New Jersey Devils: Takeaways From Canada Vs United States

The New Jersey Devils have a lot of reasons to be excited about the future. Watching some of them in the World Juniors solidifies that.

The New Jersey Devils are a really young team that is having a tough season. They have a young group with guys like Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier expected to lead the way for a long time. Both of those players played in the IIHF World Junior Championships during their junior days. Nico dominated his way to the top of the 2017 NHL Draft by his play with Team Switzerland while Jack Hughes solidified his number one status with the United States of America.

Now, we watch the next generation go at it in the 2019-20 World Junior Championships. There are five Devils players participating in the tournament. The two top prospects representing the Devils are defensemen, Ty Smith and Kevin Bahl. The Devils took Smith with the 17th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. They acquired Bahl in a trade that sent Taylor Hall to the Arizona Coyotes.

Smith just showed us more of the same. He was good in all three zones tot show that he is a great two-way blueliner. He can make breakout passes to give his forwards a chance to make plays. He can also run a power play from the back end. The Devils are going to need a high-end defenseman like that for the long haul so Smith’s development could be key to that happening.

Bahl is a guy that you consistently hear one thing about. He is big. He stands at 6’6″ and 229 lbs. It is one thing to be big but it is another thing to know what to do with that size. Kevin Bahl knows what to do with that size. He showed in this game that he can make big hits on the opposition, even if they are really good skaters. He had one particular hip-check against United States right-wing Bobby Brink. Brink isn’t the best skater in the world but he isn’t bad either so Bahl laying this big hit was fun to see. Hopefully, he can come in and be that steady defensive defenseman that the Devils so desperately need.

The other players that should excite Devils fans are the ones who have yet to be drafted. The Devils have the second-worst record in the entire National Hockey League right now so the second-best odds at winning each Draft Lottery spot. The number one prospect in the world is Alexis Lafreniere. He had one of the better single-game World Junior performances ever in this game. He had three assists to go with a goal for Canada in the win. The goal was a clutch one just a shift after the United States tied it at four. If he keeps this up, he will run away with being the number one overall pick if he hasn’t already.

Quinton Byfield is also someone who people can watch in this tournament as well. He is one of the youngest players playing as he is only 17 years old. He will likely be a top-three pick in the 2020 draft as well. He showed flashes of brilliance as well because he can carry the puck and create plays out of nothing. He was noticeable when he had the puck because he makes defenders back off. The Devils will keep their eyes on him as he could very well end up wearing red and black in the NHL as well.

This is a very important tournament for Devils fans to be watching because it is their future. The United States is back at it Thursday against Germany. Canada has Thursday off and will have a get together with Russia on Friday. The Devils players and potential future players are all playing well so hopefully, they can one day be a part of the big club.