Islanders rookie Matthew Schaefer marvels at what he was able to do in first year on Long Island
Islanders Matthew Schaefer addresses members of the media during breakup day at Northwell Health Ice Arena on Wednesday. Credit: Kathy M Helgeson
Matthew Schaefer’s record-setting rookie season started with admittedly humbler goals than budding superstardom after the Islanders selected him first overall in June. First, he just wanted to make the team, let alone quickly ascend to being its No. 1 defenseman and top power-play quarterback. Then he wanted to last 10 games so he wouldn’t be sent back to junior hockey.
“Eighteen years old, it’s crazy to think I’d be playing in the NHL this year,” Schaefer said on Wednesday as the Islanders conducted breakup day at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow. “Going to NHL games last year, being a fan up top in the nosebleeds with my brother and parents. It’s a dream come true. It was an amazing year. I got to learn so much.”
Schaefer matched Hall of Famer Brian Leetch’s NHL record for rookie defensemen with 23 goals and added 36 assists while playing all 82 games. His 59 points set a league record for an 18-year-old defenseman and his eight power-play goals set a team record for rookie defensemen. He led the Islanders in ice time with an average of 24:41, almost four minutes more than any teammate.
But he drew more praise from general manager Mathieu Darche for his attention to defense.
“It’s the way he defends and cares about defending that’s truly impressive,” Darche said. “That’s what sets him apart from any young defenseman that came in the league.”
“Right from game one, really, having a defenseman like that on the ice for 25, 30 minutes a night just changes the whole complexity of how we play the game,” Mathew Barzal said. “A guy that can break the puck out and a guy that can get up the ice and dangerous in the offensive zone. My whole career I’ve been jealous of Colorado [Cale Makar] and Quinn Hughes in Vancouver [now Minnesota]. To finally have our guy is huge.”
Schaefer will almost certainly win the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie.
“I didn’t know if I was going to be up or down at the start of the season,” Schaefer said. “I wanted to play my first 10 games. I remember when Darchy was like, ‘Yeah, you’ll be staying up.’ I was like, ‘I love it. Thank God.’ ”
He added about potentially winning the Calder, “It’s so far down the road. Right now, I wish we could be in the playoffs and still be playing. It feels too early to stop playing hockey. It would be a dream come true, just the names that won that award and there’s so many talented players in this rookie draft class.”
Schaefer spent about 15 minutes in a media scrum reviewing his season and again wishing his mother, Jennifer, who passed away in 2024 because of breast cancer, was around to see it. He spoke extensively and humorously about what it was like living with former Islanders tough guy Matt Martin — now a special assistant to Darche — and his family.
And he had a ready answer when asked what he had learned about himself this season.
“I think I’ve always wanted sisters,” Schaefer said.
That’s how he feels about Martin’s daughters Winnie, 5, and Alice, 3.
“The only people that really boss me around are those two girls,” Schaefer said. “They kind of own me in a way, whether it’s painting nails, going out to play, they’re yelling at me. I always kiss up to them. Me and Ali are pretty crazy together. I’ll wake up in the morning and yell, ‘Love you.’ And then she’ll start yelling. I get her going and then I leave, like, ‘Hey, deal with her now.’ ”
Schaefer said living with Martin, whom he did not know before joining the Islanders, and his wife, Sydney, was crucial to his quick success.
“They’ve been awesome,” Schaefer said. “Just from day one, becoming close with Marty. He’s just so smart, with hockey in general, but he’s just a great person, too, just in life. Being able to talk to him if I have a bad game and things like that, he really puts things in perspective.”
Schaefer, who just missed being selected for Team Canada for February’s Winter Olympics, said playing in the upcoming World Championships is a consideration.
“I’d be surprised if Team Canada doesn’t call him,” Darche said. “That’s his decision.”
Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.
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