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New Jersey Devils Development Camp Expectations For Certain Prospects

By Joseph Stanislau

VANCOUVER, BC - JUNE 21: A view of the stage after the New Jersey Devils picked Jack Hughes first overall at the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BC - JUNE 21: A view of the stage after the New Jersey Devils picked Jack Hughes first overall at the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The growth of the prospects pipeline in the Ray Shero-John Hynes Era has steadily been growing. After the past few NHL Drafts, Ray Shero and Assistant GM Tommy Fitzgerald have added more prospects like Jesper Bratt who was supposed to go to the London Knights but made the NJ roster. Bratt’s pick was huge to help snap a five-year playoff drought.

This year, there are numerous players that exciting coming into developmental camp, including Reilly Walsh of Harvard, who is a really good puck moving defenseman and power play guy could become a modern-day Brian Rafalski.

Another few prospects to see are Gilles Senn, and Akira Schmid in net. They can act as “Swiss Guards” to help keep pucks out as much as they can. Schmid is 2-3 years away as of now. He did prove to be very resilient when he was picked up by The Omaha Lancers.

Schmid is 6 foot 5 and 205 pounds. He’s still only 19 years old. Schmid did prove to be a thorn in a near upset of Canada at the World Juniors. Schmid is a very strong butterfly goalie, and he has a lot of time on his side especially with the way he’s beginning to use his goalie stick more frequently. But Schmid stands very tall, and squared to the puck.

Gilles Senn is the one of the best goaltenders currently in the Devils AHL system. He is a 23-year-old goalie who stands 6 foot 5, 192 pounds. His club HC Davos had a similar defense to the Devils last season that was abysmal. When Senn is under pressure, he can make some really spectacular saves, even in even strength. He’s always calm, and his athleticism makes up for any slightly out of positioning on shooters. Given over games played Gilles only gave up 3.19 GAA and a .901save percentage.

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If Gilles gets to play with a very sharp and stingy defense in the AHL, and NHL with The Devils, he needs to get his Goals Allowed Average around 2.88-2.99, and maybe a .915 Save Percentage. Having Senn in the AHL gives Shero and Hynes a lot of flexibility in case of Cory Schneider gets injured mid-season.

Aarne Talvitie is a Finnish forward currently playing with Penn State University. Talvitie was one of Finland’s key players and was the captain of the Finnish World Juniors team that won gold against The USA. Aarne is a really good skater with very good hockey smarts. What fans will notice when they see him approach the zone entry he can glide through the zone smoothly. His wrist and snap shot are one of the most underrated features in his game. He is one of the best steals that can turn pro with an excellent two-way game.

Nikita Okhotyuk, the Ottawa 67’s defenseman from Chelyabinsk, Russia, is both a very physical defender but he is never afraid to rip the heavy slapper on a power play. Nikita may wow some people in development camp with his physical play, and the way he can hold his zone. Another season or two will only help him marinade into a really solid defensive prospect. As Devils Assistant GM, Tommy Fitzgerald said on the Devils Daily podcast “we would rather over cook a guy than rush a guy.”

Summary:

You can never have too many goalie prospects in camp as well as really good quality defensemen. Forwards are becoming more of a strength under the Shero and Hynes era now a days.

Don’t be surprised to see Fabian Zetterlund play in Binghamton at the beginning of the season. He is a really big, physical forward that can play the North American game. Zetterlund is the kind of guy you want to man the bottom six and become a pest among NHL goalies.

Ty Smith shouldn’t be much of a surprise as a defense prospect. Jesper Boqvist is someone who I see making the team. Boqvist has proven to be a really special multi-talented forward who can be a nice offensive threat to build lines 1-3 right off the bat.

No one should be worried about Jack Hughes. Hughes is a very elite talent. I know I said it many times already. He is the kind of guy that will click right away being around coach Hynes after a nice long IIHF Mens tournament. Jack is a self starter, and offensive dynamo in many parts of the game. The kid is gonna be a rookie, but not a prospect. His game is gonna take off, and fans will be excited he and Nico will be on this team for many years to come.

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