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What Your Team Is Thankful For: New Jersey Devils

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As the holiday season approaches, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for as the season heads past the one-quarter mark. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. Let’s take a look at what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the New Jersey Devils.  Click here for the other articles in this series. 

What are the Devils most thankful for?

Rather quietly, New Jersey has built up a sizable stable of talented players under the age of 25.  Center Nico Hischier (20), the top pick back in 2017, headlines the group but winger Jesper Bratt (20) is off to a nice start to his sophomore year as well.  Centers John Quenneville (22), Pavel Zacha (21), and Michael McLeod (20) have all shown signs of upside and give the Devils strong depth at a position that’s highly sought after.  Will Butcher (24) and Damon Severson (24) provide them with capable options on the back end as well.  Other than Hischier, there aren’t any franchise pillars to build around but this group should provide them with quality depth (and likely at some point, some trade options) that can serve as a strong supporting cast.

Who are the Devils most thankful for?

Only one team is able to say that they boast the reigning Hart Trophy winner and New Jersey is that team with Taylor Hall.  They acquired the winger back in June of 2016 from Edmonton for defenseman Adam Larsson and the swap has worked out extremely well for the Devils as he has emerged as a legitimate top line player.  There’s a case to be made that he pretty much singlehandedly carried them to a playoff spot last season and while his numbers are down a little bit this year, he’s still averaging over a point per game and leading the team in scoring.  They’re also undoubtedly quite pleased that they’re getting this level of production for $6MM per year, a salary that second liners are starting to receive with regularity.

What would the Devils be even more thankful for?

Aside from Hall signing a long-term extension next summer, New Jersey would be extremely thankful if they could get back to counting on Cory Schneider between the pipes.  This season has been nothing short of disastrous as he has posted a 4.66 GAA with a .852 SV% while dealing with multiple injury issues.  (He just went back on injured reserve today with an abdominal strain.)  Schneider still has three years left on his current deal with a $6MM cap hit and given his struggles, a trade is out of the question at this point.  He was acquired to be their franchise goalie and up until this season, he was.  Now, they have to hope he can eventually rediscover his form.

What should be on the Devils’ Holiday Wish List?

Defense has been an area of need for a while and even though they’ve made some additions in recent years, it’s still a group that could certainly benefit from another top-four addition.  Another top-six forward would also bolster an attack that has largely been quiet aside from Hall, Hischier, and winger Kyle Palmieri.  New Jersey has the cap space to make some impact additions but given where they sit in the conference, it may not be long until their focus shifts towards next season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

2006 NHL Draft Take Two: Thirtieth Overall Pick

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Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.

Our look back at the 2006 NHL Entry Draft is now in full swing as we poll the PHR community to see who would have been selected in the first round and in what order knowing what we know now. Throughout this first round, we’ve seen potential Hall of Fame players switch teams, and multiple captains move up and down the draft board.

Here are the results of the redraft so far:

1st Overall: Jonathan Toews (St. Louis Blues)
2nd Overall: Claude Giroux (Pittsburgh Penguins)
3rd Overall: Nicklas Backstrom (Chicago Blackhawks)
4th Overall: Brad Marchand (Washington Capitals)
5th Overall: Phil Kessel (Boston Bruins)
6th Overall: Jordan Staal (Columbus Blue Jackets)
7th Overall: Milan Lucic (New York Islanders)
8th Overall: Kyle Okposo (Phoenix Coyotes)
9th Overall: Erik Johnson (Minnesota Wild)
10th Overall: Derick Brassard (Florida Panthers)
11th Overall: Bryan Little (Los Angeles Kings)
12th Overall: Nick Foligno (Atlanta Thrashers)
13th Overall: Semyon Varlamov (Toronto Maple Leafs)
14th Overall: Artem Anisimov (Vancouver Canucks)
15th Overall: Michael Grabner (Tampa Bay Lightning)
16th Overall: Patrik Berglund (San Jose Sharks)
17th Overall: Jeff Petry (Los Angeles Kings)
18th Overall: Jonathan Bernier (Colorado Avalanche)
19th Overall: Mathieu Perreault (Anaheim Ducks)
20th Overall: Michael Frolik (Montreal Canadiens)
21st Overall: Cal Clutterbuck (New York Rangers)
22nd Overall: James Reimer (Philadelphia Flyers)
23rd Overall: Leo Komarov (Washington Capitals)
24th Overall: Steve Mason (Buffalo Sabres)
25th Overall: Michal Neuvirth (St. Louis Blues)
26th Overall: Chris Stewart (Calgary Flames)
27th Overall: Andrew MacDonald (Dallas Stars)
28th Overall: Viktor Stalberg (Ottawa Senators)
29th Overall: Nikolay Kulemin (Phoenix Coyotes)

