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Injuries have hit the Devils and they’re hitting hard. With the team missing Andy Greene, John Moore, and Yohann Auvitu among others, the team announced that they have recalled defenseman Karl Stollery and forward Blake Coleman.
The New Guys
While new to the New Jersey line-up, both players have been playing nightly in Albany and exhibiting success, especially Coleman. Being a 3rd round pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, he is tied for the team lead in goals(13) and third in points(23), behind familiar faces John Quenneville and Blake Pietila. While he is a little older than expected at 25, he lost most last season due to injury and spent four years at Miami University (Ohio), meaning he has experience and could be ready to make the team.
On the other hand, Karl Stollery has been here before. Although he went undrafted, he has made himself into a very serviceable AHL defenseman and has become a staple on the Albany defense this season. While he has appeared in 12 NHL games before, he has spent most of his career has a journey-man AHLer. At the age of 29, Stollery is likely to serve as a stopgap until the rest of the defense is healthy. While he likely will not contribute much offense, he has played in 33 games this season, recording 9 assists.
Your Thoughts?
How do you envision Blake Coleman impacting the team? Will this call-up signal that he’s ready to take the next step? Will Karl Stollery make a noticable impact? How do you envision these guys helping the team? Let us know your thoughts and as always, thank you for reading.