New Jersey Devils End Of Season Player Grades Part 1

Nico Hischier

GP:21 G:6 A:5 PTS:11

The shortened season for the new captain had some ups and downs, but once he got up to speed, Nico Hischier was looking as good as ever on the offensive side of the puck. It was really nice to see him utilize his shot a bit more than normal. He has only managed to break 20 goals once, which is a little disappointing (ignoring that two of his seasons were shortened by the coronavirus pandemic), but if he could maintain the pace from this year he would have hit a career-high easily. Add that to his stellar two-way game, and Hischier could quietly move into the conversation as a top defensive forward in the league and a Selke candidate real quick.

Final season grade: B+

Jesper Bratt

GP:46 G:7 A:23 PTS:30

Bratt had a pretty typical season for himself and was just quietly good. His Corsi and Fenwick were among the best on the team and his chemistry with Nico is just unquestionable at this point. He also was utilizing his shot way more which was something he needed to do and actually had the same number of shots as last season in 14 fewer games. His shot percentage was a career-low so one should also expect a good amount more goals next season and a push to his first 20 goal season.

Final season grade: B+

Pavel Zacha

GP:50 G:17 A:18 PTS:35

The Devils leading goal scorer this season had a very interesting year, to say the least. Visually, he made huge strides in his offensive game. With a career-high in goals and points in the least number of games, one would expect Zacha to be a huge breakout candidate, but some cracks really showed in his play at times.

Zacha was looked at, for the most part, as a third-line center who would be solid enough defensively, but his defensive numbers were not good at all. Despite his time with good players who drove the play for him, he was still a negative player in almost every way and there have been some very vocal calls to trade high on Zacha. Whatever the Devils decide, it will be something to keep an eye on because they are in desperate need of goals but if your letting in a ton it is worth nothing. Another thing more obvious to look at is his 16.5 shooting percentage, which is rather insane. Unless we believe he has a shot the caliber of Connor McDavid, Mark Scheifele, and Sebastian Aho, his goal totals are in the prime spot for a massive tumble.

Final season grade: B