The Devils got bad news about Nico Hischier before he returned from Switzerland.
It’s literally the news New Jersey Devils fans never want to hear. It’s four words that make us all lose hope in a matter of moments. Nico Hischier is injured.
Elliotte Friedman tweeted on Tuesday night that Hischier was going to miss the beginning of camp. He apparently got injured while training in Switzerland. It’s not too serious. Friedman said that Hischier did not get surgery, and at worst he will be out for a few weeks. He might not even miss the beginning of the season. That much hasn’t been clear yet.
Still, the Devils have to come up with a plan. With Jesper Bratt already missing the beginning of training camp (and beyond at this point), losing another franchise piece is just terrible news. The Devils are already in bad shape in terms of talent at the forward position. There were already at least three spots in the opening lineup. Now, there could be up to five. The Devils have enough prospects to fill three spots, but when they have to fill five this team looks pretty rough.
Losing Hischier is arguably the hardest position to fill. The Devils now need to replace their number-one center, even if it’s just a short-term thing. Lindy Ruff is trying to put in a new system, and now his biggest piece is missing. It’s already a weird situation with a shortened training camp, smaller rosters, and no preseason games.
So, one of the biggest decisions of Lindy Ruff’s Devils career comes right off the bat. How will he replace Nico Hischier? Let’s assume the Devils aren’t going to make a panic move and bring in another center. The Devils have some options to fill the spot.