Pucks and Pitchforks
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New Jersey Devils: Five Lottery Prospects You Should Know Right Now

By Vincent Parise

HAMILTON, ON - JANUARY 16: Alexis Lafreniere #11 of Team White and Quinton Byfield #55 of Team Red following the final whistle of the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game at FirstOntario Centre on January 16, 2020 in Hamilton, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
HAMILTON, ON - JANUARY 16: Alexis Lafreniere #11 of Team White and Quinton Byfield #55 of Team Red following the final whistle of the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game at FirstOntario Centre on January 16, 2020 in Hamilton, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) /
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New Jersey Devils Jack Hughes
(Photo by Chris Tanouye/Getty Images) /

Quinton Byfield

The second-best player in the 2020 NHL Draft is Quinton Byfield. Based on raw talent and the highest ceiling, Byfield is projected to be the best player besides Lafreniere. There are a lot of people out there who would want the Devils to take someone else besides Byfield if they landed the second-overall pick, but that wouldn’t be the right move. He is only 17 years old and has the second-highest ceiling of any player in the draft.

You can’t use his position against him either. Yes, the Devils need defensemen and wingers more than centers, but Byfield is different. If he can come in and be an elite center, that would change everything for this team. You need that type of depth down the middle to compete in the NHL and Byfield might be able to do that. He will likely not be in the NHL in year one, but he will be one of those prospects that you salivate over during the entire 2020-21 season.

He played 45 games for the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League as a 17-year-old this year and had 32 goals and 50 assists for 82 points. Those are some wicked numbers for a kid that isn’t even a legal adult yet. He is already a big kid at 6’4″ and 214 lbs so another year of junior hockey should see his numbers explode even more. Byfield is the move if the Devils (or anyone) were to be given the second overall pick.

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