Canadiens' Reinbacher, Kapanen to make season debuts against Sabres - Sportsnet.ca

How can I not go with Auston Matthews after he's cashed this play for us in two straight games? He's clearly on another level now that he's healthy, and his shooting percentage (40%) is among the league's best on the man advantage. When Matthews is shooting, he's hitting twine - he has four goals across his last three games as a result. Let's pot one more against this stingy Islanders defense. I'm loving William Nylander's shot volume right now, as the Leafs winger has registered at least three shots on goal in four consecutive games. He's averaging 6.5 shot attempts per contest, the 23rd-highest mark in the NHL, giving us plenty of reason to believe his hot streak can continue. With the Islanders playing an undisciplined brand of hockey, watch for Willy on the power play to drive us over the line.

It’s been a while, but Gavin McKenna is trying to focus on his next shift. Luke Fox has more on how the 18-year-old is handling his benching in Thursday's loss to the Sabres.

Get key insights for Islanders vs Maple Leafs on October 17, 2026, including season records, injuries, and essential stats to help you make informed bets.

Published: October 17, 2026 at 11:06a.m. EDTKeep updated on all the injury news and roster updates from around the NHL with daily Ice Chips. FilterOttawa SenatorsNikolas Matinpalo appears to be set to return for the Ottawa Senators on Saturday following a two-game injury absence. Matinpalo skated on Ottawa's third pairing next to Carter Yakemchuk, with head coach Travis Green rolling out the following lines at practice ahead of Saturday's game against the Philadelphia Flyers. Halliday-Stutzle-BathersonBurakovsky-Cozens-GirouxCousins-Pinto-AmadioFoegele-Greig-ZetterlundHodgsonChabot-ZubKleven-SpenceMatinpalo-YakemchukCrotty UllmarkErssonJake Sanderson remains sidelined for the eighth straight game with a lower-body injury, while Nikolas Matinpalo makes his return for the first time since being forced out of Monday's game against the New Jersey Devils in the first period with an upper-body injury. Matinpalo, 28, was injured after being driven into the boards by Devils forward Anthony Mantha, who was handed a five-minute major for the hit. The Finnish defenceman logged just 2:19 of ice time before exiting, but appears set for a return Saturday.

Toronto Maple Leafs forward John Tavares is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury, the team announced on Saturday. The week-to-week designation means that he is expected to miss up to six weeks, according to the team. Tavares was injured during the team’s 5-4 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday in the third period after awkwardly colliding with Sabres forward Josh Norris. The 36-year-old centre remained down on the ice after the collision before skating off while favouring his left leg. Nick Paul slotted in as the team’s No. 2 centre during Saturday’s morning skate in Tavares’ absence in between Easton Cowan and Kirill Marchenko. Additionally, rookie Gavin McKenna took Tavares’ spot on the top power-play unit with Darren Raddysh, Auston Matthews, and William Nylander. Tavares has two goals and seven points in seven games early this season. He led the team with 31 goals last season to go along with 71 points and appeared in all 82 games for the first time since his first season with the Maple Leafs in 2018-19. The Maple Leafs sit sixth in the Atlantic Division with a 3-3-2 record as they get set to take on the New York Islanders on Saturday night.