Leo Carlsson, Ducks Welcome Panthers for Anaheim Home Opener

Sunday’s five-game NHL slate brings a home-opening spotlight to Anaheim, a quick Calgary-Seattle rematch, and a goaltending story at Madison Square Garden after a memorable two nights for the Rangers’ crease crew.

Key takeaways

• Leo Carlsson opened 2026-27 with a goal and an assist as Anaheim won 4-3 in Vegas.
• Florida captain Aleksander Barkov has been moved to long-term injured reserve following a lower-body injury.
• Calgary has surrendered 10 goals while starting 0-2-0 and gets Seattle again after Thursday’s 6-1 defeat.
• Rookie Dylan Garand enters on a four-game NHL point streak after blanking Detroit on Friday.
• Kyle Connor has scored in nine straight season openers, the longest such run in League history.

Sunday’s rink notes

The Ducks bring a 1-0-0 record into their Honda Center opener against the Florida Panthers at 8 p.m. ET. Carlsson, 21, helped set the tone in Friday’s victory over the Golden Knights and now begins his home schedule after Anaheim matched the Philadelphia Flyers’ five-year, $90 million offer sheet in July.

Florida is 1-0-1 but will be without Barkov for an extended period. The Panthers’ captain was hurt during the second period of Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss in San Jose and went on long-term injured reserve Saturday. Defenseman Radko Gudas returns to Anaheim, where he spent the previous three seasons and served as captain for two of them.

At Climate Pledge Arena, the Flames and Kraken meet again only three days after Seattle rolled to a 6-1 season-opening win in Calgary. The Flames arrive 0-2-0 and have managed just two goals in those games. Seattle is 1-1-0 after falling 3-1 in Edmonton on Saturday, its final stop before the home opener. Vince Dunn put up a goal and two assists in Thursday’s meeting, while Jared McCann also recorded three points.

The Rangers host the Utah Mammoth at 6 p.m. ET with both clubs carrying early-season momentum. Igor Shesterkin scored the 21st goaltender goal in NHL history in New York’s 5-1 win over Tampa Bay on Thursday, the first goalie goal ever for the Rangers. Garand followed Friday with a 2-0 shutout of Detroit. The rookie is the third Rangers rookie to open his career with points in at least four straight games, posting a 3-0-1 mark.

Utah is unbeaten at 2-0-0 after winning 4-1 in Columbus on Saturday. Dylan Guenther has supplied three goals and two assists across the Mammoth’s first two outings.

Detroit returns home at 1 p.m. ET still seeking its first goal after Garand and the Rangers shut it out. Winnipeg, 0-0-1 after a 4-3 overtime loss to Boston on Friday, will lean on Connor, who had a goal and an assist in that opener. His goal extended his NHL-record scoring run in season-opening games to nine.

The night closes in Vancouver, where Vegas plays its first road game of the season. Jack Eichel has collected five points, including one goal, through two games for the 1-1-0 Golden Knights. The Canucks are 2-1-0 in Manny Malhotra’s first season behind the bench, with Paul Cotter and Elias Pettersson each sitting on five points. Cotter has three goals and two assists, while Pettersson has two goals and three helpers.

Sunday NHL schedule