After being originally selected in the middle of the second round (44th overall to Toronto), Kulemin jumps to the bottom of the first round in our redraft and is the second straight player originally drafted by the Maple Leafs to come off the board.

Kulemin spent two post-draft seasons back home in Russia, playing with Magnitogorsk of the RSL (now the KHL) before crossing the pond in 2008.  He made an immediate impact with Toronto, cracking their lineup as a 20-year-old and tallying a respectable 31 points in 73 games in his rookie season.

While his numbers were largely the same in his sophomore campaign, he became one of their top scorers in 2009-10, tallying 30 goals along with 27 assists (numbers that remain his career high), providing the team with exceptional value in the first season of his two-year bridge deal.  His second season wasn’t anywhere near as productive though as his point total was cut in half and as a result, Toronto opted to again give him a short-term deal that only covered his remaining RFA years instead of locking him up long-term.  That turned out to be a prudent decision.

Following another stint in Russia during the lockout in 2012-13, Kulemin’s numbers rebounded slightly that season as he approached the half a point per game mark.  Unfortunately for Toronto, he struggled the following season, posting just 20 points and ending any thought of another contract with them in the process.

Despite his drop off in production, the Islanders surprisingly stepped up with a four-year, $16.75MM contract that didn’t make a lot of sense at the time and didn’t work out as well as they hoped.  While he had a decent run over the first three seasons (averaging just over 25 points per year in that span), that’s not a good return for that cap hit.  Last season was even rougher for him as he missed 69 games due to injuries including the final 67 games due to shoulder troubles.

Not surprisingly, that didn’t help his case for another contract in the NHL but he was able to land a three-year deal with Magnitogorsk and he’s off to a good start there with 10 goals through 25 games.  Considering he’ll be entering his age-35 season when that deal expires, there’s a good chance that he’s played his final NHL game.

While Kulemin never really became an impact scorer in the NHL aside from his third year in Toronto, he still carved out a nice career for himself.  He sits 14th in games played among players from this draft class and 16th in points, not bad for a player picked in the middle of the second round.

We now move to the thirtieth and final pick of the round which was held by the New Jersey Devils.  They opted for a physical, stay-at-home defenseman in Matt Corrente, a pick that didn’t pan out too well.  He played in 34 games with the Devils before bouncing around the minor leagues.  He retired following the 2015-16 season where he spent some time in the ECHL.  They’re clearly going to wind up with a better player in this draft than Corrente but who should they pick?  Have your say by voting in the poll below.

2006 Redraft: 30th Overall
Jamie McGinn 23.22% (121 votes)
Derek Dorsett 20.92% (109 votes)
Jiri Tlusty 13.63% (71 votes)
Matt Beleskey 13.44% (70 votes)
Trevor Lewis 13.24% (69 votes)
Peter Mueller 8.06% (42 votes)
Shawn Matthias 7.49% (39 votes)
Total Votes: 521

Mobile users, click here to vote.

Minor Transactions: 12/1/18

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It’s a full day of hockey today across the NHL, with Sharks-Senators kicking off the action with an early afternoon matinee, Stars-Canucks later on in the afternoon, and ten more contests on the way tonight. With 24 teams in action, it’s fair to expect some movement over the course of the day, even if all eyes will be on William Nylander regardless. Keep up with all of the minor transactions here:

