When the hockey world woke up on Monday morning, they saw that a New Jersey Devil player was leading the NHL in goals with nine so far. Nico Hischier has been the hottest player on the Devils, and it's not particularly close. He's also been one of the hottest players in the league through the first month. The Swiss-born centerman also became the first Devils' player to lead the league in goals (min. five goals).
He enters Wednesday's game in Vancouver having scored in four of his last six games. Hischier also is on a three-game goal streak as well as having at least a point in five of his last seven contests. To many people outside of the Devils' organization and fanbases, his breakout comes as a bit of a surprise. However, to people who have watched his journey to this point, the talent has always been there.
Only complete fools judged Nico Hischier’s developing offensive ability when he was a literal teenager.
— Vinnie Parise (@VinnieParise) October 28, 2024
The #NJDevils captain is an elite player in every way.
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Hischier has always been described as a two-way player who can be a Selke Trophy winner. There's already evidence of that when he finished second behind Patrice Bergeron in 2022-23. Over the years, he has shown some scoring skills, but never at the pace he's on right now. According to Elite Prospects, Hischier is on pace to score 62 goals. If he achieved that, it would set a new franchise record for goals in a season surpassing Brian Gionta (48 in 2005-06).
Will he reach that mark? Probably not, but that doesn't mean he can't set a new career high for a single season (31 in 2022-23). The difference so far for him this campaign is that he's more aggressive as well as finding ways to put himself in scoring positions. His goal in Sunday night's 6-2 home win vs. the Anaheim Ducks above is a prime example.
After receiving the stretch pass, Hischier does a great job of shielding the puck away from Ducks' defenseman Tristan Luneau. Then he takes the perfect shot top shelf over goalie James Reimer's left shoulder and in. It was the perfect puck protection and the perfect shot. That right there shows the growth of Hischier's game and that he has the elite tools to score at a high rate.
Even if by season end he's not the NHL's top goal scorer, the first month of the season has showcased just how uber-talented Hischier is. Even in a down year like last year, he still continued to develop and now he's having a breakout scoring stretch. There's no question that he is the team's leader and the engine that makes this Devil's machine go. If he can keep this play up, the sky is the limit for this team and Hischier himself.