Latest On John Marino, Devils' Interest In Timo Meier
According to The Fourth Period, the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils are two clubs “interested in acquiring” the talented Swiss forward. Given the pending restricted free agencies of Filip Chytil, Alexis Lafreniere, and K’Andre Miller, it’s possible that the Rangers may only be interested in Meier as a rental acquisition since the qualifying offer to retain his rights in the summer is set at $10MM. For the Devils, they could have the room to make Meier a more long-term part of their core, but one wonders if they have the type of young center to offer San Jose that could raise their bid above the trade offers of other teams.
- Devils breakout defenseman John Marino could be nearing a return to the ice, as head coach Lindy Ruff told the media (including team reporter Amanda Stein) that Marino’s status is now considered day-to-day. The 25-year-old blueliner has been out since the middle of December, but when he was playing he was one of the Devils’ best two-way defensemen. He’s scored nine points in 32 games this season and is averaging over 21 minutes per night.
New Jersey Devils Activate Nathan Bastian From Injured Reserve
The New Jersey Devils are getting an important reinforcement, as Nathan Bastian has been activated from injured reserve. To make room on the roster, Nolan Foote has been returned to the AHL.
Bastian, 25, hasn’t played since going down in November with an upper-body injury. The physical forward had eight points in his first 21 games of the year, while seeing regular time as a net-front option on the powerplay. He was averaging just under 10 minutes a night at even-strength but is a beloved part of the dressing room and an important energy player for the Devils. He’s also a key penalty killer, a role he will likely go right back to now that he’s ready to return.
For Foote, it’s the end of a rather uneventful call-up. The 22-year-old played in three games, but failed to record a point and received just five shifts in his most recent appearance. The 2019 first-round pick hasn’t been able to crack the league just yet, suiting up only 16 times in the NHL so far. Things have been rather inconsistent in the minor leagues as well, where he has 13 goals but just five assists through 33 games.
It appears as though Bastian will return to the fourth line with Michael McLeod and Miles Wood, an incredibly fast, physical group that can chip in offensively. After a bit of a slump, the Devils are red-hot again, and have won five straight. That pulls them within one point of the Carolina Hurricanes for the division lead and into a great spot in the Metropolitan playoff race.
Nathan Bastian Could Return Thursday
- Another lengthy absence could come to a close this week, as New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff told reporters that winger Nathan Bastian is a possibility for Thursday’s matchup against Seattle. Bastian hasn’t played since sustaining an upper-body injury early in a November 26 game against Washington, leading to almost a two-month absence. The 25-year-old has eight points through 21 games after recording a double-digit goal total for the first time last season.
New Jersey Devils Recall Nolan Foote
The New Jersey Devils have recalled another one of their young prospects, bringing Nolan Foote to the NHL for the first time this season. The minor league forward will be joining the team today at morning skate, giving them an extra body for tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Foote, 22, was selected 27th overall in 2019 by the Tampa Bay Lightning and joined the Devils organization in the Blake Coleman trade less than a year later. He’s only ever played professional hockey with this organization, and so far it has been an inconsistent ride. The 6’3″ forward burst onto the minor league scene in 2020-21 with 17 points in 24 games for the Binghamton Devils and made his NHL debut, recording two points in six games with New Jersey.
But the next season he wasn’t able to secure a full-time role, and once again spent most of the year in the minor leagues. A season with 32 points in 55 games for Utica followed, and another seven games in the NHL. This time, the stint with New Jersey went pretty well, with three goals and four points. Still, given how many talented forwards the team now has, Foote was unable to crack the roster in training camp and has been back in the AHL all season.
Through 33 games with Utica in 2022-23, Foote has 13 goals and 19 points. Good, but not quite the level of production many had expected of the first-round pick. At the very least he offers some more size, but the Devils are still waiting for Foote to really assert himself as a professional and force his way onto the NHL roster.
New Jersey Devils Assign Akira Schmid To AHL
After calling him up on an emergency basis yesterday, the New Jersey Devils have sent goaltender Akira Schmid back to their AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets.
The move returns Schmid, 22, to a Comets team where he shares the crease with fellow goalie prospect Nico Daws. The Swiss netminder has had a bit of an odd season, as his numbers are poor at the AHL level but highly impressive in the NHL.
In eight AHL games, Schmid has a 4-1-3 record, a 2.72 goals-against-average, and a grisly .887 save percentage. On the flip side, in nine NHL games Schmid has gone 5-4 with a 2.24 goals-against-average and an impressive .919 save percentage.
One would typically expect a player to post better numbers at the lower level of competition, but that hasn’t been the case for Schmid. It’s highly likely that the state of the Devils, a team overflowing with competent defensive defensemen, played a role in Schmid’s numbers being better at the NHL level.
