Happy Wednesday, Razzball faithful!

We just finished our first-year player draft in my 32-team dynasty league this afternoon, and y’all know what that means…

IT’S OPENING NIGHT!

And I’ll apologize in advance for adding this one. It’s a staple among a few friends up here before the first game of the season.

Why not us??? Go B’s. pic.twitter.com/h8ML6kWCML

— Mike Grinnell (@MikeGrinnell_) September 29, 2026

If you had a chance to read through all of the preseason content from me and Viz, then you’re just as ready to rip as we are!

But if you’re new to the game (or at least this season), WELCOME! 

I’m MarmosDad, aka your hookup for Tuesday night’s NHL action, and thanks to the schedule, I’m here for the season’s first recap.

We had a short 5-game slate last night, but it definitely wasn’t short on action.

Were the Florida Panthers ready to flip the script and show the league that all they needed was a healthy Aleksander Barkov to get back to their dominant ways?

Did the Hurricanes look like a defending Stanley Cup champion?

Did the Leafs cue up the Marchenko band and say, “Knies knowin’ ya!” to any of their old favorites?

Is Gustav Forsling on pace to score 84 goals this year?!

Well, you’ll have to read the roundup to catch the rest of the news, because…

Here’s what else I saw in Tuesday night’s NHL action!

Brandon Bussi – 19 saves on 20 shots and the 1-0 OT loss vs FLA. Bussi’s defense kept the Canes in this one all the way into the extra period, but it wasn’t enough to stop Gustav Forsling from hammering home a one-timer from the blue line that found the back of the net and sent Bussi home with a tough-luck loss.

Bokondji Imama – 7 PIM, 3 HITS, 6:03 TOI. Wait. Are we following up a great young goalie note with a 30-year-old’s penalty minute report? I guess that’s what happens when a team doesn’t give us any goals or assists, but you know what they say about all of that other drama. Save it for Imama.

Andrei Svechnikov – 2 PIM, 2 SOG, 8 HITS, 1 BLK, 16:21 TOI. There we go. That’s more like it. I mean, expecting a boatload of hits from a guy like Svechnikov is like expecting an opening-night hat trick from Nicolas Deslauriers (5 PIMS). It’s ok. The multi-category head-to-head players will take what we can get!

Jacob Markstrom – 15 saves on 15 shots and the OT shutout in a 1-0 win at CAR. HA! EAT IT, HATERS! JACOB MARKSTROM IS ON PACE FOR AN 84-WIN, 84-SHUTOUT SEASON! NOW SOMEONE TELL ME WHERE I CAN FIND THAT CAPS LOCK BUTTON!

Gustav Forsling – 1 G, +1, 2 PIM, 2 SOG, 3 HITS, 2 BLK, 22:40 TOI. The overtime winner was an absolute rocket that blew right through Brandon Bussi’s 5-hole. It was a great shot, but it was also a tiny glimpse of what we’ve seen in flashes for a long time. Forsling has enough talent to help out fantasy managers. I wouldn’t expect more than another half dozen of these, though. In nine NHL seasons, Forsling has tallied double-digit goals only 4 times, with a high mark of 13 tallies (in 2022-2023).

Carter Verhaeghe – 1 A, +1, 1 SOG, 1 BLK, 18:58 TOI. The former Niagara Ice Dog served up what we’ve seen him dish out for parts of the last seven years: a beauty of a pass for Forsling to hammer home a one-timer for the OT winner. If Florida is going to go full turnaround mode this season, they’ll need this guy to return to his old 70+ point self from three years ago.

Jakub Dobes – 26 saves on 28 shots and the 3-2 win at TOR. That’s the start Habs fans were hoping for from the third-year budding star. If this team gives him solid defense, he’s going to have a huge year. That offense should take care of itself, too.

Josh Anderson – 1 G, 1 A, +2, 3 SOG, 4 HITS, 12:53 TOI. Two points from Josh Anderson? I’ll give you a minute to find that one on your Bingo card. Or maybe more than a minute.

