New York Islanders top prospect Kashawn Aitcheson took home OHL Defenseman of the Year honors, shared by the league today. The 19-year-old joins fellow Barrie Colts Aaron Ekblad (2014) and Erik Reitz (2002) to earn the distinguished award.
Aitcheson has yet to make his professional debut, but he’s looking like a fantastic selection at 17th overall in last year’s draft. As part of their first round haul which brought Matthew Schaefer and Victor Eklund, the class has transformed New York’s outlook on the future.
Chosen with the pick acquired as part of the Noah Dobson trade to Montreal, Aitcheson took another step in the right direction with 70 points in 56 games. OHL scoring numbers sometimes not painting the whole picture, the lefty is a true #1 defenseman, standing out on both ends and showcasing a physical edge as a complete package.
The Toronto native inked his entry-level deal last month, but will have to wait to enter the professional circuit. New York’s AHL affiliate in Bridgeport would have loved to infuse their lineup with the lefty, but he is not eligible, turning 20 this summer. Even then, the 6’2” prospect has all the tools to jump right into the NHL next fall.
Elsewhere across the division:
- As the New York Rangers look to move on from a majorly disappointing 2025-26, questions were raised by Vince Z. Mergogliano of The Athletic on Matt Rempe and Adam Edstrom’s future with the team. Currently with a logjam in their bottom six, the emergence of Jaroslav Chmelar and Adam Sykora could push out Rempe and/or Edstrom, neither of which have waiver eligibility remaining. Edstrom, 25, had an injury riddled campaign where he recorded just five points in 35 games. At 6’7”, he could benefit from a fresh start after three years with the Rangers and limited production. Meanwhile, Rempe’s stats are no real improvement, but the 6’9” winger could have a trade market this summer thanks to his age (23) and mean streak, an asset to any young team with playoff aspirations. San Jose, for example, stands out as a club who values such a role, and could be looking for a Ryan Reaves replacement. Similar to enforcer trades in the past, Rempe could fetch a meaningful return for New York.
- The Columbus Blue Jackets might form a succession plan behind the bench with Trent Vogelhuber, written by The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline. After cleaning house last week, head coach Rick Bowness will assemble his own staff. The 71-year-old, who got started in the NHL with the first iteration of the Winnipeg Jets back in the 1980s, earned the opportunity to stick around in Ohio but still is not a long-term solution on age alone. Instead he figures to be more of a “culture changer”, fully evident by such harsh comments on his team closing the season. With this in mind, Portzline reports that Vogelhuber, head coach of the Cleveland Monsters, could make the jump to assistant on Bowness’ staff on his way to taking over in the future. Just 37, Vogelhuber is a native of Dublin, Ohio, and a former draft pick by the team (211th overall, 2007). Joining the Monsters in 2018 as an assistant, Vogelhuber has quickly risen up the ranks, becoming head coach in 2022 where he’s led the Monsters to another playoff berth in 2025-26. Whatever the case, with 12 head coaches in their 26 years of existence, Columbus would benefit from stability of a young home-grown coach.
Matt Rempe is nothing but a novelty act.
Matt Rempe is the Wilf/Grapes/Slash of the NHL. Only difference is that he doesn’t change his name on a monthly basis.