2022 Prospects Challenge: Observations from New Jersey vs Montreal

Powered by two late goals from Alexander Holtz, the Devils won their PC opener.

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The New Jersey Devils bested the Montreal Canadiens in their opening game of the 2022 Prospects Challenge.

They trailed in the 3rd period but late game heroics by Alexander Holtz – who scored the game-tying goal and overtime winner – proved to be the difference in what was a tight and exciting 4-3 affair.

Some observations:

Alexander Holtz flashed brilliance

Holtz talked about how adding speed, leaning out, and improving his fitness were big priorities for him this off-season. It showed.

He looked like a different cat than the guy we’ve grown accustomed to seeing. Holtz had good burst in his first few steps and was actually beating some defenders wide with speed. Not only that, his lateral and quick twitch movement looked a lot more fluid. He was doing backwards crossovers making himself available for one-timers. He was using sharp cuts to try and gain separation from defenders. We just saw a lot of tricks that weren’t in his repertoire in the past.

Perhaps most importantly, we saw his big shot. He was still true to himself and was looking to shoot when he had the opportunity. Holtz had at least four scoring chances as an individual and was rewarded with a pair of goals.

He also showcased his underrated playmaking, getting the puck into the slot for great chances on at least two occasions.

Holtz wasn’t dominant from start to finish. In the early going he looked like he was still trying to figure out how to use his speed – it was like he was surprised he could move with such pace – and he was on the wrong end of a bad turnover on a power play.

Overall, though, Holtz played a very good game; one that should give him plenty of confidence as we head into a couple extremely important weeks for the youngster.

Nolan Foote disappointed