Last season, Hudson Fasching debuted with the New York Islanders against their Friday night opponent, the Chicago Blackhawks.
While Kyle MacLean will be garnering all the attention Friday night in Chicago as he laces up the skates for his first NHL game, a matchup with the Blackhawks may mean a little something extra to another member of the New York Islanders.
It was last season against the Blackhawks on Dec. 4 that Hudson Fasching made his Islanders debut.
Signed in the summer of 2022, Fasching joined the organization as a depth option to serve as a leader for a young group in Bridgeport after donning the "C" for the Arizona Coyotes' AHL affiliate, the Tuscon Roadrunners.
When the Islanders needed reinforcements due to injuries to Cal Clutterbuck, Kyle Palmieri, and Josh Bailey at the start of December, Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello called up Fasching and Cole Bardreau.
"They were positional call-ups," Lamoriello said on Dec. 1, 2022. "We could have called up other people in different positions, but that's not the need right now. It's a positional need and also warranted on the way they have played throughout the season."
A few days later, on Dec. 4, Fasching skated alongside Matt Martin and Casey Cizikas in a 3-0 shutout win over Chicago at UBS Arena.
The 27-year-old, who hadn't played an NHL game since Apr. 4 with the Coyotes, had a solid Islanders debut, with two shots on goal, two hits, a block, and a couple of strong plays to set up his teammates.
"I thought he played really well. What I saw was a real structural guy, who knows his position, knows where to be," Lambert said following the win. "And I thought he used his big body to protect the puck, create scoring chances are he went to the net hard.
"I thought he played very well."
Fasching had a ton of fun, as one can imagine.
"It's always a lot of fun to play. With Marty and Casey, it's a lot of fun out there," Fasching said. "We had a good game. We had a lot of momentum early. I was trying to play low, grinding pucks out, and we had a lot of fun out there."
Like every hockey player, playing in the NHL is a goal, and although Fasching was no longer a young buck who understood that opportunities like this could be a one-and-done ordeal, he was incredibly thrilled to get the chance.
"New organization, new opportunities, right?" Fasching said. "Sometimes you wonder if the grass is greener or should I stay where I am, kind of thing, and it's exciting to be in a new organization and have the honor to be called up."
Before the game, Lambert told Fasching to be consistent with his game and show his identity as a player.
"So that's kind of what I did today. And I think I played my game. I [got] low in the corners, tried to win puck battles, have good details in the defensive zone, so [I] felt good about today."
From those who watched, we can all agree he did exactly what was asked of him.
"He was awesome. I thought he played a great game," linemate Matt Martin said. "Right from the first shift, I thought we were cycling the puck and playing that game. Obviously, Clutterbuck's role on this team isn't an easy one to fill, but I thought he stepped up big time and really played an outstanding game."
"Just works and makes plays, and it was really a lot of fun to play with him."
Fasching went on to not only stick at the NHL level, with 10 goals and nine assists in 49 games but earn himself a two-year extension worth $1.15 million.
He scored his first goal with the Islanders on Dec. 6 against the St. Louis Blues in a 7-4 loss:
He was a spark plug the Islanders desperately needed, and his play helped pave the road to the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The 2023-24 season has been different for Fasching, who struggled to bring that spark earlier in the season, leading to many games in the press box.
Fasching has two goals and four assists in 31 games and is currently skating as the second-line right winger with Pierre Engvall out injured, playing in each of the last four games, up and down the lineup.
You can watch Rosner talk Islanders hockey on Hockey Night in New York with co-host Sean Cuthbert live Sunday nights at 8 PM ET during the season at twitch.tv/hockeynightny.