What’s at Stake in the NHL: Will Islanders’ Schaefer make history tonight?

Welcome to the home stretch of the 2025-26 NHL season. This deep into the schedule, something significant is on the line virtually every day, whether it’s a playoff spot, division title to clinch or a major individual milestone. At Daily Faceoff, we’re breaking down what you need to know every day between now and the end of the season April 16.

So what’s at stake across the two-game slate for Friday, April 3?

– There are no clinching scenarios in play for the Philadelphia Flyers (37-26-12) and New York Islanders (42-29-5) when they meet in Long Island. But the matchup is crucial; the Flyers trail the Isles by just three points for third place in the Metropolitan Division. The result can also affect one idle team in the Eastern Conference playoff race; an Isles win will push the Florida Panthers to the brink of elimination before Saturday’s packed slate of games.

–  The Isles’ sensational 18-year-old Matthew Schaefer is a Calder Trophy shoo-in and, with his stat line of 22-35-57 through 76 games, needs one goal to tie Brian Leetch for the single-season NHL rookie record among defensemen at 23 goals. Schaefer can also tie Phil Housley for the most points by an 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history (though the “record” is pretty specific; Housley had 66 points in his rookie year but technically had 57 before turning 19 in March of that season).

– The Anaheim Ducks (41-29-5) host the St. Louis Blues (31-31-12) in a matchup with important implications in the Western Conference playoff picture but not one that puts any specific clinching scenario in play. That said: the Ducks are currently tied with the Edmonton Oilers for first in the Pacific Division, while the Blues have fallen five points back of the surging San Jose Sharks in pursuit of the final Wildcard spot. The stakes are plenty high for this game.

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PRESENTED BY STAKE