New Jersey Devils Prospect Update: 12/2/14

This post will recap the ninth week of Devils prospect action for the 2014-15 season. It's highlighted by Ryan Kujawinski continuing to get the job done, Blake Pietila and Joey Dudek in slumps for their respective teams, and Albany gaining five out of a possible six points on the week thanks to Joe Whitney, Graham Black, and strong goaltending. Check out the stats below!

CHL

Ryan Kujawinski is steadily climbing towards a point per game place, though in his age 19 season, he really needs to eclipse that by the end of the year. In three games this past week he had a goal and four assists. In his last nine games he has seven goals and seven assists. The Devils other OHL prospect, Connor Chatham only appeared in one game last week due to a minor injury. He made it count though with two assists in a Plymouth victory over Windsor.

John Quenneville picked up a goal and an assist in three games for Brandon last week. Ryan Rehill was limited to two games last week where he picked up a suspension for instigating a fight in last five minutes of the game against Regina, causing him to miss Kamloops' third game of the week. Brandon Baddock appeared in four games for Edmonton last week putting up three goals and an assist. His five game scoring streak was snapped against Medicine Hat on Saturday.

Anthony Brodeur is yet to appear or dress for Drummondville since being claimed on waivers. It doesn't help his case that NJ native, Joe Fleschler, is playing well behind starter Louis-Philip Guindon.

NCAA

Blake Coleman and Miami were off this weekend while Steve Santini remains out injured for Boston College.

Blake Pietila was held scoreless in both of Michigan Tech's victories over Alabama Huntsville. He is currently scoreless over his last four games and has just two assists over his previous eight games. Hopefully he picks up the scoring to complement his strong faceoff skills. He won 62.5% of his draws on the weekend and has a 61.15% success rate this season.

Alexander Kerfoot continues to lead Harvard in scoring with fifteen points in ten games. He added two more assists to his record in a victory over Boston University on Tuesday. Joshua Jacobs and Michigan State made the trip to New Jersey to take on Princeton during the weekend. In the second game of the series he put up six shots and two blocks.

KHL, USHL, USHS

Artur Gavrus played once since the last update going a -1 in 11:43 for Dinamo Minsk against Medvescak. It is somewhat encouraging to see he has doubled in point totals from last year in just under the same amount of games, while increasing his shots per game rate, and average ice time. Good things happen when you're SH% jumps from 2.8% to 12.5% though. According to Quant Hockey his points per game rate is at the median level in the KHL this season and his goals per game rate is close to the 70th percentile. While he is still a long shot to make it, he is just twenty years old and playing his second season in the KHL.

Joey Dudek continues to struggle in the USHL with just a goal over his last ten games. To state the obvious, he needs to do better. According to the Nobles schedule they played a game on Saturday against St. Sebasdtian's. The league that Miles Wood plays in doesn't make statistics public so finding info on him will be hard but I'll do my best to track down what I can.

AHL

The Albany Devils had a strong week, picking up five out of a possible six points. They are currently in fifth in the Eastern Conference with 25 points through 21 games. Their all situation PDO stands at 100.68% and the strong week has them at a rolling three game average of 103.45%. Albany's power play went 4/15 last week while the penalty kill continued to do well going 7/8. The penalty kill is now 32/34 over their last nine games. Overall their PP% is 16.67% and their PK% is 81.25%.

Wednesday 11/26: Albany suffered a shootout loss to Hartford 4-3. Scoring for the Devils was Joe Whitney twice and Darcy Zajac once. Scott Timmins and Raman Hrabarenka added two assists each and Graham Black picked up one for himself. Mike Sislo had a chance to win the game on a penalty shot in overtime but was stopped. Keith Kinkaid made the start and stopped 29 of 32 shots as well as 2 of 3 in the shootout. Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo, and Joe Whitney were held off in the shootout. Here is the gamesheet and highlights:

Friday 11/28: Albany defeated Lehigh Valley 4-2 in Atlantic City. Reid Boucher, Ben Thomson, Graham Black, and Paul Thompson scored for the Devils. Joe Whitney picked up two assists while Darcy Zajac, Stefan Matteau, Tim Sestito, and Scott Timmins had one each. Scott Wedgewood made the start and saved 27 of 29 shots to earn first star honors. Here is the gamesheet.

Saturday 11/29: Albany defeated Utica 2-1. Graham Black and Joe Whitney scored for the Devils while Brandon Burlon assisted on both goals and Mike Sislo on one. Keith Kinkaid had another strong start with 28 saves on 29 shots to earn first star. Raman Hrabarenka left the game with help from his teammates after taking a check to the head. Here is the gamesheet and highlights:

Injury Update: Kelly Zajac, Cam Janssen, Dan Kelly, Reece Scarlett, and Rod Pelley all missed the three games last week due to injury. Raman Hrabarenka suffered an injury as the result of a head shot by Utica Comets left wing Darren Archibald. The AHL suspended Archibald for three games and you can see the hit here.

Seizing the Opportunity: I want to point out that Graham Black has enjoyed a strong start to his professional career after breaking into the line up. With five goals and three assists in fifteen games he has earned a starting role and is making the most of his chance to show what he is capable of at this level.

ECHL

Myles Bell has really fallen off after a hot start where he had eight points in seven games to start his professional career. Since then he has just no goals and three assists in his last nine games. Over the last week he had an assist and nine shots in three games. This is a league he really needs to be dominating at this stage in his development so hopefully he picks it up soon.

Albany signed RW Alexandre Carrier on Tuesday and assigned him to Orlando of the ECHL to add some depth. He had previously been on a two year deal with Albany but never played for the Devils, spending time in the ECHL with Trenton, Elmira, and Wheeling of the ECHL and Wichita of the CHL the past two seasons. He had two goals and two assists in ten games with Peoria of the SPHL this season. He's scoreless with a -4 rating over three games for Orlando so far.

Maxime Clermont is off to another unspectacular season in the ECHL and just played 37:10 of relief, earning a loss after surrendering three goals in a 9-6 loss to Toledo.

Prospect of the Week

It may seem redundant to give Ryan Kujawinski prospect of the week honors but the bottom line is he is just getting the job done. With a goal and four assists over the week he has been performing like the player the Devils thought they were getting when they drafted him in the third round of the 2013 draft. He finished November with a strong fifteen points in twelve games. Hopefully he can carry this play over into December and throughout the rest of the season. His age 19 season is a crucial year for him to produce a lot and do it consistently if he is to be a NHL player down the road.

ADevil of the Week

Joe Whitney picks up this week's honors after putting up three goals and two assists for Albany last week. He is currently on a four game scoring streak where he has three goals and three assists to go with eighteen shots. A consistent performer for Albany and a key member of their top line with Scott Timmins and Paul Thompson, he now has the lead for most points on the team. While he is most likely to remain a career AHL player at this point in his career, he is a vital component for Albany, especially with Reid Boucher and Stefan Matteau struggling this season.

Your Take

Do you agree with Kujawinski and Whitney being named prospect of the week and ADevil of the week respectively? How do you feel about Graham Black's performance thus far this season? Are you concerned about Pietila's slump or do you think he will finish over a point per game as a senior this season? Leave your comments below and thank you for reading!