New Jersey Devils’ 2023-24 Player Superlative Awards

When he left the team due to his pending arrest, Michael McLeod was arguably the most consistent forward on the team besides Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and Jesper Bratt. The biggest on-ice loss when McLeod left was his dominance in the face-off dot, as well as his penalty-killing prowess and ability to drive his line. Tierney has been the player most able to plug the hole left by McLeod. He has raised his game in the face-off dot and earned more important minutes as the season progressed. The Cobra is on pace to set a personal high of over 57% on face-offs, first among active players on the roster. Tierney’s amiable personality and ability to seamlessly integrate himself into the lineup at both center and wing, at even strength and on the penalty kill, and continuing to improve in the face-off dot should earn him a new contract with New Jersey, where he wants to stay.

Best Costume Designer

Speculation ran rampant in the weeks leading up to the Stadium Series regarding the team’s theme for their entrance into MetLife Stadium. The team honored its New Jersey roots and donned attire reminiscent of the Sopranos television show. All wore tracksuits; most wore sunglasses, and some rocked chains over undershirts, while Meier and Bratt took it further by adding pinky rings and espresso mugs, complete with double espresso shots for the bus ride. In many ways, the Stadium Series and all that surrounded it was the peak of the Devils season. When asked how the team came up with their outfits, Stadium Series hero Nathan Bastian credited captain Hischier. He said the team developed a theme, and Nico did the rest. Bastian recounted that all he had to do was show up, and Hischier had the outfits in the players’ stalls ready to go. For his efforts in designing and providing the definitive clothes of the 2023-24 season, Hischier is awarded Best Costume Designer.

Hischier shows his importance to the team in many ways. He never shies away from answering difficult questions. He steps up on the ice in the biggest moments, not only on the offensive end but often functioning as a shutdown center against the opposition’s best players. His teammates credit his work off the ice for building team camaraderie and welcoming new players into the fold. When asked how he helps new players acclimate, Hischier said, “You just try to involve them right away, go out to dinners, and be there for them if they need anything off the ice.” His understated leadership has drawn respect from his teammates and bodes well for the franchise’s future.

Most Likely to Succeed

One player seems to thrive no matter where he is played. Right-wing, left-wing, first line, second line, power play, penalty kill, it doesn’t matter. One of the most important abilities that is a key to success is availability and this player has not missed a game in two seasons and has only missed six total over the last three seasons. After totaling 73 points each of the last two seasons, Bratt, now with 82 points, has secured his first point-per-game season. His unique attributes were fully displayed in the most recent game Thursday (April 11) in Toronto, where he harnessed his speed and a wicked wrist shot to rocket the puck past Ilya Samsonov to win the game for the Devils.

This season, Bratt took on penalty-killing duties and has thrived in that role alongside Hischier. With Bratt on the ice during the kill, the team has given up fewer goals than expected and plays to a higher save percentage than when any other forward is on the ice. On the flip side, his offense has also improved as Bratt set a career-high in points, and leads the team in game-winning goals with seven. He is the guy you grew up with who is good at everything he tries. His teammates often lament how easy he makes things look. However, there is no doubt that he puts in the work, as his summer workouts are social media legends. In the face of so many things that went wrong for this team this season, Bratt is the player most likely to succeed, evidenced by breaking 80 points and surpassing 55 assists.

Best Celly

Again, there are several to choose from. Haula always has a theatrical reaction to a goal. Rookie defenseman Simon Nemec’s eye-popping leap after a goal early in the season is another candidate, as is Luke Hughes’ reaction to a game-winning goal early in the season. All are worthy; however, if one celly is to be remembered from this season, it was immediately following Bastian’s Stadium Series goal.

Playing in the home of the New York Giants, in front of backup quarterback sensation Tommy Devito, Bastian decided to pull out Devito’s celebration after his goal. When asked post-game whether it was planned, Bastian flashed his trademarked grin, showing off his missing teeth and a shiner under his eye, laughed, and admitted, “Normally guys who score every 15 games don’t pre-plan goal celebrations, but I heard Tommy Devito was gonna be here so…” The celebration perfectly embodied the theme and the joy of the Stadium Series, the best night of the season for New Jersey.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Award

Enter the locker room and walk straight ahead, passing Haula, Bratt, Palat, Kurtis MacDermid, and Hischier’s lockers. You end up in the corner, almost always filled with smiles and laughter, as you arrive at neighbors Dawson Mercer and Curtis Lazar’s stalls just around the corner from Timo Meier. The three are always welcoming and kind and often found to be chirping at each other or their other neighbors. Mercer, in particular, is known for his trademark grin, where he shows off the remnants of a battle his teeth lost with Damon Severson’s stick just before Christmas 2022. His affability and youthful exuberance are displayed in every interaction with the Newfoundland native known for his love of dogs, the outdoors, and DIY construction. What nobody knew, though, was what happens when Mercer gets angry. Everyone learned that Bruce Banner turns into the Incredible Hulk and Dr. Jekyll can morph into Mr. Hyde in the blink of an eye.

