Two rebound candidates for the New Jersey Devils

These two forwards are capable of providing a lot more than they did a season ago.

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By JP Gambatese (@JP_Gambatese)

While there are a few Devils poised to take a step backward this coming season, as Todd recently illustrated, there are also a couple of players who are due for a bounce-back campaign in 2025-26. 

Let’s talk about the two players – both forwards – that I see most fitting of a rebound slate:

Timo Meier

Timo didn’t have a bad 2024-25, but from a production standpoint, the Devils needed far more from an $8.8 million AAV player. 

Since joining New Jersey, Meier hasn’t quite lived up to the expectations of a should-be/has-been 40-goal scorer he was in San Jose. He’s been good, don’t get me wrong, with two 25-plus-goal, 50-plus-point campaigns in the black and red, but he certainly hasn’t warranted an $8.8 million paycheck.

The good news, though, is that the underlying metrics are quite favorable and would indicate a resurgence sooner rather than later.

Meier finished the 2024-25 season 16th in the NHL in individual expected goals per hour (ixG/60), ahead of notable goal-scorers Alex Ovechkin, Filip Forsberg, and Leon Draisaitl (among many, many others).

That isn’t to say that he’s the caliber of finisher of those three, but the point stands that he’s generating a ton of high-quality looks.

Timo also finished fifth in the league in shot attempts per hour (but 25th in actual shots on goal per hour), seventh in individual scoring chances, and 22nd in rush attempts. He was second on the team after only Jack Hughes in producing expected goals per hour (xGF/60).

All of this is far more indicative of a 35-goal, 70-point player than a 25-goal, 50-point guy and one who finished the 2024-25 campaign 177th in 5v5 points per 60 minutes.

Personally, I’m a huge believer in Meier and think that he would hit that point-per-game marker if he were given time on the first power play unit. I don’t think that’ll be the case, but the team’s second unit should be a bit more potent, considering additions of Arseniy Gritsyuk and Evgenii Dadonov.

A unit that previously employed Erik Haula and Ondrej Palat should now feature four threats (Meier, Gritsyuk, Dadonov, and Dawson Mercer) as well as a legitimate power play quarterback (Dougie Hamilton or Luke Hughes), which should theoretically give way to more production from that group.

Between the underlying numbers suggesting there’s more in the tank and the second power-play unit becoming a more threatening group of players, I personally believe Meier will hit the 35-goal threshold for the first time in a Devils uniform. 

Dawson Mercer