The Rules

Before we begin, a quick breakdown of the rules. I select a lineup of players with an eye of putting the best projected lineup together of players as they are realistically projected to be in their prime. Players who are older will benefit from a higher degree of certainty, but younger prospects will be given consideration of their realistic (i.e. not ideal) projections so as not to load a lineup full of AHLers, who are further along in their development.

For this exercise, I will not differentiate between left and right wing or right and left defense, nor will I consider “handedness” of any of the prospects. Players who have made the full-time jump to the NHL are ineligible. Lastly, the age cutoff is 23, so players such as Nolan Foote, who turned 24 last month, are also ineligible. Let’s get started.

Top Line

Center Matyas Melovsky; Wingers Lenni Hameenaho and Arseni Gritsyuk

The Devils prospect pool is notoriously short of center depth. However, Matyas Melovsky has had a breakout season as a 20-year-old playing for Baie-Comeau Drakkar of the QMJHL. The first Devils prospect in any league to reach thirty points this season, Melovsky, who plays both wing and center, is more of a playmaker than a natural goal scorer. The center is well built for the NHL game at 6’1’’, 190 pounds and uses his strength to body opponents, earning high marks from many scouts for his defensive game. If properly developed, Melovsky could blossom into a versatile bottom 6 forward at the NHL level some day.

For this exercise, Melovsky will be dishing the puck to the top two offensive prospects in the Devils system on the top scoring line, while providing some much-needed two-way play at center. Russian winger Arseni Gritsyuk would provide zone entries and some dazzle to the line, while Finnish Forward Lenni Hameenaho would work his magic around the net. Gritsyuk and Hameenaho are both in the midst of strong seasons in their respective top leagues. It would not be surprising to see this entire line playing in North America for the Devils organization next season.

2nd Line

Center Adam Beckman; Wingers Cam Squires and Herman Traff

Adam Beckman is a bit of a cheat as the player acquired by the Devils for Graeme Clarke over the summer has been playing right wing on Utica’s second line. However, Beckman can play center and the center depth is bad enough for me to slot him here. Whatever problems Utica has had this season, and there have been many, Adam Beckman has not been one of them, scoring sixteen points in eighteen games. This makes his lack of a call-up to the big club during the myriad of injuries so far this season rather surprising. At 23-years-old, Beckman is becoming close to a finished product as he awaits another opportunity to play in the NHL.

On the All-Prospect Team, the AHL veteran will center two younger players on this line. After a rough start and a couple of suspensions, Cam Squires has caught fire for the Cape Breton Eagles and is the only Devils prospect not named Matyas Melovsky to be averaging over a point per game. Power forward Herman Traff has been a steady presence in the SHL playing amongst men as a 18-year-old in his D+1 (Traff turns 19 on December 31st), tallying seven points in nineteen contests and earning a spot on Team Sweden in the World Juniors. Cam Squires has already signed his ELC with the Devils and should join the Comets next season as Utica’s season is likely to end before Cape Breton’s. Traff will likely continue to develop in the SHL next season.

3rd Line

Center Samu Salminen; Wingers Josh Filmon and Chase Stillman

Coming into this season, this line would have looked really good on paper. Samu Salminen, another forward who plays center and wing, centers this line by default, given the aforementioned lack of center depth. The power forward has been streaky this year after transferring to the University of Denver from the goal-anemic UConn. With six goals and six assists in eighteen contests, this will likely be Salminen’s best offensive season. Whether it be enough to earn him a contract with the Devils this summer is anybody’s guess.

Much has been written about wingers Josh Filmon and Chase Stillman this season. Filmon has already been demoted to Adirondack of the ECHL, where he has, at times, toiled on the fourth line. At the time this article was written, Stillman is still hanging onto a fourth line spot for the Utica Comets, but has struggled and I speculated last week whether a short stint in the lower league may help spark him a bit. It is way too soon to give up on Filmon or Stillman, but to say that this has been a challenging year for the duo would be a bit of an understatement.

4th Line

Center Max Graham; Wingers Kasper Pikkarainen and Cole Brown

The fourth line of the All-Prospect team is intriguing. Max Graham is another center, who also plays wing. That’s zero natural centers in the system for those keeping track. After being selected as an overager in last year’s NHL entry draft, Graham, who is known for his leadership and his fisticuffs, has broken out offensively in the WHL with 24 points in 26 games. Graham’s pathway to the NHL would be that of a physical two-way grinder, who kills penalties (something he would need to learn) and sticks up for his teammates, but at 6’3’’ doesn’t quite have the size to be a true heavyweight in the NHL.

