The New Jersey Devils are going to enter the new week 3-1-0 following a weekend win over the Washington Capitals. It was a game where everyone did what was necessary to collect two points following a tough Thursday night loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
One key to New Jersey's success so far has been its depth. Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt have been productive, but we haven't seen point-per-game level breakouts from Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, or Dougie Hamilton yet. Despite some of their top guys still waiting to get going, they have that 3-1-0 record, and it is all because of their depth. This applies to their forwards and their defense.
Their new-look third line, with Erik Haula centering Paul Cotter and Stefan Noesen, has been incredible. In Saturday's win over the Caps, Cotter scored two goals, Noesen had three primary assists, and Haula had three secondary assists. Those are the numbers one would expect from Hughes, Bratt, and Meier. Getting it from the third line is amazing.
The New Jersey Devils are looking to keep their depth scoring strong
On the season as a whole, so far (four games) Cotter has four goals and one assist for five points, Haula has four points (all assists), and Stefan Noesen has one goal and four assists for five points.
Tomas Tatar is playing in the top six to start the year, but he is very much a depth scorer for New Jersey right now, and he's been great so far, too. He scored his first goal of the season in Washington and has been wonderful defensively.
On defense, Johnathan Kovacevic has been magnificent. He has contributed some offense (1-2-3) but has been sensational on defense. His pairing with Jonas Seigenthaler has helped carry the team in their own end so far. They've only been on the ice for one five-on-five goal against through four games.
Seamus Casey is a rookie who is going to have some lapses on defense. His partner, Simon Nemec, is also very young and still learning. On the offensive side of things, however, Casey has been amazing. He has already scored two goals and they were both beautiful toe-drag shots.
If Casey and Kovacevic continue to play well, it is going to make it hard to pick who comes out when Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce are available. It is a good problem to have because the Devils are loaded with eight defensemen that they'd love to have in the lineup.
Eventually, the top guys are going to get going. Once the floodgates open for Jack Hughes, they won't be patched up any time soon. Being a 100-point player is on the table for him. Dougie Hamilton and Nico Hischier have similar aspirations alongside Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt on the wing.
If the depth keeps producing at a high clip and helping change games, this team will be super when the top guys start scoring. This team is 3-1 without the domination of their top offensive players, which speaks volumes about how good they are from top to bottom.