2025-26 Calder Cup Contenders: Who Is Worth a Wager?

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00:00If we look at the Calder Cup, which is the rookie of the year, it seems to be a two-man race right

00:04now. The Islanders, Matthew Schaefer, and the Canadians, Ivan Demidolf. If you look at those

00:08two players and the projection for the rest of the season, who gets the edge for you? Or could

00:13it be somebody else? It could be somebody else. The somebody else might be one of those goaltenders,

00:21Jesper Wahlstedt, who has three shutouts this year. He's coming on strong, and it's a good,

00:25that's probably the second best goalie tandem in the NHL for Minnesota with Wahlstedt and

00:30Gustafson. If Gustafson either falters or deals with injury, I mean, this guy is a stud. We've

00:37been talking about him for years. Even Yaroslav Asgera, we've been talking about him as a goalie

00:42prospect for many years. He was in Nashville at first, got traded last year to San Jose,

00:47and now he's part of that young core out in San Jose with Celebrini, with Will Smith and company,

00:52and San Jose is probably the most improved team in the league. What Schaefer is doing is ridiculous.

00:57I would still call him the clear frontrunner right now, and he is, you know, among not only the rookie

01:03leaders, but all the defensemen leaders in some key categories like goals, power play points,

01:10points outright. I mean, edge stats, he's up there among the defensemen leaders in this 20-plus mile

01:17per hour speed burst and hardest shot and all these different categories. It's almost like this guy's a

01:2225-year-old defenseman entering his prime. That's what he's doing statistically with his workload,

01:29and he's also turned around the Islanders in the standings. They're on the cusp of playoff position

01:34and one of the biggest stories of the year because of Matthew Schaefer. But don't, you know,

01:39overlook those two sleepers I mentioned, Jesper Wahlstedt and Yaroslav Asgera.

01:44I love you, bro.

01:58See you everyone!