Greatest New Jersey Devils player of all time: 43. Jesper Bratt
There aren’t many Devils players who scored 73 points in back-to-back seasons. For the longest time, Bratt has had trouble getting the fanbase behind him because of his rough contract negotiations. Now that he’s signed for the next eight seasons, we can finally focus on Bratt’s contributions to the franchise.
Bratt has played just 289 games with the franchise. Guess where he lands on the all-time franchise points list? Bratt ranks 24th, just ahead of Kyle Palmieri and just behind Brian Rolston. Rolston played 150+ more games than Bratt did in a Devils uniform alone.
Bratt just passed 100 career goals this season, sitting at 25th in Devils history. He’s right behind Bill Guerin and will likely pass Jason Arnott, Scott Gomez, Adam Henrique, and Scott Niedermayer this season. That’s insane!
It’s really hard to figure out where to rank Bratt. He came onto the scene on absolute fire, a sixth-round pick that shocked everyone by making the opening-night roster in his first go in North America. However, he failed to break 40 points in his first four seasons. Now, he looks like a great player looking for more. He could jump into the top 20 by the end of next season if he is able to break 80 points for the first time in his career.