5 scariest New Jersey Devils stats that must be fixed in 2024-25

Stat #5: Players with more than 1,000 5v5 minutes: 6

The 2022-23 Devils had 11 players break 1,000 minutes at 5v5. Last year, they had six. Injuries were obviously an issue, but when you see one of the six players was rookie defenseman Simon Nemec, who joined the team after Dougie Hamilton got hurt at the end of November, it shows just how bad this season was due to injuries. 

Only two forwards played 1,000 minutes, and one was Dawson Mercer, who had his worst season as a pro. Jesper Bratt was the other forward to play 1,000 minutes. There’s a reason it seemed like there was no chemistry amongst the forwards. Twenty-three different players lined up at forward at one point or another. It was injury after injury this season, and a once-stacked forward group looked more like an AHL team by the end of it.

The defense was a little more consistent, but injuries to Hamilton, Colin Miller, Jonas Siegenthaler, and John Marino really derailed the season as a whole. This team made major changes on defense for a reason, and part of it was because of the injury risk.

Much of this will come down to luck and coaching to avoid these stats. Others will come down to players stepping up. This is a completely different roster and we expect it to be a completely different stat line. Hopefully, it leads to a playoff berth.