The team, their fans, and the New York Rangers would find out that answer when the switch flipped from Jekyll to Hyde in the April 3 contest between the teams. After Rangers rookie Will Cuylle boarded Smith behind the net, Mercer wasted no time to stand up for his fallen teammate and immediately challenged the bigger and heavier Cuylle. Mercer held his own despite giving away three inches and at least 30 pounds. His actions drew strong reactions from his teammates after the game and in the coming weeks. “He’s the man. Yeah. Like I think he stepped right in there. He didn’t shy away from anything. Just protecting your teammates. I think it’s it says a lot about him and his character,” Smith observed immediately after the game. Tierney joked that almost a week later, his teammates were still teasing Mercer, calling him Killer and Rocky, but it comes from a place of deep respect for his actions. “Yeah, I don’t think anybody knew he could throw down like that. So gotta watch what we say to him now.”

Patience Is a Virtue Award

The Devils have rarely chosen to use waivers as a way to supplement their roster throughout the Tom Fitzgerald era as general manager. While battling constant injury issues on the back line this season, the team took a chance on Jan. 25, 2024, claiming right-shot defenseman Nick DeSimone off of waivers from the Calgary Flames. DeSimone, a 29-year-old from upstate New York, was the victim of a numbers game in Calgary and would find himself watching the team from the scratch suite for almost six weeks until he made his Devils debut against the Dallas Stars on March 14. He did not disappoint in that debut, earning nearly 25 minutes of ice time, most of any player on either team. He has played 11 games so far for New Jersey and done well, especially when paired with Luke Hughes.

Hughes has had difficulty finding the perfect fit to match his attacking style, but DeSimone complements him well. For the month they have played together, the pair of DeSimone and Hughes is 17th in the NHL in expected goals for percentage, and the Devils have outscored opponents 7-1 with them on the ice. They have taken care of their end first, leading the NHL since DeSimone’s debut in on-ice save percentage. While he has certainly had to wait a long time for a real shot in the NHL, DeSimone may have found a fit in New Jersey to fill the role that guys like Mattias Ekholm, Dylan DeMelo, or Brayden McNabb play for stars like Evan Bouchard, Josh Morrissey, and Shea Theodore respectively. He has shown he can be productive with Hughes, eat up quality minutes, and jump right in even after being scratched for weeks. His patience is a virtue that has earned him a spot on the Devils.

Oddest Injury Designation

Members of hockey culture are familiar with the annoyingly vague injury designations released by teams. In all other major sporting leagues, injuries are precisely disclosed, identifying the actual grade and the affected body part. The NHL generally reports injuries in one of two ways: upper or lower body. That was until head coach Lindy Ruff met the press and described Meier as having a “medium body injury.” Speculation ran rampant among the Devils’ fanbase on social media as to what qualified as a “medium body.” When pressed, nobody in the know would elaborate on the nature and extent of the injury, but it was clear even after he came back that Meier was hampered and not playing at full strength.

The good news is that Meier has been a beast after fully recovering, making his presence felt in all three zones. In 32 games since his return, he has 30 points, 59 hits, and 23 blocks. He should be set for an ascendant second season in Newark if he keeps his medium body healthy.

Most in Need of a Reset Button

Last season, the Devils struck gold with their defense, consistently rolling out three lines capable of stymying even the toughest opponents. With the off-season loss of Damon Severson and Ryan Graves, the Devils were due for regression. Still, they felt that the shutdown foundation laid by Jonas Siegenthaler and John Marino in 2022-23 would carry over to this season and allow them to seamlessly integrate rookie Hughes into the lineup. Unfortunately for the Devils, disaster struck early with the season-ending injury to veteran defenseman Dougie Hamilton, which forced rookie Simon Nemec into the lineup earlier than the Devils management would have preferred. For a variety of reasons, the Devils’ defense has struggled all season. Early in the year, the group consistently gave up odd-man rushes; later in the year, they would have trouble clearing both the zone and the front of the net.

