashers and goalie abusers, from Gary Dornhoefer of the Broad Street Bullies and Wayne Cashman of the Big, Bad Bruins from the truculent 1970s to their modern day incarnation, Sam Bennett of the Florida Panthers. Cherry, an elder statesman of NHL commentary having played, watched, coached and commented on hockey for almost all of his 91 years, offered up that in all his years he'd never seen refereeing so poor as in Game 2 of the Edmonton Oilers-Florida Panthers series. 'That was the worst refereed game I think I ever saw,' Cherry said, 'It was that one. It was unbelievable.' Chris Rooney and Jean Hebert were the referees in the game. Cherry's son and co-host Tim pointed to two missed calls in particular that contributed to goals against the Oilers, the first and last goals of the game. On the first, Oilers d-man Mattias Ekholm lost his stick blocking a shot, then Bennett kicked it away from Ekholm, before the Panthers aggressor taking a pass to score. It was an obvious no-brainer of an interference penalty on Ekholm that went uncalled. Three minutes before the final goal in the second overtime period, Edmonton's Viktor Arvidsson broke in on what might have developed into a Grade A scoring chance but was stopped by the sixth Florida man on the ice, again an obvious no-brainer of a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty, and one with major consequences in the flow of play. 'There should have been a power play,' Don Cherry said. 'I think Florida should have won that game, but the two goals they got (the first and the last) shouldn't have counted, I don't think,' Tim Cherry said, with his father agreeing. Both Don and Tim Cherry also agreed that Rooney and Hebert got one call right, the interference call on Sam Bennett for falling on Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner. Florida commentators that the Oilers and Skinner had a plan for Skinner to flop and play hurt if Bennett made any contact. But Don Cherry framed Bennett's flop on Skinner as a textbook tactic from a net-front attacker. 'Bennett did fall on him,' Cherry said. Added Tim, 'You always said when you were watching Bennett, you said that's nothing new because that's what Cash (Wayne Cashman) and Gary Dornhoefer used to do.' Said Cherry: 'Cashman, no matter no matter what happened, he'd fall on you.' They then played a clip of Montreal Canadiens Hall of Fame goalie Ken Dryden talking about Dornhoefer's tactics. 'Dornhofer, he got me madder than anybody,' Dryden said. 'And the thing of it was that he had a terrific routine. I mean, he would always stand outside of the crease. The crease is so small, there's no room to stand inside it anyway. So he was within his rights to stand where he was. But the remarkable thing about him is that it didn't matter which direction you pushed him in. You could push him from behind, and he would still fall backwards into the goalie. And so long as the referee saw him falling or being pushed, it didn't matter where and which direction he was being pushed. If he fell on the goalie, you know, there was no problem so far as the referee was concerned.' 1. Dryden is as smart an observer of hockey as there's ever been, and it's hilarious how he nailed the tactics of these expert goalie bashers, from Dornhoefer to Bennett. If you watch Bennett, it's hard to tell if he's mashing the goalies on purpose, but in the penalized Game 2 play it's worth noting that Oilers d-man Ekholm pushes him one way, but Bennett somehow collapses in another direction, as if by miracle right on top of Skinner. Bennett is an obvious master of this dark art. His problem now is that NHL referees will are on to him. 2. For all the Panthers fans and pundits who will immediately trot out that Cherry is obviously a big-time homer with it comes to the Oilers, that's not at all the case. He's a big time homer for sure, but his preoccupation in life has been with two teams, his home province Toronto Maple Leafs and his old team, the Boston Bruins, where Cashman used to play. Cherry is also a huge fan of rock 'em, sock 'em hockey. He loves the rough stuff. He just knows what players like Bennett do and how they think. He's giving us a description here, a dose of reality. Well done, Grapes. Rooney and Hebert, no so much. They need to rethink their approach to letting go obvious penalties that would be called 99 per cent of the time in the regular season, if not the early rounds of the playoffs. Why choke on their whistles now?