  • After claiming Valentin Zykov off waivers, the Edmonton Oilers have made a move to open up a roster spot. The team announced that forward Patrick Russell has been returned to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Russell, a native of Denmark, was on his first career NHL call-up after signing with the Oilers out of St. Cloud State University in 2016. Russell was held scoreless in his four games with Edmonton, albeit with limited ice time, but was involved at both ends and should see another opportunity soon.
  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled veteran defenseman Erik Burgdoerfer, the team announced. The 29-year-old is in the second season of a two-year minimum deal, during which he has primarily played with the Belleville Senators in the AHL. Named the minor league Sens’ captain this season, Burgdoerfer has six points in 16 games in Belleville and leads the team with a +5 rating. Burgdoerfer has only played in one game with Ottawa this year, but is expected to see some more action on this call-up. The Senators then announced after their 6-2 victory over San Jose that Burgdoerfer has been returned to Belleville. He was just recalled as a emergency forward and did not play in the game.
  • Eeli Tolvanen is back in the NHL, as the Nashville Predators have recalled their top prospect per a team release. It wasn’t long ago that Tolvanen was considering returning to the KHL this season, but opted instead to stay stateside and work toward a regular role for Nashville. It’s unclear if this call-up will be long-term or not, but Tolvanen has 11 in 21 games, tied for second among forwards on the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, and has shown flashes of brilliance amid some streaky play. Tolvanen already has an NHL skill set and would be better served to stay in the NHL if the Predators can afford the roster spot and regular play time.
  • The Carolina Hurricanes have activated both Brett Pesce and Haydn Fleury from the injured reserve, the team announced, signaling the end of the brief debut call-up of promising young defenseman Jake Bean. Bean has been returned to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, but not before he skated in two games with the Hurricanes and looked comfortable competing at the NHL level. Bean has 11 points on the year and a +6 rating, both second among Checkers defenseman. Bean is the next man up for Carolina and hopefully will get another look sooner rather than later.
  • The New Jersey Devils announced that they have activated defenseman Steven Santini and have assigned forward Michael McLeod to the Binghamton Devils of the AHL to make room for him. Santini has been with Binghamton since Nov. 20 on a conditioning loan after suffering a broken jaw. The 23-year-old has only played in one game for New Jersey this season and played in just three with Binghamton, going scoreless. McLeod, the team’s first-round pick in 2016, had a brief callup, but did make his NHL debut, but failed to register a point in that one game. He will continue to develop his skills in the AHL where he has three goals and 10 points in 21 games.
  • With the Winnipeg Jets placing Joe Morrow on injured reserve, the Jets announced they have recalled defenseman Nelson Nogier from the Manitoba Moose of the AHL. The 22-year-old stay-at-home defender has just one assist in 22 games for the Moose, but offers the team some size at 6-foot-2. He joins a bunch of Manitoba players on the Jets’ current roster, including Mason Appleton, Sami Niku and Cameron Schilling.

New Jersey Devils Recall Michael McLeod

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While the rest of the league was busy with the flurry of waiver activity, the New Jersey Devils have made their own interesting add. Team beat reporter Amanda Stein tweets that the Devils have recalled top prospect Michael McLeod from the minor leagues, and will join the team in Washington today. A roster spot was opened when Jean-Sebastien Dea was reclaimed by the Pittsburgh Penguins, to McLeod’s benefit. The team has also lost young forward Joey Anderson, who Stein reports has a broken ankle and underwent surgery this week.

It’s hard to know what exactly to expect from McLeod at the NHL level, given the discrepancy between his draft pedigree and performance since selection. The blazing fast two-way center was picked 12th overall by New Jersey in 2016, but failed to really take a huge step forward offensively in either of his following two junior seasons. He was a big part of the Mississauga Steelheads team of course, but there wasn’t that dominating presence that most top picks have after their draft. In the AHL it has been much of the same story in his short career. Promising, solid two-way play, but a lack of real dynamic offense. McLeod has three goals and 10 points in 21 games this season for the Binghamton Devils.

There may be a case to argue for McLeod actually being better suited to the NHL game. His skating ability should certainly allow him to keep up with the advanced pace at the higher level, and his responsible defensive skills should make him versatile enough to stay a lineup even if he isn’t producing. It’s that offensive upside that will really determine where McLeod lands on the New Jersey long-term depth chart though, especially with another defensively-minded option in Pavel Zacha having trouble registering points.

