New Jersey Devils: Joey Anderson Is A Winner Again
By Nick Villano
The New Jersey Devils have a very young team, and great prospects still in the system. One of those prospects, Joey Anderson, just solidified himself as a winner.
The New Jersey Devils have one of the best young rosters in the NHL. Nico Hischier and Jesper Bratt are still teenagers and producing on a level well past their years. Miles Wood and Pavel Zacha are 21, and have two full years in the NHL under their belts. Will Butcher, Mirco Mueller and Damon Severson are all 23 years old on the blue line. We all know that defensemen take more time to develop, and these three showed great promise.
On top of the players already on the roster, the Devils have prospects ready to take a spot. Michael McLeod seems like a lock to make the roster next season. John Quenneville has been on the roster bubble for three seasons in a row. Jesper Boqvist has the ability to be next year’s Bratt. Aaron Talvitie has been insane overseas, and will take his talents to Penn State next season.
That’s all well and good, but the prospect we should all be excited about is Joey Anderson.
Anderson just won his first NCAA title with Minnesota Duluth. He wasn’t as good as his rookie season, scoring just 11 goals in 36 games, but he ended the season in the exact way he wanted to.
This isn’t the first time Anderson raised the trophy at the end of a tournament. Anderson was part of the World Junior team that beat Canada to win gold in the World Juniors Classic last year. This year, he became captain of the USA team and carried them with seven points in seven games.
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Here’s the thing about Anderson, he’ll never be the most skilled player on the team. That’s never going to be his role. He plays his game, and he’s very good at it. He will be a supporting winger for years to come. The difference between him and most players in that role is he knows what it takes to win. While other players fall into that role because they didn’t live up to expectations, Anderson will be exactly where he should be.
Anderson loves playing in Minnesota. He will likely return to Minnesota Duluth to play with his brother Mikey and continue to develop his game. The future holds a very good career. He can bring that winning mentality into a different Devils locker room. After making it to the playoffs this season, it changes a lot about what people will think of this team in the future. It’s no longer the underdog Devils. Now, it’s one that comes with certain expectations. Anderson will fit right in with a Brian Gibbons type role. He will score clutch goals, and do all the little things that help a team win.
He may not be your favorite prospect, but he might be the one to keep an eye on. The Devils may not win all those Stanley Cups without players like John Madden and Jay Pandolpho. They don’t make the 2012 Cup Finals without Stephen Gionta, Steve Bernier and Ryan Carter. That’s the type of player Anderson can become. He’s on track to do great things on every level. He’s a winner. Period.