The New Jersey Devils have a major issue on its hands. Former first-round pick Pavel Zacha is in no-mans land.
The New Jersey Devils came into this season with a lot of promise, but many questions that needed answers. There were so many young players with oodles of talent. Nico Hischier was coming into his first season after he was selected first overall. Will Butcher was the best defenseman on the college free agent market. Jesper Bratt came in as the surprise of the preseason after he was a sixth-round pick last season.
However, the one coming in with the most promise for this season was Pavel Zacha. Rich Chere (remember him?) gave the Devils Zacha pick an A- right after the 2015 draft. Since then, to say he hasn’t lived up to the expectation isn’t exactly a hot take. Zacha started the season as the team’s number one center. That feels like seasons ago. Since then he fell to the second line, then the third line, and now he’s sitting in the owner’s box. Head coach John Hynes says that now Zacha has to work his way back into the lineup.
So what can the Devils do with Zacha now? There are a lot of options on the table with a 20-year-old center with a top of untapped potential. Here are five things the Devils can do with Pavel Zacha.