Calvin Pickard, Jean-Sebastien Dea Claimed Off Waivers

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With the Arizona Coyotes dealing with some health concerns in net, they’ve decided to claim goaltender Calvin Pickard off waivers from the Philadelphia Flyers. The Pittsburgh Penguins meanwhile have reclaimed Jean-Sebastien Dea off waivers from the New Jersey Devils. Dea has been immediately sent to the minor leagues, meaning the Penguins were the only team who put in a claim.

Pickard is off to his fourth team since the end of the 2016-17 season, when he finished the year as the starting goaltender for the Colorado Avalanche. He was then selected in the expansion draft by the Vegas Golden Knights, only to be traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs before ever playing a regular season game for Vegas. In Toronto, he spent nearly the entire 2017-18 season in the minor leagues, winning a Calder Cup as a backup to Garret Sparks, before eventually being waived just prior to the start of this year.

In Philadelphia, his numbers have not been up to the level he showed in Colorado and was obviously not the long-term solution for the Flyers. He’s no more the solution in Arizona though, as he is an obvious short-term solution while Antti Raanta and Darcy Kuemper try to get healthy. Adin Hill will make the next start for Arizona, just his fifth of his career. That forced GM John Chayka to go out and acquire some more experience, something that Pickard brings even if there hasn’t been a lot of success lately.

Pittsburgh meanwhile will get Dea back after watching him score five points in 20 games for the Devils this year. The undrafted forward was a project of the Pittsburgh development system for the last few seasons, and will now re-enter that organization after getting his feet wet at the NHL level. Though it was obviously not planned, this was actually not the worst outcome for the Penguins if they felt they couldn’t afford to give Dea that short opportunity themselves. The 24-year old now has some additional NHL games under his belt, and can attempt to improve his game even further in the minor leagues.

Snapshots: Team Canada, Fletcher, Kovar

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Held in the middle of the NHL season, the Spengler Cup in Switzerland is often an afterthought among international events. Yet, Team Canada has put together quite the formidable group to lead their entry into the late December tournament, in pursuit of a fourth consecutive title. Hockey Canada has announced that Sean Burke and Ron Francis will put the Spengler Cup team together as co-GM’s, while Kevin Dineen will lead the selections as the head coach. Not only does that trio have extensive NHL playing careers on their resumes, but each have had success in their off-ice roles as well. Dineen has spent 14 seasons behind an NHL bench, including three as the head coach of the Florida Panthers, and has international coaching experience as well. His assistants, Gordie Dwyer and Mike Kitchen, are no strangers to the job either. Burke, currently a scout for the Montreal Canadiens, is familiar with Team Canada, having served as GM for the 2018 Olympic team, part of the management group for past four IIHF World Championship entries, as well as the GM of the past two Spengler Cup teams. However, it is Francis that sticks out the most. The former Carolina Hurricanes GM is currently considered a candidate for the Philadelphia Flyers’ new vacancy and, should the position remain open through the end of the calendar year, Francis’ efforts to put together a winning Spengler Cup team could be seen as part of his case for the job.

  • Another candidate for the Flyers’ GM vacancy – and perhaps the favorite – is former Minnesota Wild GM Chuck Fletcher. Fletcher was let go by the Wild this off-season and joined the New Jersey Devils as an executive, but is still held in high esteem by most in the game. Many pundits have suggested that he is the front runner for the job and now TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the wheels appear to be in motion. The Devils have given the Flyers permission to speak with Fletcher, McKenzie says, and reiterates the sentiment that he would be the preferred hire. Although Minnesota was unable to reach the ultimate goal, Fletcher had the team on a six-season postseason streak when he was dismissed and the Wild, currently with the third-best record in the Western Conference, have a core of veteran and young contributors that was by and large put together by Fletcher. The experienced executive would be a more than capable GM for Philadelphia.
  • The Boston Bruins front office may soon be facing a decision, albeit to a much smaller extent. After he appeared to be weighing a return to Europe, Jan Kovar instead finds himself one step closer to his desired destination – another shot at the NHL. The Bruins announced this morning that Kovar, who has been playing with their AHL affiliate in Providence, was up practicing in Boston today. The question remains whether or not Kovar earns a contract with the Bruins, something that Lee Stempniak was unable to do despite ample practice time with the team. Boston is without Patrice Bergeron, but still has David Krejci and has been getting admirable efforts from rookie Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and veteran Joakim Nordstrom in his unnatural position. Yet, the team scratched Sean Kuraly in their last game and is still struggling to get secondary scoring. It may be the exact scenario that Kovar needed to get a second chance after quickly flaming out with the New York Islanders earlier this season.

