Belated notes from New Jersey Devils development camp

JP Gambatese shared his thoughts on who impressed – and who didn't – at last week's prospect camp.

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By JP Gambatese (@JP_Gambatese)

With the New Jersey Devils’ development camp having ended last week, many people have forgotten about it already. After all, none of the players there are expected to be on the NHL roster come October. 

Even still, there were some notable players, good and bad, who deserve recognition. 

I was fortunate enough to attend the 3-on-3 tournament last Wednesday, and the scrimmage game was broadcasted to the masses on that Friday.

Without further ado, here are my (late) thoughts on some prospects from the Devils’ development camp:

The Notably Good

Xavier Parent

Anyone that knows me would tell you that I’ve been a massive Parent fan since he popped up at the Devils’ development camp last year, where he again seemed to light it up before signing an AHL contract with the Comets. 

He’s got the toolset to be an effective NHLer, and put that on display in development camp. He seemed to dance around defenders with ease in both the 3-on-3 tournament and the scrimmage. What was really showcased, though, was his shot.

Parent led the 3-on-3 tournament in goals, scoring four times in four games (including a hat trick in game one), and opened up the scoring in the scrimmage – all with his disgusting wrist shot.

He has a deceptively quick release that easily fools goaltenders, and is able to shoot while in stride on the rush, making him a deadly player on odd-man-rushes. 

The caveat to all of this is his size. 

Standing at 5’ 8”, 170 lbs, Parent certainly has his work cut out for him trying to make an NHL roster that already gets flack from its fans for being too small on the front end. 

He will likely get first line minutes in Utica next season. Hopefully he is able to show that his size is not a factor in his journey to the NHL.

Lenni Hämeenaho