What I'd like to see from each New Jersey Devils forward in 2022-23

From Hischier to Zetterlund, I commented on 14 different players.

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Training camps open up league-wide in just a few weeks and the 2022-23 regular season will quickly follow.

With that in mind, I wanted to go player-by-player and share what I’d like to see from each New Jersey Devils forward in the coming weeks and months.

Nico Hischier

Power play production. I love the development path Nico is on right now. He was a point per game player in the 2nd half, he drives play, he works his ass off defensively, he posted a positive goal differential against elite competition despite the worst goaltending imaginable behind him. He’s checking off all the boxes – except on the power play.

He has produced power play points at the same efficiency as *checks notes* Tom Wilson over the last three years. With a good supporting cast, and new PP coach, I’d like to see some traction in that area.

Jack Hughes

Stay healthy. We know this kid is elite. He’s as dynamic as almost anybody in the league with the puck on his stick. He can dance opponents in space, facilitate offense for teammates, and last year his finishing hit a completely different level.

I’m not going to fault Jack for a freak knee injury or getting COVID; these things happen. I think the injury prone label some have given him is a little unfair considering he led the Devils in games played as a sophomore. Let’s just hope luck is on his side and he can stay healthy because he’s the team’s best player.

Jesper Bratt

Shoot the puck. Among Devils regulars up front, Bratt ranked 8th in terms of the percentage of his shot contributions that were, well, shots. Bratt has scored on at least 13% of his shots in two of the last three years.

He amassed 5v5 goals at a very high rate this past season despite the fact he didn’t shoot a ton.

With playmakers like Hughes and Hischier on the roster – and few natural finishers – I’d like to see Bratt be a little more selfish.

Ondrej Palat