3 Changes New Jersey Devils Could Make When Nico Hischier/Jesper Bratt Return

Devils Take Out Pavel Zacha

The Devils and its fans have dealt with Pavel Zacha’s issues because he is phenomenal at other parts of the game. He plays a nice defensive game and he’s one of the better penalty killers in the league. However, Ruff’s penalty kill looks more like a power kill (as in, the Devils will attempt to still make offense happen despite being down a man). Instead of the traditional two-line penalty kill, Ruff went with as many as four different lines. Zacha, Zajac, McLeod, Kyle Palmieri, Sharangovich, and even Jack Hughes got penalty kill time. When Bratt and Hischier return, they can both play on the PK, too.

So, after Zacha led a second line into the ground, what’s keeping him in the lineup? Granted, Nikita Gusev hasn’t played well, but we’ve seen what he can do in the past. This is years of dealing with Zacha and his inconsistency. Maybe sitting him down every so often would be good for everyone.

Obviously, this has a lot to do with asset management. The Devils spent a 6th-overall pick on Zacha. However, the team and the fans have to just get over that to be honest. He is making $2.25 million over the next two seasons, but Will Butcher is making $3.73 million and he’s in the owner’s box.

The Devils are under a new regime, and they will be able to distance themselves from the mistakes of the past. If Zacha isn’t playing well, Ruff will sit him down. Obviously, that means the Devils need to sit another player in order to fit Bratt and Hischier in the lineup. Maybe that’s Kuokkanen or one of Bastian and McLeod. Either way, sitting Zacha gives them other options.