New Jersey Devils: 5 Players To Call Up After NHL Trade Deadline
The New Jersey Devils are probably going to be sellers at the trade deadline, which means a few guys could get called up from the AHL.
The New Jersey Devils’ great season that they were supposed to have has been a dumpster fire. They have been awful pretty much from day one of the season. They aren’t just an underperforming team either, they are one of the worst teams in the NHL. That is why they are likely going to be very active during this trade deadline. They are surely going to be selling off all of their expiring contracts to contenders.
Once these guys are gone, the organization is going to need to still finish games on the schedule. That will be where some call ups come in. The Binghamton Devils are a 22-22-4 team in the American Hockey League. The only reason they are that good is because of a big winning streak from last month. Playoffs are still a long shot, so getting some of those guys’ experience in the NHL might be worth it.
There are some guys down there who have already played in the NHL that are doing everything that they can to get back. Once there are the call ups made, the guys who are lucky enough need to take advantage. There are some guys who you would say have only one or two more chances left before the team moves on. They need to come in and make an impact so they give themselves a chance at a job in 2020-21. These five players are the ones who deserve to be called up after the deadline:
F. New Jersey Devils. Jesper Boqvist. 1. player. 85.
Jesper Boqvist has spent most of the season playing with the New Jersey Devils. He didn’t have the most impactful start to his NHL career, but there have been times where he looked like the guy who has so much promise. He was also a healthy scratch almost exclusively under John Hynes and when he was in the lineup, he didn’t really play with suitable linemates.
He is the type of player that you would consider a skilled player. He is a guy whose DNA is to create offense for his team. He likes to make plays and shoot so the hope is that he one day plays in the top-six. That is why he deserves another chance once there is extra room after the trade deadline. He would be the guy who gets the call as he has only been in the AHL for a few weeks.
He had four goals and no assists in 34 games for the Devils. He only has one goal in eight games in the AHL, but he is still getting adjusted. It is the hope that his offensive game eventually gets to where it needs to be for him to be an impact player in the NHL. The Devils felt like they got lucky when he slipped to them in the 2017 NHL Draft, but they need to give him the tools to be successful. He deserves to be called back up at some point this season.
New Jersey Devils. Nathan Bastian. 2. player. 85. . RW
Nathan Bastian is a big right-winger who has already made his NHL debut. He has three career goals in seven games for New Jersey. They all came last year as he has spent the entire season in the AHL this year. He is a guy who probably deserves another chance to be in the Devils’ bottom-six group. Bastian is a big kid who has a chance to use his big frame to impact the game.
He also has a bit of an offensive touch to his game. He has nine goals and 14 assists for 23 points in 48 games for Binghamton this season. This might be the guy the Devils want on their fourth line long term. No disrespect to John Hayden or Kevin Rooney, but this is a guy that might be better suited for the fourth line of this team.
He looked good in his seven games last season when the Devils dealt with all of the injuries, but he is still looking for his next shot. He would be a smart call up once the trade deadline passes. He is a guy that people should be rooting for to round out their lineup of forwards in the 2020-21 season. This would be a great opportunity for him to prove it.
C. New Jersey Devils. Michael McLeod. 3. player. 85.
Michael McLeod doesn’t look like he is going to ever really live up to being the Devils’ 1st-round pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. He was taken 12th overall that year by the Devils, but has yet to find consistent ice in the NHL. He has been a pretty good player in the AHL but has yet to stay with the NHL club with any sort of regularity.
In his 26 career NHL games, he only has five assists. He is still looking for that elusive first career NHL goal. It would be smart for the Devils to get him up with the big club to try to get that goal. Maybe if he gets that first one, they will start to come in some sort of regularity. It is hard to score in the AHL too where he has six goals and 15 assists for 21 points in 40 games for Binghamton. He is never going to move the needle for this team but he could end up being a decent depth player if he picks up the pace.
McLeod might be near the top of the team’s list to get up after the trade deadline because of the fact that he already has been up. He only played in five games for the NHL Devils this season and has two assists. This could be McLeod’s final chance to prove himself worthy of a consistent roster spot at the NHL level.
New Jersey Devils. Brett Seney. 4. player. 85. . F
The Devils have already called up Brett Seney once this season. He only got into two games and had no points. In the AHL for the Binghamton Devils, he has been one of their best players at any position. He has found an offensive game down there that have made an impact on the team. He was decent in the minors last season as he had three goals and 16 assists for 19 points in 26 games. This year, he has a really nice total of 16 goals and 22 assists for 38 points in 47 games.
His NHL total is small as he has only played in 53 games but he only has five goals and eight assists for 13 points. Those aren’t head-turning numbers but it would be fun to see him get another chance. The way he has played in the AHL has made a lot of people believe that he deserves another chance at the NHL level. He deserves to be rewarded in a lost season for both teams.
If Binghamton was about to go on a playoff run it might be less likely but that is a long shot. They are probably not going to the playoffs in the AHL so they have nothing lose to give Seney another chance at the big boy level. He has been fun to watch play for the AHL Devils so rooting for him to make an impact is easy.
85. . LW/C. New Jersey Devils. Mikhail Maltsev. 5. player
The only player on this list who hasn’t made his NHL debut with the New Jersey Devils yet is Mikhail Maltsev. The Devils took him in the fourth round of the 2016 NHL Draft. He is only 21 years old and he is currently only in his first season playing for a North American team. He has spent the previous few seasons playing in Russian professional leagues including the KHL.
His time in the KHL saw him play with current Devils forward Nikita Gusev with SKA St. Petersburg. There were some other great players on that team last year including Pavel Datsyuk and Igor Shesterkin. He clearly has some experience playing with some really good players so a move up to the NHL might not be that big of a problem for him.
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A lot of Devils fans wants to see him come up so it wouldn’t hurt to see the organization give him his first chance this season. In 36 games for Binghamton, he has seven goals and five assists for 12 points. You will never know if he is one of those guys who can translate his game until you give him the opportunity. They also have Gusev there to help him along with anything off the ice. It would be fun to see guys start to make their NHL debuts down the stretch after the trade deadline and Maltsev probably leads that list.