Passionate Islanders fans turn out for Blue and White prospect scrimmage to watch top pick Matthew Schaefer

Fans flocked in droves to see Matthew Schaefer take the ice in Islanders gear for the first time Monday and Tuesday at the team’s summer prospect development camp.

The hype surrounding last Friday’s No. 1 overall draft pick has turned into hope for a new era of Islanders hockey, and it amped up a few more notches Wednesday evening during the team’s Blue and White prospect scrimmage at Northwell Health Ice Center in East Meadow.

The Islanders faithful packed the team’s practice facility to create an electric atmosphere for their first up-close glimpse of the 6-2, 185-pound Schaefer, who will not turn 18 until Sept. 5, in a competitive setting.

For Schaefer, playing in his first game since breaking his collarbone while playing for Canada in the World Juniors last Dec. 27, the feelings were reciprocated.

“I just want to say one thing: I love the fans,” the lefthanded defenseman told Newsday after his Blue team’s 4-0 loss. “No matter what, they're always behind us. And to see how many people came out today, it's the craziest. I mean, they are so passionate, and I can't wait to play in front of them.”

Schaefer did not record a point in the four-on-four, 40-minute scrimmage, but he had a few scoring chances and showed off the elite skating and playmaking that helped him rise to the top of the draft.

“He's first overall for a reason,” said defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson, last Friday’s No. 17 overall pick whose shot was tipped in by this year’s third-rounder Luca Romano for the game’s first goal. “He's an exceptional player. Just super excited for him and his future and couldn't be more deserving for such a great person on and off the ice. He deserves it.”

A broken collarbone and illness limited Schaefer to just 17 games in the junior Ontario Hockey League this past season, though he had seven goals and 15 assists.

Count defenseman Brandon Chabrier of Bayville, who swerved through defenders for a three-on-three goal to give the White team a 3-0 lead with 8:19 left, among those awed by Schaefer.

“He's a hell of a player,” said Chabrier, who leaves Sunday for his senior year at Maine. “Just watching him skate up and down the ice, like, he flies. His edges are unreal. He's confident with the puck. He's a confident hockey player. It's so funny, a lot of my Islanders buddies, they were asking me to take pictures of him. I said that was pretty weird. I’m not going to go up to him and just take pictures of him for you guys.

“But yeah, he's a hell of a player. He's going to have a hell of a career on the Island, and I'm excited to watch it.”

Wing Victor Eklund, last week’s No. 16 overall pick, Aitcheson and second-rounder Daniil Prokhorov (a wing) were on the White team opposite Schaefer. As was highly-touted center Calum Ritchie, the Avalanche’s 27th overall pick in 2023 who was dealt to the Islanders in March in the Brock Nelson trade.

The three Long Islanders participating in the camp — Chabrier, wing Ross Mitton (Copiague Harbor) and defenseman Marshall Warren (Laurel Hollow) — each played on the White team as well.

Notable players to join Schaefer on the Blue team included wing Cole Eiserman, the Islanders’ 2024 first-rounder, and defenseman Isaiah George, who had a goal and four assists in 33 NHL games for the Islanders last season.

The White team led 2-0 after the first 20-minute half.

Prokhorov made an early impact. He evaded a defender in front of the net and dished it to the wide-open Quinn Finley, a 2022 third-round pick by the Islanders, for a tap-in goal that made it 2-0 with 11:56 left in the first half.

The teams played three-on-three for the majority of the final 10 minutes. Chabrier’s goal and Calle Odelius’ empty-net goal with 50.3 seconds left completed the scoring.

The night ended with a fast-paced, fun shootout, which the White team won, 8-4.

“It's not even a real home game, and [the fans] are coming out to support us and it just shows how much they care,” Schaefer said. “But it's just fun to be out there. I haven't played a game like that in a long time, so it's good to get my feet wet, get out there, play in front of the fans.”

By Ben Dickson

benjamin.dickson@newsday.com@bendickson__

Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.