According to notable hockey pundit Chris Johnston, the Toronto Maple Leafs will not be qualifying pending restricted free agent Matias Maccelli. The 25-year-old left-winger will be testing the free agent market on Wednesday as a result.
For the Devils, who have been busy in the last week or so and who need an injection of offense throughout their lineup, he presents as an appealing option, and a potential (relative) bargain get at that.
Maccelli, though canonically thought of as more of a playmaker than a dual-threat player, has top-nine chops in both regards. For his career, he has scored 51 goals on 48.34 individual expected goals (ixG), making him a slightly above-average finisher at all strengths. He doesn't shoot often, but relative to the chances he has to put the puck in the back of the net, he's pretty solid at finding twine.
As a playmaker, Maccelli excels at finding high-danger chances. Cross-ice passes and finding the slot from the perimeter are commonplace, particularly while playing on the cycle. He's a slightly above-average skater with a 75th percentile top speed and burst ability that ranks in the top half of the league as well, though it should be noted that that speed is scarcely used to facilitate play through the neutral zone -- Maccelli generally leaves transition play-driving to his linemates.
Matias Maccelli is a really good fit for the New Jersey Devils
Despite not racking up hits -- he has 91 in his career across 295 games -- Maccelli is active in pressuring on the forecheck, employing a similar style as Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt in that regard, in the sense that he relies more on outsmarting the opponents into turning the puck over rather than crashing into them to free it up. He's a hard worker in all three zones of the ice, and his underlying metrics support that notion.
For the Devils, who missed out on the trade flurry surrounding a myriad of top-six options -- Jordan Kyrou, William Eklund, and Valeri Nichushkin to name three of varying appeal -- Maccelli presents as a potential fit for minimal value. AFP Analytics is projecting his next deal to come in at two years and less than $3.2 million per season, so he should provide strong value relative to his contract. That holds especially true if he is put alongside members of the Devils' top six, where he should certainly be able to improve on his career-best of 17 goals and 57 points.
Fans will get more in touch with what direction the Devils will be heading towards in 2026-27 on Wednesday, when free agency opens up. Let's hope there are favorable contracts to be handed out.
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