Another word on Kevin Fiala

The New Jersey Devils continue to be linked to the Swiss winger.

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The New Jersey Devils have been heavily linked to Minnesota Wild forward Kevin Fiala since it became apparent he’d be changing area codes this summer.

Fiala makes sense for an abundance of reasons. The Wild can no longer afford him while the Devils can. They have a need – and want – to add another quality piece to their top-6. He’s a dynamic skater and would fit seamlessly into the way the Devils play. At 25, Fiala is in the age range where he provides value in the short and long-term. Oh, and there’s also the Swiss connection with captain Nico Hischier.

With the off-season officially in full swing, the Fiala situation will soon come to a head. While the rumors quieted of late, there is still Fiala to New Jersey steam.

Just yesterday DailyFaceoff’s Frank Seravalli opined the Swiss winger will become a Devil when all is said and done.

Alex Chauvancy @AlexC_THW

In the same episode, he also says he believes Kevin Fiala ends up with the #NJDevils after Jason Gregor asked where does Fiala ends up. This was more speculation than anything else, so take it with a grain of salt

Speculation or not, plenty of reputable reporters have connected the Devils to Fiala. Where there’s smoke, there’s generally fire.

Fiala continues to be at or near the top of my off-season wishlist. For all the talk about Fiala having one good year or, in GM Bill Guerin’s words, “three good months” the guy has a remarkably strong track record of creating offense.

As I wrote in May, you can completely discard his 2021-22 campaign and his efficiency numbers still pop.

For fun, we will completely throw 2021-22 out the window and focus on Fiala’s two seasons in Minnesota prior.

He was an efficiency god, producing 2.35 points per 60 minutes of 5v5 play. That ranked him 34th in the NHL; ahead of guys like Mathew Barzal, Sebastian Aho, Alex Ovechkin, Kyle Connor, Sidney Crosby, John Tavares, and Filip Forsberg.