Why Jordan Kyrou should be a priority target for the New Jersey Devils
High-end play-driving, finishing, and speed — all at a controllable cap hit — make Kyrou an ideal fit in New Jersey.
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Jordan Kyrou’s name has been a constant in trade rumors over the past year and change.
If the St. Louis Blues put him back on the market this summer, the New Jersey Devils should make him a priority target.
Let’s get into some of the many reasons why.
Elite play driver
Jordan Kyrou has developed into one of the better play-driving wingers in the league, constantly tilting the ice in favor of St. Louis.
A total of 425 forwards have played at least 700 minutes at 5v5 over the past two seasons. Of that group, Kyrou ranks 17th in net expected goal differential on a per-60 basis.
If you move the baseline to 1500+ minutes, which filters out a lot of role players, Kyrou sits 15th among 285 forwards. That places him firmly in elite company.
Expected stats are nice and all but the objective in hockey, of course, is to outscore your opponent. Kyrou is pretty good at that too.
Using the 1,500 minute criteria, Kyrou sits 34th with a net goal differential of +0.90 goals per 60 minutes of 5v5 play.
Leon Draisaitl (+0.87), Clayton Keller (+0.81), David Pastrnak (+0.78), and Kirill Kaprizov (+0.71) are a few of the many elite players lagging behind Kyrou in that category. And it’s not as if he has played for a high-end team where it’s easy to dominate his minutes.
The league’s top-three teams by xGF% this season – Carolina, Colorado, and Vegas – were the first three teams to punch their ticket to the final four.
Play-driving matters, and Kyrou would help the Devils improve considerably in that area.
