ELMONT, NY — If you would have told me a year ago that defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson would be seriously under consideration for an NHL roster spot ahead of the 2026-27 season, I would have told you that you were crazy.
Despite what Aitcheson, who the New York Islanders selected 17th overall at the 2025 NHL Draft, could become, there were concerns about certain areas of his game — the biggest being his skating — that figured to require significant time in the American Hockey League before he could seriously become an NHL option.
But Aitcheson has rewritten the early portion of his career script, as he’s arguably been one of the better defensemen at Islanders training camp.
With the Islanders’ top-four defense pairings essentially set, Aitcheson has been the best of the players vying for the sixth and seventh defense roles.
He has that snarl, that get-under-the-opposition’s-skin mentality. If there’s a whistle after the play, he’s probably involved. He’s physical — violent has been used to describe his game — but he’s also a two-way defenseman who cares and is committed to being a factor all over the ice.
“He’s put himself in the conversation,” Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche told MSG Networks’ Shannon Hogan during the second intermission of the Islanders’ preseason finale on Saturday. “All camp, he made his presence felt.”
From his draft year to now, Aitcheson has worked tirelessly on his skating and his reads. Even from when we saw him at development camp in late June to now, there’s been an uptick.
His poise has been a standout, and although he is still raw when it comes to handling the speed of the pro game — something he will have to get used to — it’s hard to argue that he hasn’t earned serious consideration for a spot.
Obviously, Aitcheson being the seventh defenseman and sitting in the press box isn’t what’s best for his development. But his new, much closer NHL timeline is a tremendous positive for the organization.
He’s impressed a ton of people, including team captain Bo Horvat.
“With these young guys, it’s just their compete level,” Horvat said before Saturday’s game. “He likes to get in the dirty areas and compete in front of the net and be hard on guys, and that’s great. You need that in this league, and he’s just going to continue to keep getting better and better as well.”
Ryan Pulock has been impressed by Aitcheson, too, especially with the confidence he’s shown at such a young age.
“I think he has that confidence. He’s not shy out there, as you see. He’s involved. He’s going to continue to grow as he turns pro here, and continue to get stronger and bigger. He’s only going to get better. The skills are there, competitive edge is there, and he’s not shy in getting involved at all. So, I look forward to watching him grow.”
The Islanders need a player like Aitcheson and, while to me, him being in consideration for a starting spot is more of a knock on the other players fighting for the job, the fact that we are talking about him the way we are — and the organization is talking about him the way it is — is such a positive for the Islanders.
Following Saturday’s game, I spoke with Aitcheson about his training camp, the fact that he’s still here and more.
But first, the latest stories:
Ok, let’s get to the Kash interview, shall we?