The New Jersey Devils have big questions facing the forward group. They didn’t address the hole in the top six, and they didn’t address the hole they have at third-line center. For the top six, there’s still time to make a trade, but at this point in the offseason, it feels unlikely.
If the Devils go into training camp with this current roster, they have a few options for the top six. Dawson Mercer will probably get the first shot, as he was given a shot in the top six last season. However, one thing seems certain: the Devils need this year’s team to get better at goal scoring than they were last season.
Which brought us to ask Devils fans a question. We want to know who fans think would be more important to add a significant number of goals to their stat line. We went with 15 more goals than they scored for the Devils last season. That seems realistic for the players we chose, but it’s also significant enough with the nuances for the four players in the poll that it mattered immensely.
Obviously, if the Devils got 15 more goals from Paul Cotter or Cody Glass, they’d be thrilled, but we wanted to live in reality.
So, we asked fans to choose between Jack Hughes, Timo Meier, rookie Arseniy Gritsyuk, and Mercer. We love this question because each player adding 15 goals to last year’s total is important for very different reasons.
Let’s start with Jack Hughes. Most believe that Hughes could add 15 goals to his total if he just stays healthy. Adding 15 goals to his 2024-25 total would give him 42 for the season. That’s realistic, as he had 43 goals in 2022-23. Hughes has been a great goal scorer, and the Devils’ power play has been borderline elite.
Hughes staying healthy is about as important as anything for this team, and if he adds those 15 goals, one has to assume he played at least 75 games.
When it comes to Meier, this is important for a completely different reason. The Devils added Meier to be a goal scorer with grit. He can knock a guy’s teeth out when necessary, but he could score an insane goal on his next shift.
Unfortunately for him, Meier hasn’t scored at that level in New Jersey. He has six years left on his contract paying him a hair under $9 million per season. He needs to be, at a minimum, a consistent 30-goal scorer for the rest of this contract. If one adds 15 goals to his 2024-25 total, he would have 41 goals next season. We can’t express how much he needs a season like that.
Mercer is an interesting name here because if he scores 15 more goals than last season, it would give him 34 on the season. Mercer needs to show that he can bounce back from last year’s season. He only had 19 goals, which is the lowest he’s had since his rookie season.
Seeing Mercer score more than 30 goals probably means he was in the top six and solved their problems there with an internal option. That would be huge for the Devils going into the playoffs.
Of course, the final option is a rookie. If Gritsyuk scores 15 goals this season, it would be an essential scoring option on the bottom six. That solves more problems for the Devils, especially if Evgenii Dadonov and Connor Brown do their job.
This also means the Devils keep Gritsyuk the entire season. We learned about his KHL out clause if he’s not on the NHL roster the entire season. As a rookie, it’s hard to imagine he’s not on the NHL roster the entire season if he scores 15 goals.
So, which of the above scenarios do Devils fans think is most important?
If I told you someone on the Devils would add 15 goals to their 2024-25 totals, who would you say is most important?
— Pucks and Pitchforks (@pitchforkedpuck) August 18, 2025
As you can see above, Meier was the pick among Devils fans. It makes sense. Most think that Hughes can impact the game in so many ways, and Mercer might be the team’s third-line center, which would mute his goal-scoring impact. Gritsyuk is a rookie who will start in the bottom six, so if he scores, say, 10 goals, it’s not the end of the world.
However, if Meier goes for under 30 goals again, the Devils might be stuck accepting Meier for what he is. He’s a March merchant who hasn’t done enough to help the Devils across the system. Getting him to score 40+ goals in a season would give him the confidence he needs, and it might set up the rest of his Devils career.
The Olympics are this season, and that could motivate Meier to be even better this season, so a jump in goal scoring is realistic. He’s been a 40-goal scorer in the past, and the Devils thought that’s what they were getting when they traded for him. Hopefully, he can make it happen.