It was understood by all to be a dry run. A rehearsal before the curtain officially rises.

Because this was merely the preseason opener. The matches which truly matter begin in slightly less than three weeks.

And yet, both Matthew Schaefer and Kashawn Aitcheson repeatedly used the word ‘excited’ to describe their states of mind before Sunday night’s contest at UBS Arena against the Flyers. For both the first overall pick in last June’s draft and the 17th overall selection, being able to play in the game represented the next step in their hockey lives.

“You want to come into this point in time, obviously,” Schaefer said following the morning skate at Northwell Health Ice Center. “This is the first one. I’m looking forward to playing with a lot of great teammates … So honestly I can’t wait.”

A few moments earlier, Aitcheson essentially previewed what Schaefer was going to stay.

“Super excited,” Aitcheson said. “It’s a huge stepping stone into (my) career and, yeah, I’m just super excited to enjoy the moment.”

For a franchise entering a new era, the opportunity to showcase Schaefer and Aitcheson to those in attendance at the billion-dollar rink in Elmont was weighed against gathering information about the players who are in training camp.

And to hear coach Patrick Roy, while he’s “curious” to see the two defensemen whose performances in the first three days of camp he deemed “outstanding,” the data collection took precedence. That’s because the matchup against the Flyers was the first time his team would skate against an opponent in a competitive setting.

“I want to focus on us,” said Roy. “How are we going to play as a team? How are we going to play on the penalty kill? How are we going to play on the power play? How we are going to play. I’m not even going to talk about the Flyers tonight. I really want to see where we are (as a team).”

To that end, the roster selected for the game was comprised of seven skaters who were NHLers in 2024-25 (Mathew Barzal, Tony DeAngelo, Jonathan Drouin, Bo Horvat, Anders Lee, Scott Mayfield and Kyle Palmieri) as well as starting goaltender David Rittich, who played for the Kings last season. The remainder of the lineup consisted of potential NHLers (Maxim Shabanov, specifically), organizational prospects getting experience, and those who may be earmarked for AHL Bridgeport.

“You want to see where the guys are at,” Roy said. “This is good for our guys.”

Notes & quotes: As he has been through the first three days of camp, Schaefer skated with Mayfield, while Aitcheson was paired with DeAngelo on the second pair. Laurel Hollow’s Marshall Warren and Cole McWard made up the third defense unit. Warren, who played collegiately at Boston College and Michigan, spent 2024-25 at Bridgeport, where he compiled a slash line of four goals and 13 assists for 17 points and 38 penalty minutes. “It’s pretty exciting,” said Warren “It’s a good opportunity to showcase what you have and showcase your skills. Obviously, that’s where you want to be. You want to be playing against top guys, so I think it’s a good opportunity for me.” … Rittich was backed up by Parker Gahagen.