Islanders’ Matthew Schaefer gets ‘generational’ label from 5-time Norris Trophy winner

The New York Islanders pick first overall in the 2025 draft, and it's safe to say they hit a home run. Matthew Schaefer won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, the sixth in Islanders history, before turning 19 years old. He became the first defenseman in history to win the title unanimously, and the first player to do so since Teemu Selanne in 1993. The Athletic's Peter Baugh caught up with legends of the game, like Boston Bruins icon Ray Bourque, who glowed over the rookie.“When I think about (Wayne) Gretzky, (Mario) Lemieux, (Sidney) Crosby, (Alex) Ovechkin, (Macklin) Celebrini this year, these types of generational players, I think he definitely has a great chance to be one of these guys,” Bourque said.Bourque is a five-time Norris Trophy winner as the league's best defenseman and a Hall of Famer. He also won the Calder as a 19-year-old back in 1980.How about the last defenseman to win the Hart Trophy as league MVP, Chris Pronger? “How he’s really reshaped and remolded and rebranded that franchise, there’s not very many players in the league that have done that.” Schaefer led the team in powerplay points and time on ice in his rookie season.The Islanders have one of the league's brightest starsWendell Cruz-Imagn ImagesSchaefer was surprised on Good Morning America by his dad and his brother, who told him he was the Calder Trophy winner. In that moment, the defenseman showed why the Islanders' fanbase has fallen in love with their new star. Through tears, he thanked his teammates and fellow nominees, Beckett Sennecke and Ivan Demidov. Then, he brought the trophy to a local children's hospital.The Islanders flamed out at the end of the season, costing themselves a playoff spot and Patrick Roy his job as the head coach. But that does not change the brightness of their future, all on the shoulders of Schaefer. That is not to say they don't have strong prospects, with Cole Eiserman and Victor Eklund coming soon. But Schaefer is on a level of his own and should be leading the Islanders on and off the ice for decades to come.Detroit Red Wings legend and one of the best defensemen to ever do it, Nicklas Lidstrom, was asked his thoughts. “He’s got great speed, and he skates with his head up,” said Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidström, who won the Norris Trophy seven times with the Red Wings. “He carries the puck, but his head is up, his head is on a swivel, so he sees the ice, and he’s not afraid to use that to his advantage.”The New York Islanders pick first overall in the 2025 draft, and it's safe to say they hit a home run. Matthew Schaefer won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, the sixth in Islanders history, before turning 19 years old. He became the first defenseman in history to win the title unanimously, and the first player to do so since Teemu Selanne in 1993.