Siegenthaler and Marino were the two players expected to provide the defensive stability. For different reasons, neither has lived up to the bar they set last season. For that, both would benefit from an off-season reset. Both are still young as far as defensemen go, but both possess strengths that should make them candidates for a return to their stellar play. Siegenthaler possesses the ideal size and mobility for a modern two-way defenseman. His best work has come when paired with Hamilton, unfortunately, he was unable to find his way with any other partner, which should concern the Devils. Siegenthaler also dealt with multiple serious injuries throughout the season, from a broken foot to a concussion that robbed him of finding any continuity as the season progressed.

More concerning is the play of Marino, who last season was counted on to shut down the opposition’s best players, having great success against the likes of Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, has failed to regain consistency in his play. He also has dealt with a hand injury for much of the second half of the season. Marino has shown flashes of his great skating and ability to join the offense. Still, he has failed to shore up the back end time and again throughout the season, often lacking detail in his game, whether being caught on the wrong side of his man, failing to tie up a player in front, or an inability to cleanly break pucks out of the zone. The Devils will have a difficult choice this summer as to whether to blow up their defense corps and try to bring in reinforcements or try to tweak some of the pairings with the thought that last season’s versions of Siegenthaler and Marino are more likely to return next season.

Swiss Army Knife

On a team with four Swiss-born players, any of them would be the natural choice for the team’s Swiss Army Knife Award. Still, in this case, they were all surpassed by a plucky Canadian who has spent time at all three forward positions and on all four forward lines throughout the season. Before the season, he joked that he was looking for time on the first power play unit; ironically, it was just about the only role he didn’t fill for the team. Curtis Lazar is the Devils’ Swiss Army Knife.

His play does not go unnoticed by his teammates. In a season where he set personal records in assists and points, he also recorded a personal best in blocks. He does the things the team needs but few will do, often paying a physical price. He leads the team in plus/minus and hits and all forwards in blocks.

After a hard-fought game against the Los Angeles Kings, Brendan Smith attested to Lazar’s value, “I love his intensity; there was a play in the second period (where) he made a huge block, I think it was shorthanded too, and it just fires up the boys. It’s momentum. It keeps the puck out of the net. He’s been competing all year. I love his game. He gets underestimated, but he’s a big part of this club.” Underestimated, maybe, but certainly not unnoticed.

“Lazar is a popular guy in the room. He works, he comes to the rink every day with a positive attitude, he does things that a lot of players don’t like doing. He’s found a way from being a high draft pick and a high-end goal scoring guy and turned his career into one where he’s now a bottom-six guy and a character guy in the room, and does a lot of the things that go unnoticed but you really need to win.”

Interim Head Coach Travis Green, April 5, 2024

Fittingly, Lazar says a former teammate influenced him: “I (tried to model my game) after Patrice Bergeron. I want to kind of be that utility tool that plays the game hard but on both ends.” He epitomizes what it means to be a team-first guy and fits the team’s ethos. He is always a joy to speak with in the locker room; one of the most memorable interactions came the night before the Stadium Series game as the team finished the family skate. In the locker room, Lazar discussed his choice to use the eye-black, “Yeah, it’s funny I put it on. I was the first one to put on here in the room, and guys were like why do you have the black on? We’re playing at night. The sun’s not even out. (I said) So what you idiot, (laughs) the lights are bright. I will have it on. Does it make a difference? Yes or no, whatever. I think it looks cool.” The player his teammates call “Laser” will enter the summer with one year left on his contract and a prime candidate for an extension come July.

Goal of the Year

The Devils scored 263 goals through their first 80 games. There were several memorable and jaw-dropping goals, but only one can be crowned goal of the year. This goal was one of eight scored this season with the goalie pulled. On Dec. 27, 2023, Luke Hughes picked up a puck behind his net, picked up a head of steam, sliced through all five Columbus Blue Jackets and wired a shot in the top corner to tie the game. It was more than a goal, it was an announcement, Hughes had arrived.

At the time, Hughes’ burst was the fastest-clocked speed in the NHL. Currently, he has the second-highest recorded speed of any skater in the league. The rookie defenseman has been through a roller coaster of a season marked with extreme highs and deep lows. With the injuries and losses to free agency, Hughes was thrust into a permanent role and responded by showing up to work every day and being one of only five Devils to play in every game this season. His perseverance was rewarded as he pushed through the rookie wall to set the team record for points by a rookie defenseman and he is currently second in the NHL in points by a rookie trailing only Connor Bedard.

The season has not gone how the Devils or many expected when the puck dropped against the Detroit Red Wings following an undefeated preseason. Everything that could have gone wrong did, and the confluence of significant injury, play regression, and a brutal schedule combined to doom the Devils to another season that won’t go past game 82. As with any dark cloud, a few silver linings were sprinkled with pockets of joy. Perhaps these awards were not the ones the players desired, but they were well-earned.