The two wingers on the fourth line are big question marks. Kasper Pikkarainen was chosen in the 3rd round by the Devils this summer and then proceeded to get injured in his first game for the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL and has not played since. As such, Pikkarainen’s progress is impossible to evaluate and one will have to wait until the winger returns to game action to see how the injury impacted his development. Pikkarainen’s selection here is purely based on his status from the draft. Cole Brown is a winger for the Brantford Bulldogs, who is on pace for 60 points, a full 21 points more than last season. More impressively, this pace has been a result of a late surge after a very slow start. As with Salminen, it is still up in the air as to whether this will be enough for the Devils to offer Brown a contract, but the winger has certainly earned that consideration.

Defensive Pairings

Anton Silayev, Simon Nemec

Seamus Casey, Daniil Orlov

Topias Vilen, Ethan Edwards

The first three selections for the Devils defense were rather straightforward. Not much needs to be written to justify the inclusion of Anton Silayev, the 6’7’’ Russian blueliner who has suited up for 32 games for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL this season and tallied seven assists as an 18-year-old. Likewise, #2 overall pick Simon Nemec broke into the NHL last season and has been the odd man out with the stellar play of Jonathan Kovacevic. Nemec has not exactly lit up the AHL since his demotion, but his focus has been on becoming a steadier presence in the backend. The offense for the Comets from the blueline has been left up to Seamus Casey, the third easy selection for defense on this team. Casey has proven capable of playing in the NHL already in a sheltered role and has carried his four points in his first eight NHL games to fourteen points in seventeen games since his demotion to the Comets.

The other three defensemen were a much tougher decision. One could argue Daniil Karpovich deserves consideration and I would agree. However, as Karpovich split nine games between the KHL and VHL this season before his injury and after a season in the more obscure Belarusan league, it is really difficult to pinpoint his progress. Likewise, Santeri Hatakka probably would have made this team if not for his injury this preseason. Fellow Comet Daniil Misyul, who played one game for the Devils this season, has aged out of consideration for this team. Defensive defensemen Charlie Leddy and Artyom Barabosha were also considered and Barabosha might have made the cut if not for splitting time between the KHL and VHL this year after seemingly earning a full promotion to the KHL last season.

I chose Russian defender Daniil Orlov, who seems to have the speed and transition skills to possibly play in the NHL one day should he ever stay healthy enough to fully develop and decide to come to North America. Topias Vilen and Ethan Edwards were also difficult selections. Ethan Edwards has a chance to be an Andy Greene-like defenseman should he reach his potential, but such players are very rare at the NHL level. Moreover, as a senor this season, it is unclear where Edwards will end up this summer. Former 5th rounder, Topias Vilen earned his ELC after showing tremendous promise with a breakout in the Liiga. After a demotion to the ECHL last season, Vilen picked up his game and finished strong with 29 points in 54 AHL games proving his newly-found offense could translate to North America. This season, Vilen has only played in fourteen contests for the Comets, totaling a goal and three assists, after returning from an upper body injury suffered during the preseason. Vilen is still only 21-years-old and defensemen develop later, so I would not worry too much about him yet. There is still a chance Vilen develops into a strong puck-moving defenseman in the NHL some day given his skill set.

Goaltenders

Jakub Malek

Nico Daws

At 22-years-old, Jakub Malek is the best goaltending prospect in the Devils system. Since the Devils drafted him in the fourth round (100th overall) in the 2021 NHL entry draft, Malek has dominated just about everywhere he has played. Currently, that somewhere is the Liiga, where the netminder has either been at the top or near the top all season in GAA (2.06) and SV% (.918). Malek also possesses the athleticism to be a starting goalie in the NHL should he reach his full potential. That is not just me saying that. The latest Dobber update on Malek says essentially the same thing. Of course, most players never reach their full potential and whether Malek will remains to be seen, but given the goaltender’s track record of consistency since his draft year, I would not bet against him. Even if Malek maxes out as a capable back up in the NHL, the netminder would earn the top spot here.

Devils fans are likely more familiar with Nico Daws, who has already played quite a few games for the Devils in recent seasons, mostly in call-ups. After the Devils traded Akira Schmid over the summer, Daws became the defacto third string goalie for the Devils. Daws has struggled this season for a bad Comets team with a 3-10-2 record, 3.18 GAA and .895 SV%, but has outperformed (at least in terms of SV%) his platoon-mate Isaac Poulter after losing out to Poulter last year. It is no secret that Daws has played on a lot of bad Devils teams and it is hard to say how much of Daws’s raw numbers have been diminished by that reality. Daws has the ability to steal games at times, even high profile games at the NHL level. Consistency has been the issue with Daws, something Malek has not struggled with. For that reason, Malek gets the nod as the starter of this hypothetical team.

Your Take

Tell us what you think. My best to all our readers and their families. May you enjoy all your end of year festivities.