Alexander Holtz Has A New Opportunity To Get Into New Jersey Devils Lineup

The New Jersey Devils celebrated a dominant win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday evening, their second win in as many days. It seems like the Caps were the last demon to slay for the Devils to really show this isn’t the same team as years past. Earlier this year, the Capitals made the Devils look silly on the scoreboard, even if it wasn’t the dominant performance one would expect from a 6-3 victory.

On Saturday, the Devils were as dominant as the 5-1 score suggests. Jack Hughes scored a hat trick for the first time in his career. Vitek Vanecek looked much, much better against his former team. Nico Hischier became the first player on the team to hit 10 goals on the season, and Fabian Zetterlund finished the scoring for the Devils.

It was mostly a positive night, but there was one negative that could have a major impact. Nathan Bastian got hurt on a hit, and it didn’t look good.

Dan Rice of Pucks and Pitchforks spoke to Bastian to discuss his one-year anniversary of returning to the Devils. Bastian said he was grateful to be back, so this injury will impact him. However, the Devils have to find a way where it won’t impact them. The “BMW” line (or the Impact Line as Chico Resch likes to call it) cannot lose its impact. Miles Wood and Michael McLeod need a partner.

The Devils played Fabian Zetterlud and Jesper Boqvist for part of the game. Zetterlund would be a good option to take over for Bastian long-term since he can do much of what Bastian can do. They are both big forwards with skill who can score at times and play sound defense when called upon.

The Devils only have Tyler Wotherspoon as an extra after they sent Kevin Bahl and Alexander Holtz to the AHL. It’s unlikely that Wotherspoon will be the extra. It makes more sense to bring Bahl or Holtz back up to replace Bastian’s spot in the lineup. It just feels like it’s time for Holtz to jump back into the lineup.

Holtz hasn’t played in the NHL since October 25th. If someone thinks he would have rust after sitting in the owner’s box this whole time, his play in the AHL says differently. On Saturday, Holtz scored the overtime game winner for his first goal in three games with the Utica Comets.

Holtz has a goal and two assists in three games, showing he is still too good for the AHL. Now that there is an open opportunity for Holtz, he needs to be the person to take it. He may still have trouble with speed in the NHL, but he has to get used to it by playing. He also has an NHL shot, and the Devils have enough help on the defensive side to overcome his deficiencies.

The Devils don’t know how long Bastian is out. Whether it’s a week, a month, or longer, Holtz should be the answer to who is taking his spot. Holtz shouldn’t be on that fourth line, and he doesn’t necessarily have to play on the first or second line. If Holtz gets some minutes on the third line with Jesper Boqvist and Yegor Sharangovich, he could do just fine.