Taking stock of the Utica boys

The New Jersey Devils are going to lose a few regulars this summer. Which of the their notable AHLers are capable of filling vacancies?

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The New Jersey Devils have 13 players on expiring contracts. While some of them will get new deals and be retained, there will be several departures – we’ve already seen one in Damon Severson - and, thus, roles that need to be filled.

Most of the focus has been on external options – JP Gambatese just looked at free agents the Devils could consider for bottom-6 roles – as well the team’s mostly highly touted prospects like Alexander Holtz and Simon Nemec.

But what about other players who have spent years developing in the organization?

Let’s take a look at a few of those notables and if it’s realistic to expect them to be NHL contributors.

We’ll start up front.

Graeme Clarke

Clarke is interesting to me. Very interesting. Before I dig into the year he just had, let’s zoom out for a moment.

Matthew Phillips is expected to garner legitimate interest on the open market as an unknown (at the NHL level) skilled forward – a la Carter Verhaeghe and Michael Bunting – with real pedigree lighting it up in the AHL. And I think he should!

Those types of gambles cost very little in terms of dollars and, if they work out, the players provide an insane amount of excess value (Bunting, for example, just produced 46 goals and 100+ points over two years while earning less than $1 million per season).

If you’re wondering how this pertains to Clarke, let me tell you. Phillips had better counting totals across all gamestates but he produced 41 points at 5v5, the exact same total as Clarke.

Wait, there’s more! Said total led all AHL forwards age 25 and under. That’s right; Clarke was tied with Phillips as the cream of the crop.

Phillips was the only other 20+ goal scorer in that gamestate and the only player with more primary points than Clarke. What’s especially impressive is Clarke’s age. Phillips tore up the league in his 24-year-old season. Clarke didn’t even turn 22 until the end of April.

For additional perspective, let’s take a look at how Clarke’s 5v5 production compares historically to other forwards 22 and under. This dates back to 2015 (arbitrary cut off, I know).

Clarke posted the 3rd highest outputs in goals and points while also helping Utica score nearly 10% more of the goals than they did without him on the ice. Pretty good.

His skating is a little wonky but he is a heady player with the puck and he can really shoot it. He is still waivers exempt, meaning Tom Fitzgerald will not be at the risk of losing Clarke if he wishes to send him to Utica in the fall.

That being said, his AHL production suggests he is worthy of a healthy look when the preseason begins. There could be an NHLer in there.

Nolan Foote

Of all the team’s prospects, Foote might well be the most likely guy to make the opening night lineup. That’s not to say he should be or is the best of the bunch; I just think he has been groomed for this opportunity and the organization is very happy with his progress.