When the Devils selected John Quenneville in the 1st round they believed they were getting a potential top-6 forward; an Adam Henrique-esque player.
While that could still hold true, Quenneville's 2014-15 season leaves a lot to be desired, as his numbers don't exactly scream top-6 talent.
Through 51 games with Brandon, Quenneville has just 41 points, including just 13 in his last 21 games, and only one goal in his last 15.
It's worth noting Quenneville's numbers are likely skewed downwards a little because he plays on a deep team, but more production had to be expected from a 1st round pick.
Quenneville averaged an encouraging .95 points per game last season, and recorded 13 points in nine playoff games. This year, at 18, he's averaging just .80 points per game.
Points aren't everything, obviously, but he's 110th in WHL scoring, and 26 18-year-old players are averaging more points per game. That's not ideal for a guy who was drafted higher than all but seven of them.
It's easy to look at everything in hindsight, and Quenneville is still a good prospect, but for a guy whose offensive upside was a bit of a question mark, it's certainly not promising to see his production declining in a year where it should be on the rise.
Stockpiling Picks
The Devils had several UFAs they decided not to move, but realistically none of them would have fetched top-60 picks.
Even so, after moving Jaromir Jagr the Devils have three picks in the top-60 this year, all three of which could be inside the top-45 if Florida misses the playoffs (a realistic scenario).
New Jersey has a plethora of young defensemen on their NHL roster, and more on the way, so this could certainly be an opportunity to replenish their forward group.
This is a very deep draft and there are several 1st round talents who will be available in the 2nd round, so this is as good of an opportunity as any to bring in some high-end talent up front.
We won't know more until a lot closer to the draft (when we hear some names New Jersey has interviewed, etc.) but there's certainly reason to be excited when the draft rolls around come June.
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