The New Jersey Devils hold the 11th pick in the first round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, which will be held June 24-25 in Buffalo, NY.
There’s a few reasons why the Devils have had trouble scoring the past few seasons, one of main reasons being that the franchise has not drafted well in recent years. They simply have not selected players who have made an impact at the NHL level, specifically in the top-six forward department. The last notable prospects drafted by the Devils who have proven that they can play in the League are Adam Larsson from 2011, who has so far justified his 6-year $25 million deal, as well as Damon Severson from the 2012 draft and Reid Boucher from 2011. Two of those players are defensemen, and Severson still has a lot to prove in his young career. As for Boucher, Devils fans are hoping for a breakout year in what should be his first full season in the NHL. Yet still, New Jersey’s inability find offensive talent in the draft has left a thin prospect pool for Ray Shero and company.
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In Shero’s first draft last June, the Devils selected Pavel Zacha in the first round (pictured above) and traded up for OHL Goaltender of the Year, Mackenzie Blackwood, in the second round. Besides those players, the Devils aren’t flush with homegrown, NHL-ready prospects at the moment. John Quenneville looks to be the only player selected in the 2014 draft to have a chance at making the team this coming season. Brandon Baddock and Josh Jacobs, also from the 2014 draft, will both have to prove themselves in Albany after signing their entry-level deals.
Boston College teammates Steve Santini and Miles Wood, both selected in 2013, certainly will be given a chance to make the team in camp after signing with the Devils in April and making their NHL debuts in the final game of the season. Besides these aforementioned prospects, there isn’t much to get excited about. None of these players have NHL experience yet, but look for that to change in the 2016-17 season.
This Year’s Draft
It’s time to change the Devils trend of missing on prospects. This is a crucial draft in the rebuilding process, as the Devils hold 9 total picks in 2016.
Here’s a quick rundown of New Jersey’s selections:
First Round – 11th pick
Second Round – 41st pick
Third Round – 73rd pick (from Ottawa)
Third Round – 77th pick (from Detroit)
Fourth Round – 102nd pick
Fourth Round – 105th pick (from Boston)
Fifth Round – 132nd pick
Sixth Round – 162nd pick
Seventh Round – 192nd pick
Let’s get something straight here: mock drafts are a waste of time. I am not going to sit here and tell you who the exact selection will be for the Devils at #11 overall in the first round. It’s a crap shoot. I probably have a better chance of picking the winning Powerball numbers. Besides Auston Matthews most likely going # 1 overall to Toronto, all bets are off. Player rankings are a good starting point, they are definitely constructive and useful as a guide. But, with all the prospects eligible for the NHL draft and the always-high possibility of trades, it’s very hard to predict. Ray Shero most likely won’t even know who the Devils will be picking until they are on the clock. They’ll be targeting a handful of players, but it’s virtually impossible to foresee who will be on the board at that point.
“We want to have a competitive team and continue to build this the right way,” Shero told NJ.com. “When we do make the playoffs, we’re going to be a team built the right way and have an opportunity every year to compete for a playoff spot, not just by chance or luck, and from there become more of a contender.”
With that said, the Devils needs are pretty obvious: they need scoring. After finishing dead-last in the league in goals per game, it’s time to develop top-six forwards within the organization. With the #11 overall pick, Ray Shero better not swing and miss. Obviously, you can’t expect this player to be on the NHL roster for a few seasons, that’s not how it works. You draft for the future in the NHL, and that’s the plan that Shero is following. The Devils aren’t on a one-year plan and won’t become Stanley Cup contenders overnight. But, making an effective selection will be another important step in restoring glory days in New Jersey.
With the # 11 pick, the mindset should be pretty simple: draft the best player available, preferably a forward who has scoring/playmaking ability. The mentality should always be to take the best player available with a pick that high. If there is an offensive defenseman that is regarded as the top player on the board when the Devils go on the clock, then take him. Defensive depth never hurts, and the Ray Shero would still have 8 remaining picks to address the team’s desperate offensive needs.
Remember, the Devils should be considered buyers right now, mainly because they don’t have much left to sell besides draft picks, which Shero has been wisely stock-piling for the next three years. On top of the surplus of draft picks, the Devils have quietly been saving A LOT of salary cap space. While the final number for the 2016-17 season has yet to be determined, it will be key in this rebuilding process. The Marc Savard trade suggests that the Devils may not be big spenders this summer, but Shero is definitely on the hunt for young talent at the right price. He’ll be all ears at the draft, and we’ll have to wait and see if he pulls of something similar to the magic of the Kyle Palmieri trade a year ago. We can only hope, as adding a young, established NHL forward can certainly help jump-start the rebuild. If the deal is right for the Devils’ future, make it.
Once the Devils make all their picks on June 24th and 25th, we’ll have a full review of each selection. We’re looking forward to it here at Pucks and Pitchforks.