Three Lessons Learned From NHL Preseason

2. Youngsters in Opening Night Lineups

Across the NHL, there are many exciting rookies and young players slated to be in their respective opening night lineups. The most notable is, of course, Matthew Schaefer of the New York Islanders. The most recent first overall pick is expected to be a huge contributor right off the bat for the Islanders.

The Detroit Red Wings are expected to keep power forward Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Axel Sandin-Pellikka in the NHL to begin the year. The Pittsburgh Penguins have recent first-round draft pick Ben Kindel and top defensive prospect Harrison Brunicke still with the team. The San Jose Sharks have 2025 second-overall pick Michael Misa and defenseman Sam Dickinson expected to play at least nine games before deciding their season's fate. The Vancouver Canucks still have their recent first round pick, Braeden Cootes, on the roster and he's expected to play at least a few games before being returned to his junior team.

There’s tons of exciting youngsters beyond even the ones mentioned. Two of the top Calder Trophy candidates, Ivan Demidov of the Montreal Canadiens and Ryan Leonard of the Washington Capitals, already made their NHL debuts but will take on their first full campaigns in 2025-2026.

3. New CBA Rules Already Impacting Roster Moves

The NHL and NHLPA avoided any major drama by agreeing to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement a year before the current one expires, and it also allowed them to implement some changes this current season. One of the changes is the way that teams receive salary cap relief when players are injured. The loophole of using Long-Term Injured Reserve to then exceed the salary cap limit before the postseason is now closed, and teams have to be salary cap compliant when the playoffs start.

What that means for the beginning of the season is that teams dealing with injuries are not as quick to place players on LTIR. Instead, the teams are keeping their salary cap numbers the same and utilizing waivers to free up roster and salary cap space. The weekend saw over 50 players with NHL and AHL contracts waived, many of whom made more than the league minimum deals. While this is easily explained by roster cut down day, don’t ignore the start of this trend.

Teams are going to be flummoxed by how to navigate the salary cap once injuries begin to creep in. They will be forced to place players they covet on waivers, making the wire something to monitor for the season’s entirety.