NHL EDGE stats: Schaefer making immediate impact for Islanders

NHL.com's fantasy staff continues to cover the latest trends and storylines in the League through the lens of NHL EDGE puck and player tracker stats. Today, we look at the early prowess of rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer.

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Matthew Schaefer is making an immediate impact for the New York Islanders early on in his rookie season and ranks near the top of the charts in various NHL EDGE stats categories.

Schaefer, the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, became the youngest such defenseman (18 years, 34 days) to play an NHL game and the fourth 18-year-old in history to have points in each of his first six games, joining Wayne Gretzky (1979-80 with the Edmonton Oilers), Alexandre Daigle (1993-94 with the Ottawa Senators) and Sidney Crosby (2005-06 with the Pittsburgh Penguins). On Sunday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Schaefer became the youngest defenseman in NHL history with a multi-goal game, a mark that was previously held by Boston Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr (18 years, 248 days) on Nov. 23, 1966.

Schaefer has played over 25 minutes in four of his 12 games this season, and is tied with Ivan Demidov of the Montreal Canadiens for the most points by an NHL rookie this season (10 each). In terms of games played (12), he is the fastest defenseman that was selected No. 1 overall to reach 10 career points.

With the Islanders earning points in seven of their past nine games (6-2-1), here are three underlying reasons behind Schaefer’s early prowess and rapid rise to near the top of the Calder Trophy race:

1. Skating speed

Schaefer ranks just outside the top 10 in the entire NHL in 20-plus mile per hour speed bursts (46), trailing only the usual group of forward speedsters including Connor McDavid (109; first), Nathan MacKinnon (77; second) and Jack Eichel (54; eighth). Schaefer’s total in that category leads all defensemen, even ahead of Cale Makar (33 in 13 games), who has played an additional game, and led the Leauge at the position last season (206).

Schaefer reached his max skating speed (22.93 mph) of the season against the Hurricanes on Oct. 30, tied for the seventh-highest mark among NHL defensemen. The only player at his position with more 22-plus mph speed bursts than Schaefer (four) is Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson (five).

2. Skating distance, shots by location

Schaefer, the NHL rookie leader in average ice time (21:56 per game; leads Islanders), became the first Islanders teenager to reach 27 minutes of ice time in a single game (27:40 against the Philadelphia Flyers on Oct. 25) since that statistic was first tracked in 1997-98.

Schaefer has been a workhorse in his brief NHL career, reaching the three-mile mark in seven and four-mile mark in two of his 12 games. He leads all Islanders players in total skating distance (38.65 miles; 78th percentile among defensemen) and his 4.03 miles skated against the Flyers on Oct. 25 ranks in the League's 92nd percentile among defensemen in a single game this season.

Schaefer leads NHL defensemen in goals (five), power-play goals (three) and ranks third in shots on goal (36; trailing only Zach Werenski's 42 and Evan Bouchard's 38). Each of his first two career goals were from high-danger zones of the ice; he is one of two defensmen with multiple high-danger goals this season (others: Jakob Chychrun of the Washington Capitals, Denton Mateychuk of the Columbus Blue Jackets). Schaefer also ranks highly in shots on goal from each major shot location category:

• High-danger shots on goal: 4 (96th percentile; tied for fifth)
• Midrange shots on goal: 11 (99th percentile; tied for third)
• Long-range shots on goal: 16 (96th percentile; tied for 10th)

3. Offensive zone time percentage

Schaefer is among the top defensemen in the NHL in offensive zone time percentage at all strengths (45.9 percent; 92nd percentile). He also ranks highly at his position in offensive zone time percentage on the power play (62.3 percent; 88th percentile) and on the penalty kill (35.6 percent; 88th percentile).

Schaefer has been on the ice for 19 Islanders goals this season, second on the team behind forward Bo Horvat (20), and the most among NHL rookies.

The Calder Trophy, awarded annually to the top rookie in the NHL, never has been won by defensemen in back-to-back seasons during the League’s expansion era (since 1967-68). After Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson won the Calder last season, Schaefer already is building a strong case for the trophy and living up to lofty expectations early and often -- even with such a heavy workload.