Yegor Sharangovich-Jack Hughes-Jesper Bratt
And now we’re back to the present. Hughes and Bratt have played 133 minutes together this season. Hughes has been phenomenal with Bratt. He’s been downright bad without. No, really. Hughes with Bratt is a play driver, scoring machine, and overall offensive dynamo. Without Bratt, Hughes is timid, unable to make his own play, and his size looks to be a problem as the defense focuses only on him.
Based on the stats, the Devils really can’t afford to separate these two. They need the best possible Jack Hughes they can get this season. That means they need to keep Bratt with him. This is more than a confidence boost. This is getting Hughes to some superstar numbers now that he’s already signed to his massive extension.
Speaking of extension, Bratt’s contract is up at the end of this season. He’s ready to get paid after this year. Keeping him with Hughes instead of constantly shuffling him around the lineup shows the Devils look at him as a superstar. That means he will feel valued, and it could come with a slight discount (which anything seems like a discount at this point).
Sharangovich was struggling for most of the year, but don’t discount how much Bratt means to him. They actually have even better numbers together than Hughes and Sharangovich. These three have amazing chemistry, and the Devils have enough talent at the forward position to afford to keep them together. The Devils would be smart to keep the top line together and work around it to make the other three lines work.