Alexandre Carrier – 1 G, 1 A, +1, 3 SOG, 1 HIT, 1 BLK, 21:54 TOI. Two points from Alexandre Carrier? Copy and paste the above note. Another Quebec-born guy finding some magic after making his way back to La Belle Province? It seems like it. At least for one game.

Sergei Bobrovsky – 21 saves on 24 shots and the 3-2 loss vs MTL. It wasn’t a terrible debut for Grandpa Bob, (he turned 38 years old on September 20th), but it wasn’t what the hometown crowd wanted to see.

William Nylander – 2 G, -1, 5 SOG, 1 BLK, 18:55 TOI. Big Willy with a lovely pair!

Kirill Marchenko – 1 A, +1, 4 SOG, 2 H, 20:08 TOI. WHAT? “He didn’t score 6 goals? Aren’t we paying this guy like a billion dollars? What a friggin’ bum!” That’s a direct quote from every Leaf fan after seeing the Leafs’ newest star winger fail to walk on water, end all wars, and solve world hunger in his first 60 minutes of play at the Scotiabank Arena. In all seriousness, though, this guy is going to get a ton of minutes on Matthews’ wing and should be a trade target in every league before he heats up, and it’s too late.

Igor Shesterkin – 20 saves on 22 shots and the 3-0 loss at BOS. Both goaltenders were on fire last night, and Shesterkin was just as deserving of the win as Swayman. If Shesterkin didn’t have a hiccup with just under 4 minutes left in the third period, this one would have gone to overtime, too.

Jeremy Swayman – 24 saves on 24 shots in the 3-0 win vs NYR. Fire up the duck boats and plan the parade. The Bruins are BACK! (But seriously, I’m just happy they looked as good as they did last night. Only 5 more games without Charlie McAvoy now, too!).

Fraser Minten – 1 G, 1 A, +2, 3 SOG, 1 HIT, 14:48 TOI. For now, he’s slated to get PP2 time. But if he gets off to a strong start, I’d be surprised if he didn’t force Marco Sturm’s hand and push his way on to the first unit. He’s a breakout guy for me this year.

JJ Peterka – 1 G, +1, 1 SOG, 17:09 TOI. Talk about making the most of your one shot. Viz mentioned it in his bold predictions piece earlier this week, and I agree. Peterka will get every opportunity to produce in Beantown this year. Especially when he’s doing stuff like this.

🤮🤮🤮 pic.twitter.com/zxiWpSAR0n

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) September 30, 2026

A team doesn’t give up TWO first-round picks for a guy to play middle six minutes. He’s going to make a run at 30 goals, and if he’s healthy all year, I’d put his career high of 28 (from 2022-2023) as his floor.

Mark Kastelic – 1 G, +2, 1 SOG, 3 HIT, 3 BLK, 13:07 TOI. I tried to collect all of the Boston infinity stones in that aforementioned dynasty league this week, and while I managed to reel in Marat Khustodinov, Nikita Zavdorov, and James Hagens, the guy with Mark Kastelic was very hesitant to budge on any offer. It might seem silly, but if you’re in a multi-category league that tracks hits, blocked shots, points, and faceoffs, this guy is more valuable than he is in points leagues.

Kevin Lankinen – 31 saves on 36 shots, and they’re off to OT at EDM. Well, I guess we know where all the goals went last night. I watched the end of this one, and Lankinen gave up two softies in 24 seconds with about 10 minutes left in the third. He looked like a pee-wee goalie facing a college all-star team in the final 7 minutes, and sure enough, he gave up Leon Draisaitl’s game-tying goal with 42 seconds left in the third to push the game to overtime. Because the hockey gods are already turning the screws on me for having to wake up early and get to work at 6:30 AM EST. Off ot OT we go. No matter what happens, it’s easy to see things were ugly for both guys in the blue paint in Edmonton last night. 

EDIT: A beauty backhand from one of his forwards was the OT winner last night. More below.

Paul Cotter – 2 G, +1, 3 SOG, 2 HITS, GWG, and one very late edit! I don’t think there’s a better time to use this one than on opening night. Welcome back, Cotter!

