Todd Cordell: New Jersey Devils sign Nico Hischier to entry-level contract

Todd Cordell: New Jersey Devils sign Nico Hischier to entry-level contract
- Todd.Cordell

Who?

some of Gross's remarks about camp and scrimmage

Yaroslav Dyblenko: might have a shot in training camp. 23yrs old played 5 seasons in KHL, good size at 6'2 195lbs and looks strong in front of crease clearing way for the goalie

good to hear as we need more of that

Popugaev: "man does he have good hands" and is also a good skater, Fitz and the devils hoping he turns out to be the steal of the draft and being 6'6. Will report to Prince George (WHL) but understands he has opportunity with devils.
Noted that he could use a little more strength around opponents net as he battled for position.

He has the size and skill, could be good for use after seasoning.

Also has good reports on defender Walsh who scored 2 goals and made some good defensive plays

Nice to see the prospects from this draft doing so well. This may very well be the draft that defines the team going forward and not just because of Hischier

Went to the development camp scrimmage today Zacha looks like he's taken a big step forward, Everytime Speers was on the ice he was all over the puck (have a feeling he makes the team) Hischier had amazing skating skills can stop and start on a dime he broke a few ankles today at camp kids the real deal, a lot of promising prospects if Shero can put together a solid blue line in the next two seasons the devils are going to be a cup competitor

So I went to the scrimmage today, and I was able to get a real up close look these kids, as I was able to stand on the glass. I have to say I was very impressed with all of the 2017 picks. The speed and skill was very noticeable across the board. I thought Zetterlund made some good plays and the big kid Popugaev was fun to watch.
Obviously, it was great to finally see Nico live, and this kid is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the foreseeable future. Most notably, the 2016 draft picks have made a lot of progress. Mike McLeod is going to be a beast, and I would love to see him in the lineup this year. It was just a scrimmage, but I definitely got a good glimpse of what we're in store for.

we'll see how good these kids look in preseason. I'm not trying to be pessimistic, but we're talking top picks in our system against lower picks in our system. The better picks (Hischier, Zacha, McLeod) SHOULD look much better than the rest. I'd be alarmed if they didn't. Zacha SHOULD look as good as you say he does.. cuz he's had more development, in addition to being a high pick.

fingers crossed these guys pan out where it counts.

Shvingy wont be happy

Assuming Nico makes the team, what do you guys expect from him point wise? Is he gonna play top line minutes?
Devils have brought in some keys guys this offseason, looking up again

Assuming Nico makes the team, what do you guys expect from him point wise? Is he gonna play top line minutes?
Devils have brought in some keys guys this offseason, looking up again
- Sabres1523

Realistically I can see a nice 45 point season. It's also not impossible he explodes onto the scene for 60+. He's got the tools.

I'd be shocked if he starts on the top line but if everything goes well, he may work his way up. The ultimate goal has to be to put him with Hall

Wow that goalie is not even going to make the ECHL. That was not a difficult save at all

Wow that goalie is not even going to make the ECHL. That was not a difficult save at all
- Dcoms

great, thanks for the input. I'm sure that 18-year-old kid never improves his game ever,

Why aren't the Devils releasing any of the dev. camp footage on youtube or their website? All this hype surrounding the talent level of camp, and the #1 pick from this years draft on the ice for the first time and we cant see any of it. They released every bit of ice time from last years dev camp.

Assuming Nico makes the team, what do you guys expect from him point wise? Is he gonna play top line minutes?
Devils have brought in some keys guys this offseason, looking up again
- Sabres1523

If he stays with the team all season, I'd say 35-40 points. I see a lot of similarities between Nico and Nik Ehlers, so I'll say their 1st season mirror each other even though Ehlers was a Year older and had more offensive talent surrounding him (Scheifele, Wheeler, etc.).

Wow that goalie is not even going to make the ECHL. That was not a difficult save at all
- Dcoms

If you actually knew what you were talking about, you'd know that Hischier didn't actually score that goal. It was deflected. Santini scored it.