NHL Opening Week 2026-27: Shesterkin's Goalie Goal, Garand's Shutout and 27 Goals in Two Games
Four days into the 2026-27 season, the NHL has already produced a goal from a goaltender, a shutout from a rookie in his fourth career start, and 27 goals in two games between Edmonton and Vancouver.
The season opened on 1 October with a new collective agreement and an 84-game schedule, and 31 of the 32 teams had played by Saturday night — Ottawa, the last to start, opened in Toronto. What the first week gave us was mostly goaltending: six different netminders posted a shutout, and one of them also scored.
- Igor Shesterkin scored a goal. With Tampa Bay's net empty, the Rangers goaltender shot the puck the length of the ice on 1 October — the first goalie goal in franchise history and the 18th in NHL history.
- Dylan Garand shut out Detroit in his fourth NHL start, 22 saves, 24 hours later. He is the fourth Rangers goaltender to record a shutout inside his first four starts.
- Edmonton and Vancouver combined for 27 goals across two games, 13 of them past Oilers goaltenders.
- The Flyers opened 0-2, including a 7-0 home loss to Pittsburgh, and Washington beat the defending champion Hurricanes 5-2.
The goalie goal
The Rangers' home opener was already going well — 5-1 up on Tampa Bay at Madison Square Garden, four different skaters on the scoresheet, a first Rangers goal for Pavel Dorofeyev and another for Eeli Tolvanen. Then, with the Lightning net empty for an extra attacker, Igor Shesterkin collected the puck behind his own goal line and sent it the length of the ice. It went in with 2:34 left.
It was the first goal by a goaltender in Rangers history, and the 18th in NHL history. It also came on the night of his 100th win at Madison Square Garden, in a building where New York had been shut out in each of its first three home games a season earlier and won just 14 times at home all year.
Mika Zibanejad had opened the scoring on the power play at 5:34 of the first, Dorofeyev made it 2-0 five minutes later, and Tolvanen and Gabe Perreault scored in the second. Nikita Kucherov got Tampa Bay's only goal; Andrei Vasilevskiy made 20 saves, while Shesterkin stopped 24 of 25.
One game is one game, but the Rangers spent last season unable to score at home and unable to win there. Opening night was the first time in a year that the Garden looked like an advantage rather than a problem — and the goalie who ended the night in the other net's crease is the reason they believe it can last.
A rookie shutout, 24 hours later
New York went from Madison Square Garden to Detroit the next night and won 2-0 behind Dylan Garand, a 24-year-old making just his fourth NHL start. He stopped all 22 shots he faced, becoming the fourth goaltender in Rangers history to record a shutout within his first four starts — a list that also includes Henrik Lundqvist. Garand's career numbers are now 3-0-1 with a 1.22 goals-against average and a .958 save percentage.
He was recalled from AHL Hartford the previous day after the Rangers put backup Joonas Korpisalo on injured reserve with a lower-body injury. Sean Durzi, another new arrival, scored the only goal New York needed on the power play 5:12 into the first period — then dropped the gloves with Detroit's Marco Kasper and won the fight. Tolvanen added an empty-netter with 1:16 left.
Detroit's night was less comfortable. The Red Wings opened at home without Dylan Larkin, who is out with an upper-body injury and who asked for a trade in the summer; he was booed when he was introduced with the scratches, and the home crowd's mood only got worse as Detroit managed five seconds of offensive-zone time across the first five minutes.
27 goals in two games
Not every opening-week story was about goaltending. Edmonton and Vancouver met twice in the first three days of the season and combined for 27 goals across the two games, with 13 of them going past Oilers goaltenders. It is the kind of start that makes a four-day-old season look like a statistical error.
The Oilers, who have been among the highest-event teams in the league for years, were also on the right side of a 13-goal game that included a fight between Nathan MacKinnon and Brandt Clarke in Colorado's opener. Six other goaltenders spent the week on the good side of it: across the first three days of the season, six different netminders recorded a shutout, including Utah's Karel Vejmelka.
The rest of opening week
Pittsburgh 7, Philadelphia 0
The Penguins opened at home and put seven past the Flyers, whose season then got worse: a 4-3 overtime loss to New Jersey followed, a game in which the Devils outshot them 44-25. Philadelphia is 0-2 and has been outscored 11-3.
Washington 5, Carolina 2
The Capitals beat the defending Stanley Cup champions in their building 24 hours before playing Tampa Bay, a statement result against the team that has been the Metropolitan Division's standard for years. Carolina had opened with a win; Florida's night was worse, with captain Aleksander Barkov leaving Thursday's game with a lower-body injury.
Matthew Knies scored twice for Columbus
Knies, acquired by the Blue Jackets in the preseason trade that sent Kirill Marchenko to Toronto, scored two of Columbus's six goals against Buffalo. Utah's Dylan Guenther also scored twice in his club's win.
Ottawa was the last team to start
The Senators opened on Saturday night in Toronto in the first Battle of Ontario of the season, a year after the Leafs eliminated them in six playoff games. Boston, meanwhile, has a new captain in David Pastrnak and won 4-3 in overtime in Winnipeg.
Jerseys for the teams in the news
Eight teams carry the first week's storylines: the two New York nights, the team that scored 27 goals in two games, the champions, and the two franchises that opened at opposite ends of the scoreboard in Pennsylvania.
Jerseys for the teams in the news
Fan version and replica NHL jerseys for the eight teams carrying opening week — breakaway cuts, alumni editions and youth sizes.
Questions we get asked
Did a goalie score a goal in the 2026-27 NHL season?
Yes. Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers scored into an empty net on 1 October against Tampa Bay with 2:34 remaining. It was the first goalie goal in Rangers history and the 18th by a goaltender in NHL history.
How many games are in the 2026-27 NHL season?
Eighty-four, up from 82 under the new collective agreement. The season began on 1 October 2026.
Who was the rookie goalie who shut out the Red Wings?
Dylan Garand of the Rangers, in his fourth NHL start on 2 October. He made 22 saves and is the fourth Rangers goaltender to record a shutout within his first four starts, alongside Steve Baker, Mackenzie Skapski and Henrik Lundqvist.
How many goals did the Oilers and Canucks score against each other?
Twenty-seven across two games in the first three days of the season, with 13 going past Edmonton goaltenders.
Which team had the worst opening week?
Philadelphia, who lost 7-0 at home to Pittsburgh and then 4-3 in overtime to New Jersey while being outshot 44-25. The Flyers have been outscored 11-3 in two games.
Do the Rangers sell out Madison Square Garden?
Home openers sell out and the building was full on 1 October. We do not sell tickets — we sell jerseys, including the Rangers home blue, the Lightning, Penguins, Flyers, Capitals, Oilers, Bruins and Canucks range.
Are these jerseys fan version or replica?
Everything we sell is a fan version or replica. We are not affiliated with the NHL or any club, and we do not sell game-worn or team-issued jerseys.
Sources and method
Game results, goalscorers, save totals and times were checked against the Associated Press game reports carried by AOL and The Florida Press, ESPN's opening-week coverage, NHL.com and team beat reporting. Career and franchise records — the 18 goalies who have scored, Garand's place among Rangers rookie shutouts, Shesterkin's 100th win at the Garden — are attributed in the sentence rather than stated loosely. Statistics that depend on a season being four days old are labelled as such: the shootout and goal totals on this page cover games played between 1 and 4 October only.
Written by the Pro Sports Kit editorial team. We sell fan and replica jerseys for NHL, NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA and soccer teams — no affiliation with any league or club is implied. Free shipping on orders over $49, 30-day returns, new stock added weekly.