On Simon Nemec's quietly excellent AHL campaign

The Devils' 2nd overall pick in 2022 put together a very impressive rookie season in Utica.

Follow along on Twitter @ToddCordell | @InfernalAccess

Be sure to join the Discord channel to talk hockey, and everything else, with our writers and subscribers.

---

The New Jersey Devils just put together the best regular season in franchise history and followed it up by eliminating their biggest rival in the playoffs.

It was a great year with a ton of encouraging signs from cornerstone pieces of the team.

Jack Hughes took the leap from high-end young player to superstar and looked the part of someone who can contend for hardware every year. Nico Hischier set new career highs in goals, assists, and points while fulfilling his prophecy as the Selke candidate so many thought he’d become. Jesper Bratt put forth a 30+ goal, 70+ point campaign. Newcomer Timo Meier scored 40 goals.

Top prospect Luke Hughes also made his highly anticipated jump to the NHL and not only held his own, but excelled. The list goes on.

There were so, so, so, many good things going on at the NHL level that not a lot of attention was focused on what was happening elsewhere; like Simon Nemec putting together a remarkably strong rookie season in Utica.

Nemec produced 12 goals and 34 points over 65 games in the AHL. Those numbers might not pop off the page but they should. They’re almost unheard of from such a young defenseman.

Dating back to 2010, only 13 defensemen have spent their 18-year-old campaign as full-timers in the AHL. That list includes highly touted players like Hampus Lindholm, Moritz Seider, Rasmus Sandin, Rasmus Ristolainen (lmao), Timothy Liljegren, Oliver Kylington, and David Jiricek, among others.

None of them generated more shots (138) or goals (12) than Nemec did this season. In fact, Nemec is the only player who found the back of the net more than eight times.

He comes off similarly well in other categories, slotting 2nd – behind only Jiricek – in assists, points, primary points, and points per game.