New Jersey Devils: 5 Prospects Who Fell Out Of Favor This Season
By Nick Villano
Nikita Popugaev
Preseason Ranking:15
We thought we finally had a handle on things with Nikita Popugaev. The man with 1st-round talent that the New Jersey Devils were able to get in the 4th round of the 2017 NHL Draft, he’s had a tumultuous career since he was added to the prospect pool. He played in Canada to get used to the North American game, flamed out after a trade to Prince George of the WHL, went back to Russia, flamed out there after getting thrown between the MHL, VHL and KHL, then finally the Devils signed him to play in Binghamton.
He played the final 17 games of last season in the AHL, and when the Devils re-signed him in the offseason, it looked like he’d be a staple there while he developed. It will give him his first soft landing of his young career.
Popugaev gave the Devils something their prospect pool was desperately missing; size. He’s 6’6 with a really nice shot when he knows how to use it. He looked like he could be another Patrick Maroon type (we go short of saying Brian Boyle, because we think his ceiling is still shy of that).
A guy with Popugaev’s talent should thrive in the ECHL, but he wasn’t even good. He had 25 points in 47 games. Popugaev was never chosen as the starter, and was not even a go-to player at any point. Someone with his size and skill should be destroying the ECHL. Instead, he was likely a third liner.
We hoped this player just needed stability, but instead he flamed out here too. The Devils could still sign him in the offseason, hoping one last shot would be enough for him to show something, but don’t be surprised if they just let him leave for nothing.