New Jersey Devils: What To Expect From Nico Hischier’s 2nd Year
The New Jersey Devils were coming off of one of their worst seasons in franchise history by the time the 2016-17 season ended. The team had only 70 points, and most people considered it a very disappointing outcome to a season that began with huge excitement.
After the season ended however, something amazing happened. The Devils won the NHL Draft Lottery and earned the right to the first overall selection. It was a moment that changed the path of the franchise for the foreseeable future.
The Devils took the stage at the draft in Chicago, Illinois, and selected 18-year-old Swiss center Nico Hischier. Hischier was known as a two-way centerman who has the ability to change games both offensively and defensively, often compared to former Russian superstar Pavel Datsyuk. Devils fans knew that if Hischier was 80 percent of Datsyuk, they would have an amazing player on the team for decades to come.
In season one of the Nico Hischier Devils experience, he did not disappoint. If anything, he was better than some people expected. He wasn’t going to score 100 points like Connor McDavid or have 40 goals like Auston Matthews, the two prior first-overall picks before Hischier, but what Hischier was able to do was about as valuable. He was able to come in at 18 years old and grab the spot on the Devil’s top line by the horn and run with it.
In his first season, on the top line as an 18 year old, he scored 20 goals and complimented them with 32 assits for 52 points. That is excellent production for a teenager in his rookie year, especially when you look at his defensive game.
Hischier had to play against the other teams best players every single night, and with top line centers Sidney Crosby, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Sean Couturier in the division. That is no easy task. Hischier also had the man who would go on to win the Hart Trophy as the MVP of the league on his left wing. Playing with Taylor Hall also means that you will see the oppositions best defenders every night as well, not an easy thing for a teenager but he showed he can do it. Hall credited Hischier for a lot of his success when he spoke about winning the Hart Trophy at the NHL Awards.
Now the question is, what can we expect from Nico Hischier in year two of his NHL career? The answer should be a lot. Hischier has his rookie season behind him, a trip to the postseason against the best regular season team in the Eastern Conference, and lots of valuable experience one year in.
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This season, it is expected that he will once again center the top line with Hall at left wing, and one of Jesper Bratt or Kyle Palmieri on the right. If healthy and playing to their potential, this could be one of the most dangerous lines in the league. Hischier has had a full offseason of NHL training, and should have some more man muscle and his wrist should be feeling better after announcing he played the entire season prior with a nagging wrist injury.
A sophomore slump is possible, but unlikely based on the fact he will have Hall to lean on offensively. His defensive game will continue to get better and possibly be considered elite by NHL standards in the not so distant future. Anywhere from 50 to 70 points is a reasonable gap of expectations for Hischier’s offensive numbers this upcoming season.
Hischier had a great rookie season, and there is only room for the young Swiss kid to grow. It is exciting times in New Jersey.