G1 New Jersey Devils @ Philadelphia Flyers: A new beginning

With an exciting young core in place, and improvements made all throughout the roster, the Devils seem poised to take a big step forward in 2022-23.

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A few things to watch for as the New Jersey Devils open their season in Philadelphia:

Alexander the Great

Alexander Holtz put forth a truly terrific preseason, showing real improvement in all areas of his game that had warts. He created a lot more at 5v5 (2nd on the team in chances), looked much more dynamic as a skater, and showed a willingness to do the dirty work.

He parlayed a handful of strong efforts into a job with the big club. The expectation is that he’ll start on the 3rd line with Tomas Tatar and Erik Haula.

While that’s certainly not as exciting as riding shotgun with Jack Hughes, it’s still a place he can be effective.

Tomas Tatar is very good at winning pucks back and excels with his in-zone passing. Erik Haula is tenacious after pucks as well. He can help with the heavy lifting defensively and win a lot of draws to ensure the Devils start with possession and can feed Holtz shots.

Although Holtz has seemingly improved upon all the weaknesses in his game, it’s still nice to have some guys on his line who can help compensate for any hiccups and growing pains.

I don’t think he’ll feel as much pressure to produce right away in this spot, and a 3rd line role does allow for him to face easier matchups; especially against a shallow team like Philadelphia. I expect a strong effort from him.

Pedal to the metal