Matthew Schaefer was selected as the first overall pick by the New York Islanders in this year's NHL draft, becoming the fifth D-man in the 21st century to go No.1. The defenseman has expressed his desire to play for the Isles from the start of next season under coach Patrick Roy.However, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that top prospects who skip pre-NHL developmental leagues at a young age can suffer from a lack of form and lose confidence.The Isles do not have much defensive depth to begin with. They traded Noah Dobson to the Montreal Canadiens, making a large hole in their blue line. He was their top point-scoring D-man with 39 points. Beyond Schaefer, the club's current choices are Ryan Pulok, Adam Boqvist, and Tony DeAngelo.NHL Network analyst Mike Rupp stated that the Isles should trust Schaefer as he remains the best defenseman for them. Here's what he said on Saturday:"I'm tough, I'm straddling the fence on this one because part of me wants to say it's not a problem. Because if he makes the team, that means he looks really good in camp. They're not going to take him if he's not ready. Mathieu Darche and company, this is a huge player for the future of the New York Islanders."There's no need to rush. I don't think they're going to. The problem is what happens if he's your best defenseman? They're not a really deep D-core in New York. And when I say best defenseman, most talented, because he might be the most talented right now," Rupp said.Schaefer missed a lot of last season due to issues both on the ice and personal. He missed the first nine games of last season due to suffering from mononucleosis, while also mentally dealing with Otters owner Jim Waters' death. During the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, Schaefer broke his clavicle, which ended his season.Matthew Schaefer compared to the likes of Drew Doughty as possible D-man on Opening Day for IslesAs per fellow analyst Brian Boyle, he likened Matthew Schaefer to Drew Doughty. The LA Kings veteran went second overall in the 2008 NHL Draft and was pushed to the main team in quick order, which proved to be a good thing."Yeah, I look at it in terms of it's going to be his personality and that's what the decision is going to be with Mathieu Darche and if this is going to be a problem or not for the player. Only they know that right now. I'll bring it back to Drew Doughty's rookie year...."I'm not trying to compare the two players, but I'm just saying personality-wise, if he's ready for that, is he ready to shoulder all the responsibilities of being the number one overall pick, the responsibilities of the media in the New York area, and being okay with learning some lessons along the way, being humbled in this league, because you will, especially in the first four games," Boyle said.Mathieu Darche has a few months left before the management has to make a decision on Schaefer.