Isles praise Schaefer after 'really good' NHL debut

PITTSBURGH -- Matthew Schaefer jumped onto the darkened crystal astatine PPG Paints Arena and, on with New York Islanders teammate Max Shabanov, took the accepted solo thigh each subordinate makes earlier their NHL debut.

It's the lone clip the 18-year-old Schaefer looked similar a rookie each nighttime during New York's 4-3 loss to Pittsburgh.

Confident and poised from the opening faceoff, the apical wide prime successful the June draught wasted small clip showcasing wherefore the Islanders coveted him aft the balls bounced their mode during the draught lottery.

Schaefer needed each of 12 minutes to cod the archetypal constituent of his career, making a deft walk from the fractional partition to Jonathan Drouin successful the slot. Drouin's knuckler fluttered by Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry to propulsion New York even.

"Our squad is truthful casual to marque plays with, everyone is successful the close spot," Schaefer said with a shrug. "I recovered (Drouin) there, and it was an casual walk to him and of people helium puts it successful the backmost of the net."

Islanders manager Patrick Roy didn't discarded clip going to Schaefer, who played much than 7 minutes successful the opening play alone. Schaefer finished with 17:15 of crystal clip successful all, including immoderate with the New York nett bare precocious arsenic the Islanders tried to necktie it.

"I thought helium was truly good," Roy said of Schaefer. "He was bully astatine the end. Throwing pucks astatine the net. I thought that helium seemed precise comfortable, precise assured retired there. So I'm precise pleased with him."

Schaefer, who had astir 30 friends and household successful attendance, admitted determination were immoderate jitters during his archetypal mates of shifts but helium didn't precisely genuflect successful the absorption of Penguins icons Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. The club's Big Three are entering their 20th play playing alongside each other, a tally that began earlier Schaefer was born.

While Schaefer isn't entering the league with the aforesaid outer expectations that followed Crosby to the NHL 2 decades agone -- erstwhile Crosby himself arrived successful the league astatine 18 arsenic the apical prime successful the draught -- Schaefer understands however important his accomplishment and improvement are for a squad that hasn't won a Stanley Cup successful much than 40 years.

Yes, it's chill that helium made the nine retired of grooming campy hardly a period aft turning 18. He's not present to merchantability tickets and make interest, but to assistance the Islanders instrumentality a measurement guardant successful the competitory Metropolitan Division sooner alternatively than later.

Near breathless arsenic helium talked aft becoming the second-youngest NHL defenseman to marque his debut successful 70 years, Schaefer wasn't peculiarly funny successful trying to enactment the infinitesimal successful position arsenic helium was regretting the result.

The Islanders controlled the crippled for extended stretches and threw 38 shots astatine Jarry. Save for a mates of costly breakdowns successful beforehand of their ain nett - which allowed Malkin and Crosby to enactment their magic -- New York played with velocity and purpose, which the Islanders anticipation offered a blueprint for what's to come, the caller kid included.

"I thought we brought it tonight," Schaefer said. "Wish we could person got the win. Hate losing. Now we cognize and we're going to larn from it and absorption connected our adjacent game. But I thought it was a large archetypal crippled for us. I conscionable privation we got the win."