It appears the New Jersey Devils finally decided to start drafting forwards ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft this weekend.
Presumably, Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald realized a bottom-six filled with slow, injured, lethargic veterans wasn't going to cut it behind a core of dynamite offensive talents like Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier, and Timo Meier.
So, Fitzgerald got to work, selecting not one, but two forwards in the second round of the draft Saturday afternoon.
Seen as a potential first-round pick this time last year, the Devils first opted for forward Conrad Fondrk with the 50th overall selection.
He's got NHL talent and one of the better shots in the draft, and he's not small at 6-foot, 200 pounds. Fondrk will need to add another gear of speed, play strength, and find some consistency to see the NHL, but he has all the talent to make it happen.
The new Devils center had a disappointing start to his season with 13 goals and 27 points in 40 for the USNTDP at the development program level, but finished his season with six goals and 10 points in his last 10 games.
Fondrk will be a factor for the Devils with the right development path, which will start with the tutelage of former Devils forward Jay Pandolfo at Boston University next season. It helps that Mikhail Yegorov will be there, too.
Chosen 13 spots later was winger Benjamin Kevan who, like Fondrk, has a ton of talent and didn't score much for the USNTDP.
Kevan, an Arizona State commit, could add some weight to his 6-foot-1, 180-pound frame to complement the natural talent he has. The 18-year-old is already lightning quick and perfectly capable of pulling off a highlight-reel play at any moment, which, for a second-rounder, is pretty good.
I'd wager he's already the Devils' best forward prospect, or the most skilled, at the very least.
Rounding out the previously barren forward group are centers Mason Moe and Gustav Hillstrom, who are both prototypically 6-foot-2-sized centers more adept in the defensive side of the game.
The Devils landed Moe with the 90th pick, and Bob McKenzie, whose rankings are based on the opinions of NHL scouts, ranked him 77th. Moe, who will be heading to the University of Minnesota after next season, seems like a good value pick and a potential future fourth-line staple if all goes well.
Ditto for Hillstrom, who went to New Jersey at Pick 114 but was ranked 63rd or higher by Draft Prospects Hockey, Recruit Scouting, Dobber Prospects, and Smaht Scouting.
There wasn't much pre-draft buzz for this player, but he did play in 18 SHL games, scoring a goal and an assist for Brynas IF. Hillstrom was one of just four draft-eligible players to score an SHL goal this year, and two of the other three were picked ahead of him.
That's typically a good indicator of success and maturity, so the Devils, at worst, drafted three centers with reasonable NHL projections in addition to Kevan.