The Islanders may be headed into their preseason finale with roster questions still hanging in the air, but Kashawn Aitcheson has already done enough to force his way into the conversation.
New York closes out the exhibition slate Saturday night against the New Jersey Devils, and Friday’s meeting with the Rangers offered a good look at where things stand. The Rangers rolled in with what was likely their Opening Night group, while the Islanders leaned heavily on AHL players. The result followed that setup: a 6-1 loss at UBS Arena.
Most of the Islanders finished with a minus rating in a game that got away from them quickly, but Aitcheson stood out as one of the few positives. The 20-year-old defenseman, one of the Islanders’ 2025 NHL Draft picks, held his own and brought a physical bite that showed up throughout the night. He mixed it up with the Rangers and gave New York some edge in an otherwise rough outing.
That kind of showing matters because Aitcheson is no ordinary long-term project. He was one of the more impressive defensemen in the OHL when the Islanders drafted him, and his production backs that up.
In the 2024-25 campaign, he put up 26 goals and 33 assists in 64 games. The year before, he was even more productive, finishing with 28 goals and 42 assists in 56 games.
The Islanders already have Matthew Schaefer lined up to drive the power play for years, but Aitcheson’s offensive game gives him a path to the second unit down the line. He may not be cracking the Opening Night roster, but he has made it clear in camp and preseason action that he could be in New York’s plans sooner than expected.
For now, that’s the takeaway: amid a messy preseason loss, Aitcheson kept building his case.
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Islanders Just Made Their Opening Night Battle A Lot More Real
The Islanders kept trimming their roster on the way to opening night, sending a mix of veterans and depth pieces out of camp as the final decisions start to come into focus. Pierre Engvall, Mitchell Chaffee, Liam Foudy, Daylan Kuefler and Matt Luff were placed on waivers for assignment to the Hamilton Hammers, while Alex Jefferies, Josh Kotai, Daniil Prokhorov, Marshall Warren and Matthew Highmore were assigned to the Hammers or the AHL affiliate.
The bigger-picture takeaway is that the team is still sorting through the edges of the roster while holding onto some of its most intriguing young talent. Cole Eiserman, Victor Eklund and Kashawn Aitcheson remain in camp as the Islanders continue evaluating who can handle a spot once the regular season begins, leaving a few open questions in the final stretch before the games count. [Read more 🡒]