In any case, Schmid will head back to the AHL level looking to help Utica reach the playoffs. The team sits third in the AHL’s North Division and will hope to increase its lead on the two teams at their heels, the Laval Rocket and Syracuse Crunch.
Ondrej Palat Activated From Injured Reserve
The New Jersey Devils have removed Ondrej Palat from injured reserve, according to the NHL’s media site. Tyce Thompson, who was recalled recently, no longer appears on the roster and according to Ryan Novozinsky of NJ.com is being sent to the Utica Comets. The team also has recalled Akira Schmid, but had an extra roster spot available already so didn’t need a further transaction.
Palat, 31, hasn’t played since October 24 when he logged more than 20 minutes for the first time in a Devils uniform. He would undergo groin surgery a week later, meaning he would miss most of New Jersey’s incredible start to the year. Now that the Devils have started to falter, there’s no better time for the Stanley Cup champion to get back into the lineup.
Though he isn’t an elite offensive player, you will have a hard time finding any former linemates that would say a negative word about playing with Palat. He is the kind of good-at-everything player that every team relies on, and is a consistent presence at both ends of the rink. Marian Hossa-lite, he’s been called in the past, as he allows linemates to cheat offensively while covering a lot of the defensive responsibility.
That’s what the Devils were hoping to add when they signed Palat to a five-year, $30MM contract last summer. The front-loaded deal, which pays him $8.25MM this season, also came with a full no-movement clause for the first three years. The veteran forward is supposed to be able to lend his championship experience to one of the youngest groups in the league, and he’ll be welcomed back to try and help turn things around after a recent skid.
That turnaround may have already started with a decisive 5-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings last night, but there are some challenges coming on the schedule. The New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes, both division rivals, are on tap after tonight’s game against the St. Louis Blues.
Snapshots: Hughes, Pacioretty, Rhinehart
The New Jersey Devils are finally reaping the rewards of their high-end prospect pool, looking to be in a solid playoff position for the first time in years.
They could soon get another important young piece into the lineup, too. 2021 first-round pick Luke Hughes will “very likely” be in the Devils lineup at the end of the 2022-23 season after his college campaign at the University of Michigan ends, said Michigan coach Brandon Naurato speaking with NJ.com’s Ryan Novozinsky. Naurato calls Hughes a “Cale Makar-like” talent, and if Hughes is anything reminiscent of Makar’s late-season debut with Colorado in 2019, the Devils have a much better chance at breaking through an air-tight Eastern Conference.
- The Carolina Hurricanes made waves today by activating All-Star forward Max Pacioretty off season-opening injured reserve. However, it’s unclear whether Pacioretty will make his Carolina debut tomorrow night. Hurricanes team reporter Walt Ruff notes that the team will not have a morning skate tomorrow, and we likely won’t know whether Pacioretty is playing until head coach Rod Brind’Amour‘s pregame media availability in the afternoon.
- An intriguing unsigned prospect could be getting his first look in the AHL. 21-year-old defenseman Rhett Rhinehart was recalled to the Calgary Wranglers today, according to the ECHL’s transactions log. Rhinehart is valuable in that he’s a tall, right-shot defenseman with some offensive awareness. He served as an alternate captain for the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades last season, where he had 27 points in 53 games.
Simon Nemec Returned To AHL
- After Slovakia was eliminated from the World Juniors by a Connor Bedard overtime goal, captain Simon Nemec has been assigned back to the Utica Comets of the AHL where he’ll continue to play this season. The young defenseman logged huge minutes for his country at the tournament, racking up five points in five games while barely missing out on a chance to play for a medal. When Nemec was drafted, he committed immediately to playing in North America if the New Jersey Devils wanted him to, even if that meant spending the whole year in the minors. For Utica he has looked right at home, recording 11 points in 24 games so far.
Devils Assign Tyler Wotherspoon To AHL
- The Devils announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon to AHL Utica. He was recalled last week for his second stint with the big club this season but didn’t get into a game with New Jersey; his last NHL appearance came back in January 2017. So far this season, the 29-year-old has two goals and seven assists in 23 games with the Comets.
New Jersey Devils Activate Ryan Graves
According to a team announcement, the New Jersey Devils have activated defenseman Ryan Graves off injured reserve today.
Graves has missed the past three games after sustaining a lower-body injury early in a December 21 game against the Florida Panthers. The Devils have gone 1-2-0 in his absence.
The skilled defensive defenseman has nine points in 33 games this season, and he leads all Devils defensemen with a rating of +18. He’s spent most of the campaign on a premier shutdown pairing with John Marino, who’s out week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
New Jersey is in a bit of a slide after a franchise-record stretch earlier in the season, and they’re just 2-7-1 in their past 10 games. They’re hoping a bit cleaner bill of health helps stop the slide.