The New Jersey Devils played their first preseason game, and there wasn’t a ton of NHL talent on the ice for either team. The Devils wanted to give ample opportunities for the likes of Matyas Melovsky, Seamus Casey, and Anton Silaev to get in some preseason game action.
With only four games in the preseason, the Devils have to be strategic with how they use their preseason reps. Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier probably only need a game to get ready for the season as long as practices are used to practice some game action. Sheldon Keefe is going to use the preseason to focus on what’s next.
On Sunday’s game against the Islanders, the Devils essentially played their fourth line of forwards, third line defense, and third-string goalie. The rest is expected to be with the Utica Comets to start the season. That’s why it was surprising, at least somewhat, to see who was on that fourth line.
Amadeus Lombardi has impressed just about everyone at the start of training camp. His speed and elusivity stand out in practice. In game action, he was even better.
Now, let’s get to the point of the article. We’ve talked about how Stefan Noesen is the most likely player to go on waivers to start the season. The Devils don’t have a clear spot for him in the lineup, and he’s an awkward fit at his contract. While Sunny Mehta would get salary cap help by sending Noesen to Utica, someone claiming Noesen’s final year at $2.75 million off waivers might be a way for everyone to get what they want.
However, we haven’t talked about the other option here. The Devils added Jesper Boqvist and Evan Rodrigues in the Jacob Markstrom trade this offseason. The crux of that trade was getting rid of Markstrom’s $6 million salary, but adding some bottom-six help meant something.
Boqvist started his career with the Devils. They selected him in the second round of the 2017 NHL Draft. This was the same draft the Devils got Nico Hischier.
Boqvist would grow with the Devils, eventually becoming an NHL regular in 2022-23. That was the last great Devils season. That offseason, Tom Fitzgerald shocked everyone when he didn't even give Boqvist a qualifying offer.
He eventually went to the Florida Panthers and was a contributor to a Stanley Cup winner, of which the new Devils GM was the assistant GM.
Thinking it's possible that Boqvist can go from helping a team with the Stanley Cup to going on waivers is unthinkable, especially for a team that has the lack of success like the Devils have had, but it's on the table.
Noesen has actually played well after an injury-riddled campaign last season. Remember, Noesen is one year removed from a 20-goal season.
Boqvist has never had more than 12 goals in a season, and he had just four last season. Injuries should have given Boqvist a bigger opportunity to succeed last season, but he had his worst offensive output since the COVID-shortened 2021 season.
The former Devil was an exciting addition this offseason, but Lombardi has a higher upside, and Noesen plays an interesting role. It will be really interesting to see where Boqvist and Noesen end up when we start seeing deeper camp cuts and start to see what will likely be the opening night lines.
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