Two weeks ago, we called on the snakebitten core-four forwards to start scoring goals, and Nico Hischier gifted us two on the power play with same-day delivery.
The team had been understandably disjointed in the early goings; new bodies and new dynamics take time to click. It was on the captain to push the team through these growing pains (and the chatter of dramatic Devils fans) while the season was still young.
Never too high, and, crucially, never too low.
Things are starting to come together, and the analytics look pretty good. Now, 11 games into the season, a larger sample size paints a clearer picture of what the team has and where the pieces fit. One thing the team has: a Selke-caliber center in Nico Hischier, who fits just fine at 1C.
Hischier has points (3-1–4) in four of the Devils’ last six games after putting his stamp on the score sheet in just one of the first five. While his standout game in the earlier stretch was, to be fair, a three-point performance that led to the club’s first regulation win, his consistent production is more valuable than isolated outbursts.
His stat line currently reads 5-2–7, good for third in points on a team that appears to be headed in the right direction. And it's clear why Hischier has been crushing lately.
Putting the puck in the net
Like the red-hot Arseny Gritsyuk, Hischier went into Saturday's tilt with the Los Angeles Kings tied for the team lead with five goals in 10 games. Gritsyuk scored an empty-netter to take the lead, but Hischier is still leading by example. This puts Hischier on pace for around 40 tallies this year. Other players with five goals so far include Sam Reinhart, Mikko Rantanen, and Tage Thompson.
Hischier is shooting 22.7%, a notable but perhaps sustainable jump from his high of 18.7% in 2024-25. He had a career-high 35 goals that season; if he maintains this elevated shooting efficiency through 84 games, he should comfortably crack the 40-goal window by season’s end.
The Swiss centerman has reached the 30-goal plateau only twice: first when he scored 31 during the magical 2022-23 season, and again when he notched 35 in 2024-25. As chemistry continues to build with the quick-fitting Luke Evangelista, so does the potential for Hischier to set new personal bests.
Excelling in the face-off circle
Hischier ranks 10th league-wide in faceoff wins (6,082) since his 2017 debut. He won over 1,000 drops for the first time in his career last season, finishing with 1,008 — a long way ahead of second-place Jordan Staal’s 839.
As of this writing, he’s good for eighth in faceoff win percentage (59.3%, which would be a career high) among NHL skaters who have taken at least 100 draws in the 2026-27 season.
In short, Nico is nailing his job as the dedicated ‘face-off guy.’ (Honorable mention goes to Cody Glass, whose 57.9% puts him at number 13 in face-off win percentage with the same parameters.)
Converting on the power play
The Devils' power play as a whole has been inconsistent, which is a favorable alternative to the 1-for-14, 7.1% clip that plagued their first three games of the season.
After going 3-for-4 with the man advantage in a bounceback against the Vancouver Canucks, the squad managed just three power-play goals over the next 14 attempts. This all adds up to a quite literally middling 21.9% conversion rate for the season, placing them 16th out of 32 teams.
If there is one bright spot on the underperforming special teams, it’s the Hischier-Bratt-J. Hughes connection. The trio has combined for 14 power play points, with Nico potting four of the team’s seven total PPGs. Timo Meier, Jesper Bratt, and Luke Evangelista each have a single tally of their own.
There's plenty of firepower across both units, so goal support should be on its way. In the meantime, Captain Nico will be in the crease to clean up the rebound.
Nico Hischier has been trending up. If the trajectory holds, his five-year, $11.7-million extension — which doesn’t kick in until next year — could age like a first-edition Charizard.
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