It’s a great time to be a New Jersey Devils fan.

Things are starting to look up for the franchise, taking big steps forward after toward the bottom the previous few years. Jack Hughes is a certified star, Nico Hischier is thriving, Timo Meier is a Devil and so much of the core is still quite young and heating up.

And then, there’s the team’s prospect pipeline. They’ve managed to build one of the most top-heavy futures around. The talent starts to drop off in the latter stages of the top 10, but the fact they have at least two potential top-pairing defenders in Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec ready to go is massive.

Once those two move up, the prospect pool will take a big hit. But that’s fine, because the Devils have done such a good job of developing and managing assets that, in theory, the payoff is going to be big quite soon.

Biggest Strength

Many teams don’t have even one future top-four defenseman in waiting. The Devils might have three in Hughes, Nemec and Seamus Casey. Hughes and Nemec are both high picks with the potential to be impact players in so many ways. Casey is a work in progress, but his freshman season showed many signs for excitement. The defensive crop falls a bit after that, but to have those three ready to go in for a franchise that already has Dougie Hamilton, Jonas Siegenthaler and John Marino is utterly ridiculous.

Biggest Weakness

When Hughes and Hischier are manning the top two lines, it’s easy to overlook center depth. But the team doesn’t have anyone in the top 10, and Samu Salminen, Patrick Moynihan and Artem Shlaine hardly give the team any hope. The Devils are a team that focused on taking the best player available in recent years, and it just happens that they’ve moved away from the middle.

TOP 10 PROSPECTS

*Luke Hughes (James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports)*

Grade: A-

1. Luke Hughes, D, 20 (New Jersey Devils)

Drafted: No. 4, first round in 2021

Hughes’ NCAA career finished in April after setting a career-high with 48 points. Hughes scored 17 goals and 39 points with Michigan a year ago in a year that saw him win Big 10 championship and rookie of the year honors. He also finished as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as the NCAA’s top player. Hughes, who served as USA’s captain at the 2023 world juniors, went on to make his NHL debut near the end of the regular season, recording two points in two games. He sat to start the postseason, but he quickly found himself playing over 20 minutes a night against Carolina and even recorded two assists in his first appearance. The Devils already have a solid defensive crop, and Hughes will make them even better.

2. Simon Nemec, D, 19 (Utica, AHL)

Drafted: No. 2, first round in 2022

Speaking of high-profile defensemen, Nemec, the second pick in 2022, is a prospect. He had four fewer points than Jiricek while playing a key role with the AHL’s Utica Comets last season. The young Slovakian has spent the past few years playing against men, and while the AHL is a big jump from his native game in Slovakia, it didn’t seem to bother Nemec. The Devils have a good defensive crop, especially with Hughes moving up, but Nemec is ready to challenge.

*Alexander Holtz (Steven Ellis/Daily Faceoff)*

3. Alexander Holtz, RW, 21 (New Jersey Devils)

Drafted: No. 7, first round in 2020

A lot of the shine on Holtz after getting drafted has seemingly worn off. The once-prominent scoring prospect has just three goals in 28 NHL games, all coming during a 19-game run this season. He spent significant time as a healthy scratch as the team continued to push up the standings. The acquisitions of Timo Meier and Tyler Toffoli over the past few months could make Holtz’s fight for a top-six spot significantly more difficult, but the onus is on Holtz to prove he can hang with the best. One of the best tools a goal-scorer can possess is confidence; if he can find that, he’s in great shape.

4. Seamus Casey, D, 19 (University of Michigan, NCAA)

Drafted: No. 46, second round in 2022

Will Casey become the new top dog in Michigan with Hughes out of the picture? Casey had a great showing at the World Junior Summer Showcase this month, showing a nice mix of physicality and smarts with the puck. He finished with 29 points in 37 games as a freshman, but expect that number to go up as he gains more experience. We know he can produce, but his defensive-zone game can still waver. Hopefully, with more responsibility, he can iron things down.

