Victor Eklund
Victor Eklund is a 20-year-old rookie who has moved up to the Islanders' second line and second power-play unit, and his role has been growing in recent games.
Role
Daily Faceoff's Islanders line page (fetched 26 October, last updated that day from the 25 October game) has him at right wing on the second line. Emil Heineman is at left wing and Brayden Schenn is at center. The same page has him on the second power-play unit with Palat, Heineman, Duclair and Tony DeAngelo. It does not list him on either penalty-kill unit. The first power-play unit is Palmieri, Horvat, Schenn, Holmstrom and Schaefer. Inside the Rink's 25 October preview at Dallas shows the same line, but its second power-play unit has Pageau and no Palat. The NHL.com Isles Day-to-Day report of 24 October says Schenn moved back to center after center Cal Ritchie suffered a lower-body injury expected to cost 4-6 weeks. Eklund played 17:44 in the 22 October game against the Kings, which SI's Islanders site called his most ice time as a rookie. Competition for the right-wing work comes from Palmieri and Holmstrom on the top line and Duclair on the third. I did not find a source naming who would take Eklund's spot if he slipped.
Coach Patrick DeBoer said the Eklund, Schenn and Heineman line was the best for the team by analytics and by the eye test against the Kings. Eklund has scored in consecutive games. He played 17:44 against the Kings, his most as a rookie, and SI describes his role as growing nightly. Schenn also plays on the first power-play unit, so the line has a link to that unit. He is a 2025 first-round pick, 16th overall.
The second-line spot depends partly on Ritchie's injury, which Isles Day-to-Day on NHL.com puts at 4-6 weeks. Ritchie had skated on the Eklund-Schenn line before the injury (Newsday's Arthur Staple via a 17 October line tweet; Stefen Rosner's report of a Friday practice). Schenn could return to a Ritchie line when he is healthy, and the lines have changed repeatedly this season. Eklund is on the second power-play unit, which gets less time than the first. He is not on the penalty kill. SI notes he still makes mistakes, as a 20-year-old would. His career NHL sample is small: 11 games and 4 points last season.
Where analysts split
Broad agreement on his current role. The one open question is whether he stays on the Schenn and Heineman line once Ritchie returns from his lower-body injury, which the club puts at 4-6 weeks. I found no analyst arguing either side of that question.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
Others at RW
Fantasy Memo reads your league and answers that every Monday, and checks your lineup on the days you play.
Connect your league: 14 days free