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Abbotsford Canucks Penalty Kill Must Step Up In Crucial Game 6 Versus The Texas Stars
The Abbotsford Canucks are one win away from history. If they can defeat the Texas Stars on Sunday, they will punch their ticket to the 2025 Calder Cup Final. While Abbotsford has had a strong series so far, one area that needs improving is their penalty kill, which has been problematic over the past three games. Entering into the Western Conference Final, the Canucks penalty kill was almost unbeatable. They allowed only one goal in the first three rounds and, at one point, killed off 30 straight power plays. Flash forward to this series, and Abbotsford has allowed four goals in five games while posting a kill percentage of just 75%. Advertisement The Canucks penalty kill issues started in Game 3 when the series shifted to Texas. All four goals against have come on the road, with Game 3 featuring not just two failed penalty kills, but also two shorthanded goals allowed. While it was unlikely that Abbotsford was going to keep operating at over 95% on the penalty kill through the entire post-season, their inability to stop the Stars' power play over the last three games has become an issue. One factor that could be impacting the Canucks penalty kill is the amount of penalties they are taking. Through the five games, Abbotsford has been shorthanded 16 times, with 11 of those coming on the road. While it may seem like a simple statement, the Canucks need to find a way to stay out of the box, as they are giving Texas too many power play chances on a nightly basis. Latest From THN's Vancouver Canucks Site: Vancouver Canucks Draft Class Throwback: 2022 Advertisement Vancouver Canucks 2025 NHL Draft Target: Braeden Cootes How Former Vancouver Canuck Vasily Podkolzin Went From Scoring Droughts To The Stanley Cup Finals The good news for Abbotsford is that the final two games of this series are at home, where they are a perfect 28 for 28 on the penalty kill. That being said, they may need to switch up their strategy, as it is clear that the Stars have found ways to expose the Canucks penalty killers. In the end, if Abbotsford wants to punch their ticket to the Calder Cup Final, their penalty kill will need to come up big on Sunday in Game 6. Abbotsford Canucks vs Texas Stars (Photo Credit: @TheAHL on 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, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Makes Big Career Decision: Report
Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Makes Big Career Decision: Report originally appeared on Athlon Sports. After breaking the legendary Wayne Gretzky's longstanding record for most career goals, few would blame Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin if he decided to call it a career. Advertisement There has been plenty of speculation about what the future holds for the 39-year-old Russian, and Capitals fans got a little scare last week when an email sent out referring to the 2025-26 season as Ovechkin's last — a decision the team quickly addressed as inaccurate. 'No decision has been made on Alex Ovechkin's future following the 2025-26 NHL season. An email was sent from an individual with the corporate sales department that mistakenly alluded to next year being Alex Ovechkin's final year,' the team wrote on X. Though Ovechkin has yet to make an official decision about how many more years—if any—he plans to play in the NHL, the three-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner (NHL MVP award) has reportedly decided when his next hockey game will be, and it's sooner than some fans might think. Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates after scoring career goal 888 at Capital One Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images In a recent interview with Russian news outlet Match TV, Utah Mammoth defenseman and fellow countryman Mikhail Sergachev disclosed that Ovechkin will play in the second annual 'Match of the Year' between all-stars from the NHL and the Russian Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) on July 13. Advertisement Ovechkin's reported decision is a big one given it could be the final time he plays in international competition given the Russian national team has been banned from the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, due to the country's ongoing conflict with Ukraine. The first iteration of the NHL-KHL exhibition happened last year at CSKA Arena in Moscow and ended in an 8-8 tie, but Ovechkin made quite an impact, scoring the game's first goal and winning MVP. Ovechkin, who scored 44 goals and 73 points in 65 games this season, is back in Russia for the offseason having flown back at the end of May after the Capitals were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Carolina Hurricanes. Next year is the last on Ovechkin's contract with the Capitals. Barring a contract extension being signed between now and next offseason, Ovechkin will hit unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2026. Advertisement Ovechkin has expressed a desire to finish his professional hockey career with Dynamo Moscow, the KHL team he began his career with and played for back in the 2012-13 season during the NHL lockout. Related: Sidney Crosby Sends 6-Word Alex Ovechkin Warning After Capitals Season Ends This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