5. Akira Schmid, G, 23 (New Jersey Devils)

Drafted: No. 136, fifth round in 2018

Schmid was the team’s No. 1 during the Stanley Cup playoffs, which was highlighted by a pair of shutouts against the Rangers in the opening round. The Swiss-born goalkeeper has had an excellent career since turning pro in North America and could very well be the team’s goalie of the future. The goal in 2023-24 is for Schmid to get into as many games as possible, whether it be in the NHL or back in Utica. Luckily, he’s still waiver exempt.

6. Arseni Gritsyuk, LW/RW, 22 (SKA St. Petersburg, KHL)

Drafted: No. 129, fifth round in 2019

After a strong 2021-22 season, Gritsyuk took it a step further with a 40-point campaign with Avangard Omsk. He had a quieter playoffs, but it was a successful season for the young winger. He joined St. Petersburg for 2023-24, so it’ll be interesting to see what type of role he’s given. For a 5-foot-11 forward, Gritsyuk’s game is built around strength and an excellent shot. His KHL deal will expire in 2025, but he’ll be ready by then.

7. Nolan Foote, LW, 22 (Utica, AHL)

Drafted: No. 27, first round in 2019 by Tampa Bay/traded to New Jersey in 2020

Foote has been an in-betweener the past three seasons, earning some spot NHL duty while spending most of his time in the AHL. He’s a solid depth goal scorer, something he showed during a seven-game run with the Devils in 2021-22. But consistency and high-volume goal-scoring hasn’t been a big trait of his. But that’s OK – he’s a 6-foot-3 forward that’s very difficult to take the puck off of. I think he can be a bottom-six winger, but, hopefully, that happens sooner rather than later.

8. Lenni Hämeenaho, RW, 18 (Ässät, Liiga)

Drafted: No. 58, second round in 2023

If you followed our World Junior Summer Showcase coverage, you know Hämeenahowas one of the best players. The Finnish winger was consistently a threat, and finished things off with four assists in the final game. Hämeenaho is an intelligent forward who works well as a playmaker and showed flashes of brilliance against men last year. While his straight-line speed isn’t as bad right now as it once was, Hämeenaho’s skating still knocks him down some pegs. I think NHL coaching can fix that, but it still needs to improve if he has a chance in the NHL.

*Graeme Clarke (Daniel DeLoach/Utica Observer-Dispatch)*

9. Graeme Clarke, RW, 22 (Utica, AHL)

Drafted: No. 80, third round in 2019

Clarke has always been a gifted puckhandler, but putting it all together has been a challenge. That changed in 2022-23 when he finished with 25 goals and 58 points in 68 games – his highest offensive output of any level since he was 15 playing AAA. The older brother of LA Kings star prospect Brandt Clarke, Graeme attacks the play significantly more than he used to, working hard to gather pucks. That helped him put up great numbers this past year, and, hopefully, it’ll give him a chance to earn some bottom-six work during the season with New Jersey. He’s a fun player to watch, and I hope he can put it all together,

10. Chase Stillman, RW, 20 (Utica, AHL)

Drafted: No. 29, first round in 2021

The reigning OHL champion isn’t going to put up a ton of points in the NHL. He never hit 50 in the OHL. But the 2021 first-rounder was one of the most energetic forwards in the OHL this year, featuring a good speed, tenacity and a willingness to do whatever it takes. Kind of like how Michael McLeod has found a home bringing energy deep in the lineup, I can see that being what makes Stillman an NHLer.

Other notables: Samu Salminen, C/LW (20), Josh Filmon, LW (19), Michael Vukojevic, D (22), Topias Vilen, D (20), Nico Daws, G (22), Tyler Brennan, G (19), Jaromir Pytlik, C (21), Cam Squires, RW (18), Cole Brown, RW (18), Charlie Leddy, D (19), Chase Cheslock, D (18), Viktor Hurtig, D (21), Cole Brady, G (22), Jakub Malek, G (21)

Previous 2023-24 NHL Prospect Pool instalments

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