4. Ilya Mikheyev
There’s been rumored interest the Devils have in former Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ilya Mikheyev. The Russian sniper had 21 goals last season, but it fell under the radar with so many storylines surrounding the Leafs. Auston Matthews scored 50, so 21 goals isn’t necessarily going to take the headlines.
The 27 year old did this despite only playing 53 games this season. He finally broke out in North America after coming over three seasons ago. He’s got the scoring prowess the Devils need, and he could blossom into his best self in New Jersey. The Devils could adjust his role based on what he does best.
The risk here is that Mikheyev has one good season in the NHL. He’s never broken 10 goals in the league before this season. We’ve seen this before, and it could go one of two ways. Either a Russian player finally figured out how to adjust to a North American game, or he’s someone who pulled it all together for a contract year, and they fall back to Earth after signing the next deal.
The Devils don’t have many bad contracts. In fact, they have none past this season. So, they can afford to take a risk. This is why they have a chance to sign Johnny Gaudreau in the first place, but they also need to have a backup plan. This is one that comes with a certain level of risk, but he has proven he can be a 20-goal scorer in this league, plus he’s one of the youngest free agents in the crop.