The New Jersey Devils are in an interesting spot. Their NHL squad is wildly underperforming. However, there have been moments so far this season where there has been brilliance flashed. We have seen players like Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier make good plays but also guys like Dawson Mercer and Jesper Bratt.
Each of them was great during their junior days as well which could be part of the reason that they made it to the NHL in the first place. Now, the World Junior Championship just started and that should be as exciting as ever. Of course, rooting for Team USA is always fun but seeing the New Jersey Devils prospects is even better.
Playing for the aforementioned Team USA is Luke Hughes. He is the only Devils player on the home team but he might be the most important. The 2021 first-round (fourth overall) pick is a defenseman that projects to be very good one day in the NHL. If he does that, the Devils will be in good shape. He is also, as you probably know, Jack Hughes’ little brother.
Two first-round picks from 2020 are headed there as well. Shakir Mukhamadullin will play for Team Russia and Alexander Holtz will play for Team Sweden. Holtz has played in the NHL already, but it might be a while before he comes back. They want to make sure he is ready before committing to him full time.
Jakub Malek is the only Devils goaltender playing in this tournament. He will represent his country as a member of Team Czechia. The Devils selected Malek in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft. It will be so cool to see if he is able to play well in this tournament on a Czech team with lots of talent. Hopefully, he is one of those goalies who becomes a mid-round steal.
The New Jersey Devils have some interesting players in the 2022 World Juniors.
All in all, with the Devils where they are in the standings, it is fair to be very into this tournament. They have a lot of important prospects that they should be keeping an eye on so they know what they have. These four could all be a part of a nice big picture.
The Devils could also use this as an opportunity to see some of the draft-eligible players for this year. Shane Wright of Canada leads them all for the 2022 Draft which is one the Devils are probably going to be picking high in.
Studs like Connor Bedard and Matvei Michkov lead the way for the 2023 NHL Draft but nobody knows how that will shake out just yet. All of these little things are details that the Devils would be smart to pay attention to as well. They haven’t done a lot of winning lately and these kids could help them change that.