NHL Notebook: Matthew Schaefer scores first career NHL goal

Schaefer spent two seasons with the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters, scoring three goals and 17 points in 56 games in his rookie campaign in 2023-24. In 2024-25, the Hamilton, Ontario native suited up for just 17 games, scoring seven goals and 22 points.

Representing Team Canada at the 2025 World Junior Championship, Schaefer crashed into the boards hard and broke his clavicle, missing the remainder of the season. Despite that, the Islanders selected the high-potential defenceman first overall, and he has a goal and an assist in his two NHL games.

Brent Burns plays game 1,500

From one of the youngest players in the league to one of the oldest, veteran defenceman Brent Burns played in his 1,500th career game on Saturday as the Colorado Avalanche took on the Dallas Stars.

Selected 20th overall in the 2003 draft by the Minnesota Wild, the 2025-26 season is Burns’ 22nd season in the NHL, and would be his 23rd if not for the lockout in 2004-05. He’s played seven seasons with the Wild, but made his mark with the San Jose Sharks, where he won the Norris Trophy in 2016-17.

After his Sharks tenure ended after the 2021-22 season, the defenceman spent three seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes before joining the Avalanche this past off-season.

Andrew Mangiapane reaches 500 games

Another milestone came just north of Calgary, as former Flame Andrew Mangiapane reached the 500-game mark in the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers. He celebrated the event with his second goal in as many games after signing a two-year deal this past off-season.

Mangiapane was drafted in the sixth round of the 2015 draft by the Flames, and became a regular with them in 2019-20. In 2021-22, he scored a career-best 35 goals and 55 points in 82 games and was traded at the 2024 draft to the Capitals.

In his one and only season in the United States’ capital, Magianpane scored 14 goals and 28 points in 81 games, picking up a secondary assist on Alexander Ovechkin’s record-tying 894th goal.

Josh Norris to miss significant time

On Saturday morning, Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff noted that Josh Norris is set to miss a significant amount of time due to an upper-body injury.

Toward the end of Thursday’s game against the New York Rangers, Norris went to take a faceoff and was clearly in some discomfort, leaving the remainder of the game. Acquired in a trade deadline move last season, Norris only played three games with the Sabres after the trade, missing time with injury.

Norris just can’t seem to stay healthy, as his career-high in games played in a season was in 2021-22, where he played 66 games and scored a career-best 35 goals and 55 points. When healthy, the 19th overall pick in the 2017 draft is an efficient scorer, but his biggest hurdle so far in his career is staying in the lineup.