New Jersey Devils Prospect Update: 2/28/22

Welcome to the 20th week of the 2021-22 New Jersey Devils prospect update! This week saw Samu Salminen produce in the Finnish juniors, Nikola Pasic heat up in the Allsvenskan, and Jakub Malek continue to be a top goaltender in the Czech 2nd division with another shutout. Let’s check in on each prospect now.

OHL

Chase Stillman had an EN assist, +1, 2 PIM, and 3 shots in Peterborough’s only game last week. The league postponed Peterborough’s second game of the week due to Covid protocols. Stillman is currently on a 9 game point streak with 4 goals and 6 assists during that stretch. 9 of those 10 points are primary, 5 of them came at even strength, and 4 of them on the power play.

NCAA

Patrick Moynihan was a +1 with 2 PIM and 7 shots across 2 games last week.

Case McCarthy had an even rating and 2 PIM in Boston University’s 6-3 victory over Boston College last Saturday. He missed yesterday’s game against BC.

Artem Shlaine had an even rating, 4 shots, and won 27/30 faceoffs (90%) across 2 games last week. He now has won 56.78% of his faceoffs this season.

Cole Brady didn’t play in either of Arizona State’s games against Alaska last weekend. He hasn’t played since January 7, now watching 10 games in a row. ASU is just 3-6-1 during that stretch and hasn’t won in 6 games so it’s a bit disappointing to not see him get a chance somwhere in there. He’s played just 3 games in 2022. ASU concludes their season against Long Island on March 11 and 12 so maybe he’ll get into one of those games.

Ethan Edwards was a -1 with 3 shots across 2 games last week.

Luke Hughes was a -3 with 7 shots across 2 games last week.

Russia

KHL & VHL

Yegor Zaitsev and Dynamo Moscow finished 4th in the Western Conference and will take on Severstal in the Quarterfinals. Game 1 will be on Wednesday.

Daniil Misyul and Lokomotiv finished 6th in the Western Conference and will take on CSKA Moscow in the Quarterfinals. Game 1 will be tomorrow.

Arseni Gritsyuk and Avangard finished 5th in the Eastern Conference and will take on Ak Bars in the Quaterfinals. Game 1 will be on Wednesday.

Shakir Mukhamadullin and Salavat Yulaev finished 3rd in the Eastern Conference and will take on Sibir in the Quarterfinals. Game 1 will be on Wednesday.

Zakhar Bardakov and SKA finished 1st in the Western Conference and will take on Dinamo Minsk in the Quarterfinals. Game 1 will be on Wednesday.

Finland

Liiga, Mestis, & U20-SM-sarja

Eetu Pakkila had an EN goal, -4, 8 shots, and averaged 15:39 across 4 games last week.

Topias Vilen returned to the Pelicans lineup on Saturday after missing 4 games. In that game, Vilen had an assist, +1, 3 shots, and played 15:54.

Samu Salminen had 2 goals (1 EV, 1 PP), 3 PP assists, +2, 10 shots, won 40/60 faceoffs (66.67%), and averaged 16:53 across 3 games last week.

Sweden

SHL, Allsvenskan, & J20 Nationell

Nikola Pasic had a goal, 2 assists, +1, 6 shots, and averaged 15:46 across 3 games last week. Check out this assist he had last week:

Viktor Hurtig had an even rating and a shot in Mora IK J20’s only game last week.

The Rest of Europe

Swiss National League, Czech Extraliga, & Czech 1.liga

Benjamin Baumgartner had a PP goal, an assist, -3, 4 shots, and averaged 10:17 across 4 games last week.

Jaromir Pytlik had an assist, even rating, 8 shots, and averaged 16:41 across 3 games last week.

Jakub Malek had a 36 save shutout and an assist in his only game last week. This was his 3rd shutout of the season which is tied for 2nd in the league. His .932 SV% ranks 2nd, his 20.63 Goals Saved Above Average ranks 3rd, his 0.67 GSAA per 60 minutes ranks 1st, and his 0.70 GSAA per 30 shots is tied for 1st. His 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) lead goaltenders in points as well.

