There are a lot of highly-touted New Jersey Devils prospects that fans are excited for. However, there's one unsigned prospect that deserves more attention: Artem Shlaine from Arizona State University. Shlaine was selected in the fifth round by the Devils in 2020. He originally hails from Russia, similar to Anton Silayev and Mikhail Yegorov. After putting up subpar numbers with Connecticut (2020-2022) and Northern Michigan (2022-2024), Shlaine revived his collegiate career with the Sun Devils under head coach Greg Powers.
What Happened at ASU?
After being independent for many years, the Sun Devils joined the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Division for the first time this season. The Denver Pioneers, who are the defending national champions, also compete in the same division. Despite being new, the Sun Devils had a historic season. They collected 21 wins and were consistently ranked in the top 20 by USCHO and USA Hockey. At one point, the team went on a 10-game winning streak, including back-to-back wins against Denver, who were the #1 ranked team in the nation at the time.
The Sun Devils carried their momentum into the NCHC tournament and swept Minnesota Duluth in front of an electric crowd at Mullett Arena. It was great to see a playoff atmosphere in the desert once again. Unfortunately, the Sun Devils' historic season ended in the semifinals after losing to Denver at Xcel Energy Center. But the Sun Devils impressed in their first season as members of the NCHC.
What Does Shlaine Bring to The Table?
Before the draft, Shlaine had a stellar two-year tenure with Shattuck St. Mary's. In 102 career games played with them, he tallied 168 points (60 goals, 108 assists). Scouts raved about his stellar passing abilities and how he also uses his elusiveness to generate shots at his size. After uninspiring seasons with both Connecticut and Northern Michigan, Shlaine played a big role on the Sun Devils' top line. He was second on the team in goals (17) and points (38) in 31 games.
He was also very effective in the faceoff dot, posting a 55 FO%, which was 14th best in the NCHC. He established himself during January. For starters, he helped lead the Sun Devils to their second straight Desert Hockey Classic championship. In 10 games played during January, he led the NCHC in points (18), assists (13), short-handed goals (two), plus-minus rating (+11), and tied the program record for the second-longest points streak (seven).
Unfortunately, he suffered an injury against Miami-Ohio on January 31. Defenseman Ryan Cox laid a big hit on him. As a result, Shlaine had to be stretched off the rink and transported to a nearby hospital for further testing. Luckily, he didn't miss any time, but it was still a disappointing way to end his dominant January.
Now that Shlaine's collegiate career is over, the Devils should sign him to an entry-level contract. He's demonstrated that he's a prolific scorer and was a big reason why the Sun Devils saw so much success in their first season apart of the NCHC. Given his track history with Shattuck, he has a lot of potential. Luckily, he was able to unlock some of it under Coach Powers.