New Jersey Devils already hit with the injury bug with 20-goal scorer missing time

It’s day one of New Jersey Devils training camp, and the roster is already down one impact player. No, we’re not talking about defenseman Luke Hughes, who is not in camp as his team hammers out a new contract with Tom Fitzgerald. This time, the injury bug has hit the team.

Actually, it’s more than just one player who is out to start the practice session of training camp. Lenni Hameenaho and Shane Lachance are both expected to fight for roster spots, but they have to start from behind because they were injured in the Prospects Challenge last week. However, they aren’t the most significant injury. 

Stefan Noesen was dealing with a groin injury last season, but he tried to work through it with rest over the summer. Unfortunately, the Devils’ update explains that he aggravated the injury during the training prior to the season, and he had to get a procedure done to fix the issue. 

The Devils’ update says that Noesen is going to miss “some time.” How much time is some time? We’re sure we will get that update when GM Tom Fitzgerald speaks later on Thursday.

For now, the Devils have to find at least two replacements in the top six. For now, Evgenii Dadonov is getting the first shot with Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt. Dawson Mercer is getting a crack to make the top six again, playing alongside Nico Hischier and Timo Meier. 

An injury is never ideal, but Noesen was a hard player to pin down in this lineup. Groin injuries are incredibly hard to recover from, but the Devils have Mercer who can play a net-front presence in the top six and on the power play, and they have young players in Lachance, Hameenaho, Thomas Bordeleau, and Brian Halonen who could take the opportunity in the starting lineup. 

For now, the Devils are dealing with the players they have on the ice. It’s rough to start the season with two injuries (including the one to Johnny Kovacevic), but the Devils have the depth to overcome said injuries. For now.