Jesper Bratt has been one of the New Jersey Devils' best players this season. The winger went into Saturday night's matchup with 80 points on the season. That leads all Devils players and is good for 10th in the league. He's in the conversation with the best of the best offensive players, and he hasn't slowed down after the Jack Hughes injury.
Of those 80 points, Bratt has been sitting on 60 assists. He tied the Devils' franchise record on March 15th with three assists against the Pittsburgh Penguins, but he failed to get an assist against the Flames or Blue Jackets in two crucial games.
Bratt was still tied with former Devils captain and Hall of Famer Scott Stevens. Many were surprised that Stevens held the record as he was more known for his hits and defensive prowess, but there was a time when he was one of the best offensive defensemen in the league. His record stood for more than 30 years. He broke the record himself, taking the assists record in 1993-94.
Stevens broke the record of 57 that was held by Aaron Broten. He set the record in 1987-88, the first year the Devils made the postseason in franchise history.
On Saturday night, that record fell. Jesper Bratt sent a pass to Nico Hischier on the power play, and he sent it home.
Clearly that puck owed Nico money.#NJDevils | @Mikes_Amazing pic.twitter.com/neHipao2Bh
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) March 23, 2025
Jesper Bratt holds the New Jersey Devils assists record all by himself.
It was the exact kind of assist you would want to break a record. Bratt gets the primary assist on the stick of his captain. Hischier, by the way, scored his 30th goal of the season on the play. It's the first time he's broken 30 goals since the 2022-23 season and just the second time in his career.
But this is about Bratt. His season has been amazing. He's become one of the best distributors of the puck in the NHL. Many were calling him a Jack Hughes merchant, but with how he's been playing without Hughes, the Devils star might be more reliant on Bratt than the other way around.
Bratt is one of the few players who has been consistent offensively this season. With Hughes out, he might be the only healthy one. If the Devils are going to hold off the Rangers and Islanders, they need to see the very best out of Bratt down the stretch. He has an outside chance at 100 points, and he could push this assists record out of the reach of any future Devils player.