The New Jersey Devils saw a bunch of fringe NHL players go this offseason. We see it every offseason. Those players at the bottom of the roster who usually get a few games in when a team suffers a ton of injuries can be treated like they are a dime a dozen.
The Devils said goodbye to guys like Brian Halonen, Mike Hardman, Dennis Cholowski, and Zack MacEwen without much of a fuss. Another player who was gone without fans really losing sleep was Nathan Legare.
After leaving the Devils/Utica Comets, Legare signed a deal in the KHL. He joined the Traktor Chelyabinsk roster. There are a few familiar names on the roster, including former Devils player Vladimir Zharkov. Other former NHLers include Vitali Kravtsov, Mikhail Grigorenko, and a few other outside options.
The one Devils fans would be interested in is Nathan Legare. Legare left the Devils organization this offseason and signed with the KHL’s Traktor.
He didn’t take long to make an impact in his new league. It turns out that the larger ice sheet was exactly what Legare needed to dominate on the ice. So far in the preseason, Legare has five goals in three games.
Legare was given a shot in the NHL early last season once the injuries were starting to pile up. He didn’t do much during his NHL stint. It was the second year in a row that this happened. Legare was up in 2024 when the Devils were hurting with injuries, but the December return of Nathan Bastian forced him back to the AHL.
Did the New Jersey Devils make a mistake letting Nathan Legare go to the KHL?
Legare finished last season with 13 AHL goals and zero NHL goals. His numbers actually got worse year-over-year. He had 17 goals in 2024-25.
There remain a ton of issues with the North American pipeline to the KHL, but we often see an interesting level of value from players with NHL experience. Heck, even former Devils player Daniel Sprong has been thriving in the Russian League, something he struggled mightily to do in the NHL.
So, did the Devils miss something here? Likely not. For one, this is the preseason. We’re happy for Legare as he always seemed like a decent player for Utica, but the trip to Russia hasn’t counted just yet. Once the games mean something in the standings, then we’ll believe in what we’re seeing from Legare.
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