The New Jersey Devils have a little over $1.9 million left in cap space, so perhaps they have another move up their sleeves before training camp begins. There are some needs to fill out, like another top-nine winger and maybe some goaltending depth.
But it’s also possible general manager Tom Fitzgerald believes they can fill those needs internally through some healthy competition during training camp. If so, he’ll likely hand out professional tryouts (PTOs) for those open spots to spur camp battles with prospects like Alexander Holtz, Nolan Foote, Graeme Clarke, etc. Here are some players the Devils could target for PTOs in training camp.
Noah Gregor
Originally a fourth-round pick of the Sharks back in 2016, Noah Gregor had a solid season in San Jose, totaling ten goals in 57 games — a 14-goal pace over 82 games. He mostly played a bottom-six role but put up some decent results, specifically offensively.
The Sharks generated quite a bit offensively when Gregor was on the ice, averaging 2.89 expected goals per 60 minutes. The problem is they gave much of that back and then some defensively, averaging 3.22 expected goals against per 60. Granted, the Sharks were not a good defensive team, but he was one of the team’s worst shot suppressors.
Gregor may be better suited for a fourth-line role on a team like the Devils that should be one of the best in the Eastern Conference. But as a PTO, there’s some upside. A 14-goal pace is nothing to scoff at, and his offensive impacts were good last season. At worst, he forces Foote to earn that spot as Mile Wood’s replacement.
Danton Heinen
Danton Heinen spent the last two seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins but saw his production slip in 2022-23, from 18 goals in 76 games the previous season to eight in 65 contests this year. Though he did have a down year, he seems to be a decent bounce-back candidate in a bottom-six role.
Heinen was the victim of some poor shooting luck, specifically at five-on-five, where he shot 8.05 percent this past season. He’s shot above 10 percent at five-on-five in all but two of his NHL campaigns, so he should be due for some positive regression shooting-wise.
Though some of Heinen’s on-ice metrics fell, he still posted a 53.31 expected goals percentage (xG%) at five-on-five. His defensive impacts were still solid, which has always been a staple of his game. And when looking at his microstats, there’s plenty to suggest he has something left to offer and that he should rebound:
Heinen shot the puck at a solid clip this past season, and he was an excellent forechecker. He’s an ideal third-line winger, so bringing him in to spur competition with Holtz and Clarke might not be a bad chance to take. He should come on an affordable one-year deal if he outplays the Devils’ prospects. If not, it means Holtz or Clarke earned their way onto the roster.
Josh Leivo
Josh Leivo has been an analytics darling for quite some time, and it’s hard to understand why he hasn’t been able to stick in a bottom-six role with any team. He finished this past season with four goals and 16 points in 51 games — a 26-point pace over 82 games. And, like Heinen, he was the victim of some poor shooting luck.
Leivo finished this past season shooting just 4.4 percent on 91 shots on goal. He’s never been a great shooter, but he’s still converted on 9.2 percent of the shots he’s taken for his career. Furthermore, he finished with an expected goals of 8.84 in 2022-23, so he underperformed his expected numbers. That signals he’s due for positive regression shooting-wise this coming season.
While Leivo’s on-ice metrics weren’t spectacular this past season, his impacts were. He was an excellent defensive forward and still had decent offensive results despite not finding the back of the net as often as he should have. He can play anywhere in the bottom-six, not just the third line, making him an ideal PTO candidate for any team and not just the Devils.
Jaroslav Halák
The Devils aren’t in the market for a goalie per se, but they weren’t not looking for one either, as evidenced by their interest in Connor Hellebuyck earlier in the summer. No one seems to know for sure whether Hellebuyck will begin the 2023-24 season in Winnipeg with the Jets, but that seems to be becoming increasingly more likely as the offseason draws to a close.
Related: Devils’ Perfect Backup Goalie Option is Jaroslav Halak
In addition to the Hellebuyck rumors, Frank Seravalli also reported on the July 10 episode of DFO Rundown that the Devils would prefer to have Akira Schmid begin 2023-24 with the Utica Comets in the AHL. If that’s the case and Hellebuyck is no longer an option, perhaps bringing Jaroslav Halák in on a PTO could make sense.
Halák spent this past season with the New York Rangers and had a productive year after a slow start, totaling a .903 save percentage while saving 1.1 goals above expected. The league-average SV% was .899, so he was a slightly above-league-average netminder last season.
Even at 38 years old, Halák is still a reliable backup netminder and should be in a position to succeed during training camp since he’ll be playing behind a talented Devils squad. If he plays well enough in the preseason, the Devils can sign him and send Schmid to the AHL for more seasoning so he can get used to handling a starter’s workload.
It’s not my preference, and I think, at this point, the Devils should run it back with Schmid and Vitek Vanecek and either wait until the trade deadline or next offseason to address goaltending. But I could see them considering bringing Halák in on a PTO to push Schmid during camp.
There’s No Downside to PTOs
PTOs don’t always land contracts with the NHL teams they attend camp with, but if they do, they can turn into valuable cheap deals that help improve depth. At worst, they spur some camp competition that brings out the best in players vying for an NHL roster spot. And in the Devils’ case, that may be what they seek with handing out PTOs in the coming weeks.
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