PITTSBURGH — New York Rangers coach Mike Sullivan knew the Pittsburgh Penguins were going to play a tribute video. There has been one for each returning player that won a championship during Sullivan’s time with the Penguins.

That doesn’t mean it wasn’t any less emotional in his return to Pittsburgh after parting ways with the organization in April.

“It means a lot,” Sullivan said after New York’s 6-1 win at Pittsburgh on Saturday. “I’m grateful for everything we accomplished (in Pittsburgh) during my time.”

The tribute video played at the first media timeout, honoring Sullivan for his accomplishments with the Penguins. Sullivan received a standing ovation and acknowledged the crowd with a wave to the air

Mika Zibanejad scored a short-handed goal 23 seconds after the video to give the Rangers a lead they didn’t relinquish.

Sullivan, who spent 10 seasons with the Penguins, was elevated from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League and won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships with Pittsburgh in 2016-17. Sullivan, the only U.S.-born coach to win at least two Stanley Cups, is the all-time leader at Pittsburgh with 409 wins in 753 games.

“I’m so grateful to the group of players over those years that performed the way they did that allowed us to have the success that we had,” Sullivan said. “When you watch a tribute like that, which I was very appreciative of for the Penguins, they didn’t have to do that, it brings back a flood of emotions.”

Sullivan already coached against the Penguins and lost, as Dan Muse won his debut behind the bench with Pittsburgh 3-0 in Tuesday’s season opener at Madison Square Garden. Sullivan was impressed with his team’s response during a shutout at Buffalo on Thursday and again two days later with a win against the same Pittsburgh team that blanked the Rangers in the opener.

“They played a much more determined game for the last 40 minutes,” Sullivan said. “I think that shows you what we’re capable of when we play with that focus and determination.”

The Penguins and Sullivan parted ways after Pittsburgh missed the playoffs for a third straight season. Almost immediately, Sullivan landed in New York and replaced Peter Laviolette for a franchise seeking it’s first title since 1994. Sullivan is now tasked with the responsibility of providing structure and discipline to a team that unraveled on and off the ice, missing the playoffs one season after winning the Presidents Trophy and reaching the Eastern Conference Final.

Sullivan’s relentless intensity instantly ignited the Penguins. But now Pittsburgh, which hasn’t made it beyond the first round since 2018, is in the midst of an inevitable rebuild and general manager Kyle Dubas felt that it was time to go in another direction.

Now, Sullivan’s job is to turn the Rangers back into an immediate contender.

“I’m excited about the group of players we have in New York,” Sullivan said. “I’ve enjoyed the time I’ve had to work with them to this point, we have a lot of enthusiasm around our team right now and we’re excited about what we can potentially do moving forward.”

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Forward Jonah Gadjovich and the Florida Panthers have agreed on a two-year, $1.8 million extension that keeps him under contract through the 2027-28 season, the team announced Sunday.

Gadjovich has six goals and three assists in 84 games over parts of three seasons with the Panthers. He also had two goals — one of them against the Toronto Maple Leafs in a Game 7 win — and an assist in last season’s Stanley Cup playoffs.

“Jonah has become an integral part of our locker room and a strong contributor for our group on the ice,” general manager Bill Zito said. “He possesses a fearless attitude and unrelenting competitiveness, and we are excited for Jonah to continue with us in South Florida.”

The extension was announced on Gadjovich’s 27th birthday.

Through three games this season, Gadjovich has one assist and a team-high-tying 11 hits for the Panthers.

He has 19 points in 163 career games with Florida, San Jose and Vancouver. He was a second-round pick by Vancouver, going No. 55 overall, in the 2017 NHL draft. During his time with the Panthers, Gadjovich is averaging a team-best 19.7 hits per 60 minutes.

Gadjovich, who could have become an unrestricted free agent after the season, is the 11th forward the Panthers have under contract for next season, joining Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett, Carter Verhaeghe, Brad Marchand, Anton Lundell, Evan Rodrigues, Eetu Luostarinen and Jesper Boqvist.

It’s possible that a 12th forward — Mackie Samoskevich, who could become a restricted free agent — gets a new deal later this season as well.

NEW YORK — Matthew Schaefer won’t soon forget his first NHL goal. The 18-year-old defenseman and top overall pick in this year’s NHL Draft dove headfirst into the moment, literally.

Schaefer found a loose puck after a scramble in front of the net and lunged forward, poking it past Washington Capitals goalie Logan Thompson at 4:28 of the third period in the Islanders’ 4-2 loss Saturday night.

“It’s crazy, I love these fans,” Schaefer said of the reaction inside UBS Arena during New York’s home opener. “Getting your name chanted out there. It’s awesome, feels like home for sure. … We want to win for the fans and we want to be there every night for them. They come out every night for us.

“We wish we could have gotten the win for them and for the team in here. We are going to keep working, keep working toward that.”

The goal cut Washington’s lead to two, but the Islanders couldn’t rally while falling to 0-2 on the season.

Still, it was a milestone for the rookie, who made the team out of training camp just months after hearing his name called first in Los Angeles at the draft.

“He kind of took the game over to be honest with you,” Islanders forward Bo Horvat said. “He was our best player tonight. He was moving, he was obviously contributing. He is just so effective out there. He is just getting more and more comfortable every single game. He is a special player, we are lucky to have him.”

Schaefer’s play has already earned the coaching staff’s full trust. After getting an assist for his first NHL point while logging 17:15 of ice time in the Islanders’ 4-3 season-opening loss at Pittsburgh on Thursday, he had a game-high 26:04 of ice time in this one. That was more than four minutes ahead of Mathew Barzal‘s 21:28.

“I’m not balancing anything right now with the way he’s playing,” Islanders coach Patrick Roy said of Schaefer’s workload. “He forced me to play him — he forced us to play him — so we’re going to give it to him.”

Few players have entered the draft with less recent game experience. Schaefer played just 17 games for Erie of the Ontario Hockey League in 2024-25, missing time with mononucleosis and later a broken clavicle sustained while representing Canada at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship. He still managed 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) and a plus-21 rating.

The Ontario native also captained Canada to gold medals at the 2024 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge and the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

Now, just 18 and already on NHL ice, his first goal offered a glimpse of why the Islanders are looking for big things from the youngster for years to come.