Ekblad dished out an assist in Saturday's 3-2 shootout loss to the Predators. The assist gives the 18-year-old rookie 11 points on the season, which leads all rookie defencemen in scoring. He continues to play over 20 minutes a night on the first defence pairing and averaging 2:51 on the power play.

Ekblad picked up an assist in Sunday's 6-2 win over the Ducks. It took a little while for him to get going, but Ekblad has given the Panthers little reason to regret taking him No. 1 overall in this past June's draft. The blueliner is currently riding a four-game point streak, producing a goal, five assists and a plus-2 rating during that time. He's tied for fourth on the season in rookie scoring with 10 points, and leads first-year defensemen in that category.

Ekblad notched two assists for the second consecutive game and went plus-3 with two penalty minutes in Tuesday's win over San Jose. Now that's a well-rounded fantasy line. Ekblad looks like he's turning a corner as he adjusts to life in the NHL.

Ekblad picked up a pair of assists in Saturday's 6-4 loss to the Flames. He also skated to a minus-1 and fired three shots on goal. The highly-touted rookie rearguard is now averaging a point in every second game (six in 12 contests) this season, which isn't terrible production for an 18-year-old on the low-scoring Panthers. If the offense in front of him can find a way to score with more regularity, Ekblad would surely benefit.

Ekblad scored his first NHL goal in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Flyers. It came on the power play and it stood as the game winner. The Panthers announced earlier in the evening that Ekblad, for whom Saturday was his ninth game in the NHL, will be staying with the team this season. He has three points in those nine games and may not have much fantasy value right now. But that will change in the very near future. This guy is a calm, cool and collected stud in the making. Deep keeper leagues offer the greatest fit for his game, at least at this point.

The Panthers announced that Ekblad, who scored a power-play goal in Saturday's win over the Flyers, will remain with the team. Ekblad has had a terrific start to the season, averaging more than 20 minutes of ice time while recording a goal and two assists. Even if he hadn't scored Saturday, he had likely done enough to warrant sticking around.

The 18-year old is entering into his ninth game Saturday when the Panthers face the Flyers. It appears as though no matter how the game goes Saturday, he has impressed management enough so far to keep him around for the remainder of the season,George Richards of the Miami Herald reports. "He really picked up his game once the season started," GM Dale Tallon said. "We'll decide after [Saturday], but it looks pretty good for him." Ekblad has averaged more than 20 minutes a game since the season opener which is second-most among all rookies. He has two assists so far and is still being paired on the top unit with Brian Campbell. If Ekblad continues his strong play this season, he could be up for a Calder Trophy nomination.

Ekblad assisted on Aleksander Barkov's goal in the first period Tuesday against the Avalanche. The first overall pick in the 2014 entry draft continues to impress for the Panthers. The assist was his second of the season and he had just over 20 minutes of ice time.

Ekblad had another great defensive game in his young career Saturday against the Capitals. Ekblad played a whopping 25:25 minutes of the game and held superstar Alex Ovechkin off the scoresheet. Ekblad is being used in all situations early in the season which is great news for fantasy owners. He had two shots, one hit, two blocked shots, and one takeaway in the contest on Saturday. Ekblad also led his team in PP time with 4:27 minutes. If the power play can get things going in the right direction, he should be a major contributor.

Ekblad was credited with a secondary assist in his NHL debut Thursday against the Bolts. In his 19:05 of ice time (1:22 on the power play), Ekblad finished with a plus-1 rating and recorded two blocks, one hit and two shots on goal. All in all, it was a productive debut for Ekblad, who should remain relevant in deeper leagues as a rookie, even if he doesn't tap into his projected stardom just yet.