AHL

The Utica Comets went 1-2 last week to remain the top team in the Eastern Conference with a 31-11-5-0 record. Their 21.8 PP% ranks 6th in the league while their 80.1 PK% ranks 19th.

Friday 2/25: The Utica Comets were shutout by the Hershey Bears 4-0. Fabian Zetterlund led the Comets with 5 shots on goal while 6 other players had 3 shots each. Akira Schmid made 21 saves on 24 shots. Utica outshot Hershey 34-25 and went 0/4 on the PP and 1/2 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet and lineup:

Saturday 2/26: The Utica Comets lost 6-3 to the Syracuse Crunch. Samuel Laberge scored twice and A.J. Greer had the other Comets goal. Joe Gambardella had two assists followed by Fabian Zetterlund, Frederik Gauthier, Aarne Talvitie, and Robbie Russo with one each. Greer, Russo, and Chase De Leo had 3 shots each. Mareks Mitens made 21 saves on 26 shots in 53:28. Akira Schmid stopped both shots he faced as he played 5:22 in the middle of the game. Utica was outshot 29-25 and went 0/2 on the PP and 0/1 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet, highlights, and lineup:

Sunday 2/27: The Utica Comets defeated the Hershey Bears 3-1. All of the goals were scored in the 3rd period with Joe Gambardella opening the scoring after pouncing on a loose puck and finding the back of the net. Samuel Laberge earned an assist on the play. Ryan Schmezler scored a few minutes later with Nikita Okhotiuk and Reilly Walsh picking up the assists. Schmelzer then sealed the game with an empty net goal which was assisted by Frederik Gauthier. It’s worth noting that Fabian Zetterlund hit the post twice on a 5v3 PP in the 2nd period. Chase De Leo led the way with 6 shots. Akira Schmid made 32 saves on 33 shots to pick up the win. Utica was outshot 33-24 and went 0/3 on the PP and 2/3 on the PK. Here is the gamesheet, highlights, and lineup:

Notes:

• Good luck to Marian Studenic who was claimed off waivers by the Dallas Stars! Studenic joined the Devils organization after being drafted in the 5th round of the 2017 draft. He appeared in 25 NHL games with 2 goals and an assist across the past 2 seasons. He appeared in 136 AHL games with 30 goals and 32 assists across 4 seasons. I hope he’s able to carve out a role with the Stars to continue his NHL career.
• Alexander Holtz missed the last 2 games due to illness.
• Graeme Clarke had 5 goals and 10 assists in 20 games before suffering an injury that caused him to miss a few weeks. He has a goal in 7 games since returning earlier this month.
• Nate Schnarr is another player that is going through a rough patch. He had 12 goals and 11 assists over his first 28 games before missing about a week due to injury. Since re-joining the lineup earlier this month, he has a goal and an assist in 9 games.
• Nolan Foote had a 6 game point streak after being sent down by New Jersey in January with 3 goals and 6 assists during that stretch. In the 15 games since that streak ended, he has 2 goals and 2 assists.

Coming Up: The Utica Comets will travel to Syracuse to take on the Crunch on Friday and Saturday.

ECHL

Adirondack had a strong week as they defeated Newfoundland twice and split a series with Maine. Mareks Mitens was sent down from Utica to play in Adirondack’s 7-4 victory over Newfoundland last Wednesday. He made 31 saves on 35 shots to earn the victory. Jeremy Brodeur made 24 saves on 25 shots in Maine’s 7-1 victory over Adirondack on Friday. He’s been having a solid season with 15-9-2-1 record, 3.22 GAA, .909 SV%, with a 4.47 Goals Saved Above Average.

Your Take

Which players stood out to you last week? What are your thoughts on prospects such as Samu Salminen, Nikola Pasic, and Jakub Malek? How about the recent play of the Utica Comets? Leave your comments below and thank you for reading!