Calvin Pickard, Jean-Sebastien Dea Placed On Waivers

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Philadelphia Flyers president Paul Holmgren was clear that he would make a change to the team’s goaltending situation if he felt the need even as they continue their search for a new GM, and today did just that. The Flyers have placed Calvin Pickard on waivers, while also sending forward Tyrell Goulbourne back to the minor leagues. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the New Jersey Devils have also placed Jean-Sebastien Dea on waivers.

Pickard, 26, was claimed off of waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs just prior to the start of the season and ended up playing 11 games for the Flyers so far. His performance so far hasn’t been good despite a 4-2-2 record, as he has registered an .863 save percentage and is allowing more than four goals per game on average. Part of the problem may be the Flyers defensive structure given Pickard’s career .909 save percentage, but he hasn’t shown much NHL ability at this point.

That’s not to say he doesn’t have some value though, especially to the Maple Leafs who could very likely put in a claim for him. Should they be the only team to do so they would be able to send Pickard directly to the Toronto Marlies, who have had goaltending troubles for much of this season. Pickard won a Calder Cup with the Marlies last season, though he was the backup to Garret Sparks at the time. His contract carries an $800K cap hit, and would be completely buried in the minor leagues if he cleared waivers or ended up with the Marlies.

Dea meanwhile has been playing full-time with the Devils, recording five points in 20 games but became the odd man out when Marcus Johansson returned to practice. The 24-year old Dea has had a lot of success in the minor leagues with the Pittsburgh Penguins since signing out of the QMJHL as an undrafted free agent, but didn’t receive a qualifying offer from that organization in the summer. He then re-signed a one-year two-way deal with the Penguins, before being claimed by the Devils on waivers at the end of September.

Minor Transactions: 11/23/18

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The NHL was off yesterday while America celebrated Thanksgiving, but is back with a bang today with 30 of 31 teams taking part. The action gets kicked off this afternoon with the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers battling in a Metropolitan Division matchup. With all the action there might not be a ton of minor moves, but we’ll keep track of them either way.

Flames’ Dalton Prout Reassigned To AHL For Conditioning Stint

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The Calgary Flames are flying high right now, sporting the best record in the Pacific Division and winners of seven of their last ten. The Flames owe their success to a number of players, but veteran defenseman Dalton Prout has not been one of them. Prout has been a healthy scratch for all but one game this season, the team’s second game of the season back on October 6th. That inactivity has finally become a concern for the team, as the Flames announced that they have sent Prout down to the AHL on a conditioning assignment.

Prout, 28, was acquired by Calgary in a trade with the New Jersey Devils last season, in which goaltender Eddie Lack headed back to New Jersey. Prout did not suit up for the Flames, but instead played out the rest of the season with the Stockton Heat. It was the first time since his rookie season that Prout did not play at least a quarter of the NHL season, but now looks as if it could be a sign of things to come rather than a fluke.

Prout is a big, physical defender, but struggles with skating and and lacks finesse in his game. Calgary has shown that they don’t need to or want to rely on him, even last year, and are even deeper on the blue line this season. The play of rookies Juuso Valimaki and Rasmus Andersson have made Prout an unnecessary fixture in Calgary thus far. This conditioning stint will get him some play time, key on the off chance that they do need him, but seems more like a preface to a more permanent solution for Prout.

Steven Santini Sent To AHL On Conditioning Loan

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The New Jersey Devils should be getting back another young player soon, as according to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com they today sent Steven Santini to the AHL on a conditioning loan as he works his way back from a broken jaw. Santini suffered the injury a month ago, and will need to get some game experience in before jumping back into the NHL fires.

The 23-year old defenseman has only played in a single game this season, and hasn’t quite caught on as a full-time member of the Devils. Playing in 36 games last season, Santini recorded 10 points but did not suit up in the playoffs for the club. That makes just 76 NHL games so far in his short career since being selected 42nd overall in 2013, and there is no clear spot waiting for him when he returns from the minor leagues.

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