Twenty-four games into the season, the Devils currently have the most points of any team in the NHL. That's a bit of a mirage, as they've played more games than any other team, and their points percentage is really the sixth best in the league. That stat is ultimately the most important, as it will determine whether they are playing for a Stanley Cup or golfing come mid-April.
But now that we are more than a quarter of the way through the season, let's take a look at one stat in which each Devils player excels compared to the rest of the NHL. First, we'll look at the Devils' forwards, but we will take a look at the defenders and goalies in future articles as well. All stats referenced are courtesy of Natural Stat Trick or Hockey Reference's leaderboard. We decided to set the baseline at 100 minutes of ice time this season to filter out some of the small sample size cameos from players like Daniil Misyul and Nolan Foote.
Nico Hischier - Penalties Drawn (15)
Nico's relentless motor has lead to a rash of defenders taking penalties to prevent him from generating scoring chances. He is third in the NHL in penalties drawn (15) behind only the Bruins' David Pastrnak (17) and Brad Marchand (13). Even more impressive is his discipline in response; he has taken only 1 minor penalty himself, unlike Pastrnak (9 taken) and Marchand (10 taken).