Russell’s Roundup: Wahlstrom’s Revival; Rangers Romp

The second slate of NHL games for the 2024-25 season kicked off last night, and they certainly were games. Of the five games, three resulted in shutouts. The night’s first star goes to Sam Montembeault, who denied 48 Toronto Maple Leafs shots en route to a 1-0 Habs win. Elsewhere, the New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets ravaged the Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers, respectively. The Vancouver Canucks coughed up a lead to the Calgary Flames while the Vegas Golden Knights ran the Colorado Avalanche out of town.

In the world of the New York Islanders, Oliver Wahlstrom solidified his roster space, but he battled through some adversity to get there. Wahlstrom and the Islanders take on the Utah Hockey Club tonight at 7:30 in UBS Arena.

New York Islanders:

NYI Hockey Now: After a playoff injury in 2021 and a torn ACL in 2022-23, Oliver Wahlstrom had all of his momentum as a player snuffed out. While rebuilding himself and his confidence, he struggled all last year.  This past summer brought winds of change, but nothing ever surfaced. Counted out before training camp even began, here’s how Wahlstrom saved his Islanders career.

More from NYIHN: Now that the dust has settled, it’s worth reminding how the Islanders roster took shape. As an ICYMI, here’s my piece on why Pierre Engvall being waived is a sign of a new normal on Long Island.

NHL Trade Talk, News & National Hockey Now:

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Well, that wasn’t ideal. The New York Rangers walked into Pittsburgh and took the Penguins’ lunch money. Or, maybe, as Dan Kingerski writes, the Penguins handed it to the Rangers.

More PHN: Anthony Beauvillier made his Penguins debut alongside Sidney Crosby, and he didn’t look too out of place. More on Beau and the rest of the Penguins, as Dan grades them all.

Philly Hockey Now: Jonathan Bailey has put out the bat signal. He thinks Philly makes sense as a home for Pierre Engvall, currently in Bridgeport. Engvall’s speed and forechecking seem to fit what Tortorella likes, but  you have to think Tortorella might lose it after seeing Engvall shy away from contact as he’s been prone to do. Nevertheless, Jonathan breaks down the fit.

Forever Blueshirts: The Rangers partied all night in Pittsburgh. Here’s the story through the lens of the Rangers arrival to the 2024-25 season.

Montreal Hockey Now: The Canadiens defeated the Leafs 1-0 behind Montembeault’s sparkling performance. Despite it all, Cole Caufield had the night’s most poignant moment when he scored Montreal’s first goal of the year. Caufield changed his number to 13 to honor Johnny Gaudreau. After scoring, he had a lot of emotion, and it was felt in the building as he scored it for Gaudreau.

Colorado Hockey Now: Well, game one is over. There was good, and there was bad in the 8-4 loss to the Golden Knights. Aarif Deen goes over it all at CHN.