Marco Rossi – 1 G, -1, 1 SOG. And part of the Quinn Hughes return is officially on the board. Getting that sweet PP1 gig should help him push for a career-best season this year. Do I think he’ll get to 60 points as he did in 2022-2023? No, but if you’re in a league without a plus/minus category, he’s a decent add for straight points.

Filip Hronek – 2 A, +2, 2 SOG, 3 BLK. It sounds like the Canucks’ captaincy is down to this guy or Brock Boeser. I’d lean toward the defenseman here when it comes to sewing the ‘C’ on the sweater, but for fantasy purposes, it’s similar to Rossi’s situation. If you have a plus/minus category in your league, you don’t want to roster any of these dudes.

Tristan Jarry – 17 saves on 23 shots and the 6-5 loss vs VAN. Well, he didn’t do much to prove Viz wrong in the latter’s preseason assessment. Jarry looked just as terrible as Viz said, and I’d guess the former Penguin’s netminder will be Mike Babcock’s sacrificial lamb a lot sooner than later if he keeps playing like this. For every Jarry “oof” this month, the Devon Levi roster-ship numbers are going to get even higher. Go check your FA list right now. EDIT: As I was writing this up, and Sportsnet was cutting to their panel, Elliotte Friedman started to talk about Levi, too. Ha!

Evan Bouchard – 3 G, 2 A, +2, 6 SOG, 1 HIT, 3 BLK, 25:41 TOI. I saw a few folks ranking this guy as the #1 defenseman heading into the year, and at first I thought they were nuts. But it’s hard to argue with 95 points in 82 games and a healthy shot total. It’s still hard to believe that he wasn’t on the Norris voting list (I would’ve had him in there instead of Dahlin), but no matter what folks prefer, if you’re in a points league, and as long as this guy is feeding McDavid and Draisaitl on the power play, this guy is gold.

Vasily Podkolzin – 2 G, -2, 7 SOG, 5 H, 18:20 TOI. Filling up those extra categories!

Connor McDavid – 2 A, +1, 1 HIT, 22:31 TOI. No goals? What a bum! (jk!)

Spencer Knight – 28 saves on 32 shots (with 10 minutes left in the third) at VEG. Apologies for the early tap-out here, but it’ll likely be this way for the late game all year. They still needed half a period at 1 AM this morning, so I’d say the Knights could hold off for a win, but 9+ minutes is a lot of time for a two-goal lead to change a couple of times.

Patrick Kane – 1 G, 3 SOG, 1 H, 17:47 TOI. This Patrick Kane kid can probably grow into a pretty good Chicago Blackhawk. Just remember, you heard it here first, folks.

Carter Hart – 19 saves on 21 shots (again, with 8:40 left in the third period) vs CHI.

Victor Olofsson – 1 G, 1 SOG. Goal-ofsson!

Shea Theodore – 2 A, +1, 1 SOG, 1 BLK. Viz mentioned it in his bold predictions piece, and I commented on it too. Shea Theodore is poised to have a big bounceback year in Vegas. If he can stick on that first power-play grouping, it’s going to be easy to repeat the 50-point season from two years ago. It’s easy to forget he only played in 67 games in 2025-2026. If he’s healthy and doesn’t miss a handful of games this season, he should push for 60+ points. 

Jack Eichel – 1 G, 1 A, 2 SOG, 1 HIT. I know it’s never a guarantee with any players, let alone for these guys. But can you imagine if we get a full season out of Jack Eichel with Mitch Marner and Mark Stone on the first power-play unit? Oh boy. That kind of trio would win a lot of fantasy leagues.

Noah Hanifin – 1 G, +1, 3 SOG, 2 BLK. Hanafin. Yep. But did you know “Hanafin” is also what was found on Neil Young’s wife’s old costume’s wardrobe tag from when she was in that old 1980s Tom Hanks movie?

That’s all for a very defensive opening night and for this week! I hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions or comments, leave them below, and I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Happy Wednesday, and I’ll see you next week!

Follow me @marmosdad on Twitter/X and Bluesky @marmosdad.bsky.social