By David Sacrey

Week 1 of the NHL season has officially been completed, and here’s what you need to know: Day 1 of the season had the Stanley Cup champs, the Florida Panthers, playing to show the Hockey world they are going to be a force to be reckoned with again this season. The Panthers, Penguins, and the Avalanche all ended up starting the season with a nice W in the books.

The Panthers outshot the Blackhawks 37:19. Coming out of the gate strong, ending the night 3:2

The Penguins lead over the Rangers in shots 31:25, and started the season with the first shutout of the season, 3:0

The Avalanche got outshot 25:23 in favor of the Kings, but came out on top, winning 4:1 on the night.

Then on Thursday, I knew I felt that hockey was back in town because there were 14 games.

To summarize

Thursday Oct 9

Bruins 4: 3 Blackhawks (OT)

Rangers 4: 0 Sabres

Canadiens 5: 1 Red Wings

Senators 5: 4 Lightning

Panthers 2: 1 Flyers

Penguins 4: 3 Islanders

Hurricanes 6: 3 Devils

Wild 5: 0 Blues

Predators 2: 1 Blue Jackets

Stars 5: 4 Jets

Avalanche 2: 1 Mammoth

Canucks 5: 1 Flames

Golden Knights 4: 3 Sharks (OT)

Kraken 3: 1 Ducks

Some of these games didn’t surprise me that much, but what really did surprise me is that within the first week of the 25-26 season, we already have to keep an eye on these 4 players to keep the game a shutout.

1) A. Silovs –

Arturs Silovs was a 23-year-old rookie with nine games of NHL experience by the start of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. After injuries sustained by Thatcher Demko and Casey DeSmith, Silovs entered the spotlight with 28 saves and his first NHL shutout for the Vancouver Canucks in a 1-0 series-clinching victory against the Nashville Predators in Game 6 of the Western Conference First Round at Bridgestone Arena.

2) I. Shesterkin –Selected by the Rangers in the fourth round, 118th overall, of the 2014 NHL Draft, Igor Shesterkin has posted a 162-88-22 record with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage in 274 games across six seasons, all with the Blueshirts. He notched six shutouts last season, tied for the second most among all goalies in the NHL.

3) F. Gustavsson –

Gustavsson put his name in the NHL history books when he became the 15th goalie to have been credited with a goal by scoring into an empty net for the Minnesota Wild in a 4-1 win against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center on Oct. 15, 2024. He put together an excellent first season for the Wild, who acquired him in a trade with the Ottawa Senators for Cam Talbot on July 12, 2022. He went 22-9-7 with a 2.10 goals-against average, .931 save percentage, and three shutouts in 39 games (37 starts).

4) C. Lindgren – Lindgren signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Montreal Canadiens on March 30, 2016, after he finished his junior season with St. Cloud State University, where he went 30-9-1 with a 2.13 goals-against average and .925 save percentage. In three seasons at St. Cloud State, Lindgren went 51-29-3 with a 2.21 GAA and .921 save percentage. He was named the National Collegiate Hockey Conference Goaltender of the Year and was an NCAA First Team All-American in 2016.

These four players are really ready to make a difference this season and keep the blue paint empty, keeping their team on top. Skating down the ice to the next big hockey day on Saturday, there were sixteen games played.

Saturday Oct 11

Stars 5: 4 Avalanche (SO)

Canucks 1: 3 Oilers

Ducks 7: 6 Sharks (OT)

Golden Knights 1: 2 Kraken (OT)

Kings 2: 3 Jets

Blues 4: 2 Flames

Sabres 1: 3 Bruins

Maple Leafs 3: 6 Red Wings

Devils 5: 3 Lightning

Senators 2: 6 Panthers

Capitals 4: 2 Islanders

Rangers 6: 1 Penguins

Flyers 3: 4 Hurricanes (OT)

Canadiens 3: 2 Blackhawks

Mammoth 3: 2 Predators (OT)

Blue Jackets 7: 4 Wild

The Stars have the first Shootout game of the 2025-26 season, and they made sure they came out on top, with lots of firsts and amazing things happening this first week, and plenty of high-scoring games as well. It only makes me want more. Here are two highlights to check out with the NHL. And VHL, this clip took place approximately one month ago; I just wanted to ensure the sports media world saw this skill.

Here are the standings as of Monday night

Only Time will tell what happens in the next period, till next time.

And this is David signing off for the week.

P.S. – Let’s Go Caps!