The New Jersey Devils finished the season with more wins than the franchise has ever seen. There was never a Devils team that had more points in a season. The coaching staff hit all the right notes. The young players hit their ceilings earlier than most expected. Jack Hughes became a superstar, and Nico Hischier found his offensive stroke.
Yet, all this happened despite Alexander Holtz being an AHL player once again. The Devils tried Holtz in a variety of roles, but he could only find his stroke in the minor leagues. To be fair to Holtz, he spent a lot of time on the third and fourth lines. It wasn’t really where he thrived. Still, Lindy Ruff tried to force it to happen.
Holtz was pretty good in the AHL. He had 11 points (six goals) in 14 games. He went goalless in the playoffs, which seems like an issue. However, he had some great assists (five in six games). Holtz makes headlines for being a goal scorer, but he is an underrated playmaker.
Reilly Walsh. OH MY.
— Ben Birnell (@BB_URSentinel) April 27, 2023
Are you not entertained?
Six-game point-streak.
Comets lead 1-0 on the PP pic.twitter.com/7PszZTEKsB
This was a good trend, but it’s not what was expected. Imagine telling Devils fans at the beginning of the season that Holtz would score three NHL goals and that they broke franchise records; nobody would believe this happened. Holtz was considered a key cog in the success of this team. He ended up not mattering.
Holtz is still 21 years old. There is no way they are giving up on him yet. However, after a preseason where we thought we found Jack Hughes a permanent winger, nobody can say that they were okay with Holtz’s finish.
As far as an NHL career, there’s no way Holtz is on his last chance. He may be someone who gets multiple chances based on his draft stock and skill set. However, he may be running out of chances with the Devils specifically. Many thought he would be included in the Timo Meier trade to the San Jose Sharks. When he wasn’t, it was considered a steal on the part of Tom Fitzgerald.
Now, the Devils have to figure out where Holtz belongs. His lack of speed makes it hard to find a fit in this system. He needs to play with Nico Hischier or Jack Hughes, but he might struggle keeping up with them. Is his best chance at success somewhere else? Tom Fitzgerald will likely make that decision next season.