The New Jersey Devils took a calculated bet back on June 25th, acquiring up-and-coming forward Amadeus Lombardi from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a fourth-round pick. The career AHLer neared a point per game with the Grand Rapids Griffins for a couple of seasons, but was ultimately behind a couple of players in the Red Wings' depth chart for reasons only Steve Yzerman would know.
After taking the flier on Lombardi, Devils GM Sunny Mehta has gone on record pumping his tires, citing him as being "much more than depth" and a calculated bet. Now, it looks like he is poised to start the regular season as a member of the main roster and is unlikely to hit waivers, which is required to send him to the Utica Comets.
Beyond just the compliments paid to the 23-year-old by the man in charge of the Devils, GM Sunny Mehta, which are more than warranted given Lombardi’s speed, skill, and work ethic, the lineups in practice and preseason should lead fans to believe he will begin the season on the fourth line. While some, including myself, expect him to eventually fight his way up the lineup and play in a middle-six capacity, the expectation should be that he is either the 12th or, at worst, 13th forward on October 1st.
Lombardi has largely been practicing on the fourth line next to Cody Glass and Connor Brown, and was a positive standout both when he played in that role and when he slotted up next to AHLers in preseason games. He will be centering the players he has been projected to fight with for the fourth line, Jesper Boqvist and Stefan Noesen, in tonight’s affair against the New York Rangers.
It seems clear the Devils have made their decision on Amadeus Lombardi
The notable part of that is that Boqvist and Noesen are not eligible to play in the Devils’ final preseason game once they play tonight, under the NHL’s new preseason rules. Saturday’s affair is expected to feature their full NHL lineup, and since Boqvist and Noesen cannot play in it, Lombardi is expected to be the player slotting in next to Glass and Brown. It stands to reason, then, that he’ll be in New Jersey’s opening night lineup.
It’s a deserved result for a player who should have been an NHLer with Detroit. There is a reason the ever-calculated Mehta was and has been extremely high on him.
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