The New Jersey Devils have some great options with the Arizona Pick. Brendan Brisson is one of those options as New Jersey weighs its options.
The New Jersey Devils have a lot of value with their draft picks that could land in the 10-20 range. This is a very deep draft that might have some players in the middle of the first round that would go in the top-ten any other year. It is a crop of very good young players that have a chance to have impacts on their teams over the next 3-4 years. The Devils need to do whatever it takes to build around Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier.
Brendan Brisson might be one of those options with the Arizona pick, or if he falls to the Vancouver pick. He is an 18-year-old centerman that played the 2019-20 season with the Chicago Steel. He had a great year in the USHL for them with 24 goals and 35 assists for 59 points in 45 games before the season was canceled. It was a good year for the centerman who is older than most players in this draft.
He is committed to playing NCAA college hockey for Mel Pearson and the University of Michigan this fall. He will, of course, play at least one season there to see how his development goes. Chances are, he plays more than one year there, but you never know when he signs is pro deal. He should see some great development there because Michigan is a very good NCAA program. They continue to be a good team as they work to improve their program.
If he was drafted by New Jersey, there are a few things Brisson could develop to be. Chances are, he won’t ever be as impactful as Nico Hischier or Jack Hughes so he could do one of two things. He would either become the third line center or become a wing. These two franchise centers that the Devils hope to have in Nico and Jack need as much support as possible as the years move along so it would be interesting to see if Brisson could be one of those guys.
Brisson is one of many options they will have in the first round. He is one of only a few American players projected to go in the first round this year. He has a bright future no matter what but it will take some development in the NCAA.