5 New Jersey Devils Players Who Could Be Bound For World Championships
By Nick Villano
Pavel Zacha – Czechia
Pavel Zacha had a terrible season after his best season in the NHL. Things hit a fever pitch against the Detroit Red Wings where he missed the net completely on two amazing opportunities including a breakaway. After scoring 35 points in 50 games last season, he has 32 points in 67 games this season. Zacha’s value has plummeted, and these might be the last games we see the former sixth-overall pick in a Devils uniform.
Zacha fell off in a big way this season, and his confidence is shot, but he is still one of the better players to come out of the former Czech Republic. Zacha has never represented Czechia at the IIHF World Championships in his career, but this is as good a time as any to make his debut on the world stage. He is trying to recoup some of his value, and he wants good teams to go after him this offseason.
Zacha will easily make the Czechia team if he wants to play. He hasn’t represented his country since the 2016 World Junior Championships. He wasn’t exactly great there, scoring just two points in five games, but he did show a lot of effort that likely helped his draft status.
This would actually be a smart move for Zacha. He needs to show he can be the player he was last season. A lot went wrong for the Devils this season. Zacha is one of those problems. He has to show teams, whether the Devils or others, he can be an offensive threat.