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New Jersey Devils: Kyle Palmieri’s Impact In All Situations

By Vincent Parise

NEWARK, NJ - DECEMBER 20: Kyle Palmieri #21 of the New Jersey Devils celebrates his first period goal during the game against the Washington Capitals at the Prudential Center on December 20, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images)
NEWARK, NJ - DECEMBER 20: Kyle Palmieri #21 of the New Jersey Devils celebrates his first period goal during the game against the Washington Capitals at the Prudential Center on December 20, 2019 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andy Marlin/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The New Jersey Devils have the luxury of using Kyle Palmieri in all situations.

The New Jersey Devils were brilliant to bring in New Jersey native Kyle Palmieri in a draft-day trade with the Anaheim Ducks. He has been their most consistent player since that moment but is now facing an expiring contract. There have been rumors out there that they have begun talking about an extension. Palmieri is an asset in all situations, so the Devils would be smart to keep him long term.

Even Strength

Palmieri is one of the best skaters in the organization. He scores goals, makes plays, and is pretty good defensively. All of those attributes make up a good 5-on-5 player. He is a quintessential top-six player in the NHL. With some of the young centermen on the team coming into their own, he can take it to another level for the next few years.

Most people see Palmieri as the guy on the team with a great shot. That is true as he does have one wicked shot, but he scored zero even-strength goals from distance in 2019-20. He was awesome around the net which helped him score goals in many different ways. His even-strength production is what makes him one of the most dangerous forwards on the team. He had 14 goals at even strength and 13 assists for 27 points.

Power Play

The New Jersey Devils need as much help as they can get with the power play. Palmieri had 11 power-play goals and 7 power-play assists which shows that he can really help them out in that area. They need more help and if they get it, Palmieri can use that amazing wrister/snapper and slap shot to score more goals.

Penalty Kill

In 2019-20, Kyle Palmieri didn’t contribute much on the penalty kill. He only averaged 0:12 of ice time down a man but that doesn’t have to mean a whole lot. The Devils have more forwards in the bottom six who you would rather have killing penalties like Travis Zajac and Pavel Zacha. That doesn’t mean that Palmieri can’t if you need someone extra to step up. He is good enough defensively that you can believe he could be effective in that role. The hope is that they can keep him fresh enough to contribute to the other areas but if they needed him on the kill, he could do it.

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The Devils would be a worse team if they didn’t have Kyle Palmieri. If they can’t get an extension done, they should move him while his value is still high but he might be a nice guy to have around as this team tries to take the next step.

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