The New Jersey Devils completely failed in 2019, and now they’re in a huge rut. With nothing to play for in 2020, they need to focus on developing one of their best prospects in Jesper Boqvist.
The New Jersey Devils did not do Jesper Boqvist any favors after plucking him from his native Sweden this season. We thought there was a chance they’d send him back to Brynas after a decent preseason, but they decided he was important for the depth of this team. What made little sense is they had him watch most games from the owner’s box as players like Kevin Rooney and John Hayden took the ice.
What makes little sense is Rooney and Hayden are likely on their final seasons with the Devils. We just don’t see the team bringing back either player. It would make sense to play them if they were contributing and the Devils were a likely playoff team, but that’s not the case. Instead, crucial minutes are being wasted as the Devils burn a year off Boqvist’s entry-level contract.
That needs to change as we head into the second half of the season. Boqvist not only needs to play, but the Devils need to focus on him on offense. They need to know what they likely have in this kid.
Coming into the season, we thought Boqvist could be a solution to the Devils second line woes. For years, the Devils offense has been generated by the top line and the top line only. Every so often, you’d get a multi-point game from Travis Zajac or the weird hat trick from Brian Boyle, but for the most part the offense was Taylor Hall, Nico Hischier and Kyle Palmieri.
The Devils don’t have Hall anymore, and they need to develop someone to play next to Jack Hughes for the foreseeable future. Can Boqvist be the finisher that line absolutely needs? Last season, Boqvist made incredible strides in scoring and durability. It was his second season playing in the Swedish professional league.
Maybe Boqvist just needs a season to get used to a major change in scenery and opposition. Things are much different in the NHL than they are in Sweden. A more obvious statement has not been said.
The Devils need to play him on one of the top two lines. See what he can do with Nico or Hughes. He needs the opportunity to get the Devils back to one that can actually score. The Devils are the second worst scoring team in the entire league. That’s even with the seven goals they scored in their last game.
Boqvist is a natural scorer, but he needs to figure out some of the little things that help you succeed in the NHL. He needs to stop getting sucked in to penalties. Boqvist needs to shoot the puck more. At this point in his career, he isn’t going to get the perfect shot. It almost doesn’t exist against defenses in today’s era. Every so often, he needs to just throw the puck at the net. This all comes with opportunity. Boqvist needs to play first and foremost.