Takeaways: Islanders Fall to Devils 2-1 in Preseason Opener

The New York Islanders fell 2-1 to the New Jersey Devils in preseason action on Sunday.

Cole Eiserman opened the scoring 55 seconds into the second period on a four-on-three power play. Ryan Schmelzer responded with a goal off the rush to tie the score 1-1 at 3:59 of the middle frame.

Connor Brown scored the eventual winner on a breakaway at 7:53 of the third period to put New Jersey ahead.

Vitek Vanecek stopped 20 of 22 in his first action as an Islander. Former Isles goaltender David Rittich stopped 23 of 24 for New Jersey.

Head Coach Pete DeBoer said he was happy with the effort of his group – largely made up of AHL and junior players – and wanted them to play freely after lots of systems work to start camp.

“I just wanted them to play and not worry about making mistakes,” DeBoer said. “I saw some really good things. I thought our effort was good. We were right in the game, right till the end… Probably the only thing we could have done better was just have a little more of a shot mentality.”

See some takeaways from today’s preseason game.

Cal Ritchie Stands Out

Cal Ritchie was one of the standout players on Sunday.

Ritchie recorded an assist and led all Isles forwards with 19:22 TOI on the top line alongside Victor Eklund and Ondrej Palat. The 21-year-old played in all situations, picking up the secondary assist on Eiserman’s power-play goal, while also logging some PK time – which he has yet to do at the NHL level, but had done a lot of in junior.

“I want to be a really well-rounded player,” Ritchie said. “When you get a chance to play on the PK and on power play situations… That’s the great part about preseason.”

Ritchie drew a pair of penalties, including a hooking call after making a nifty move to get around Ethan Edwards for what would have been a breakaway in the first period. The center nearly scored midway through the second period, ringing a shot off the far post off the rush.

“Cal Ritchie was great in the middle,” DeBoer said. “Had a lot of pop, made some plays, him and Eklund, I thought that line was really good.”

Eiserman Scores Again

For the second straight Sunday, Cole Eiserman scored in New Jersey. The 2024 first-round pick one-timed a cross-ice feed from Vladimir Dravecky on a second period power play, beating David Rittich short side.

It was Eiserman’s first game against NHL players, which he said led to some nerves before the game, but he settled in as it wore on. For the sharpshooter, Sunday marked a chance to test his shot against NHL goalies.

“They're a little bigger, and play a different style. They're very composed and definitely a lot bigger in the net,” Eiserman said. “Obviously, if I want to play in this league, I have to shoot against those goalies. So it was fun to kind of play against Rittich.”

Engvall Returns to Game Action

Pierre Engvall played in his first game action since April 17, 2025, skating 16:15 and recording one shot on goal (three total attempts) on a line with Eiserman and Matthew Highmore.

Vanecek Sharp in Isles Debut

Vitek Vanecek looked solid in his first outing. It was tough to fault him on the Brown breakaway or the Schmelzer shot off the rush. He earned good marks from DeBoer. 

“Vanecek played well in that for us,” DeBoer said. “It gives us some good goalie depth in the organization.”

Next Game

The Islanders take on the New York Rangers in preseason action on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden.