Blue Jackets Have Significant Ground to Make Up Against the Devils

One player that doesn’t seem to get the attention he deserves on the Devils is Jesper Bratt. He just posted a career high in points in 2024-25 with 88. He became one of the focal points of the offense with Hughes out. Now that they’ll likely be reunited on a line together, that gives the Devils the all-important other line that can beat teams.

The Devils’ projected top-six as of this writing appears to be:

• Ondrej Palat – Jack Hughes – Jesper Bratt
• Timo Meier – Nico Hischier – Stefan Noesen

We’ll see how that second line shakes out. But this top-six has given the Blue Jackets fits. Remember when Hughes made a shooting gallery out of Elvis Merzlikins? Merzlikins stood on his head which helped the Blue Jackets win that game in December 4-2.

The Blue Jackets appear to be lining up their top-six in this manner.

• Boone Jenner – Sean Monahan – Kirill Marchenko
• Dmitri Voronkov – Adam Fantilli – Kent Johnson

An argument could be made that Yegor Chinakhov (if still on the team) and Cole Sillinger could get into the top-six on the wing. Fantilli is expected to be among the best players in the game in the coming years. But as we speak, Hughes is the best player between these two teams. The Devils hold the upper hand in the top-six given their skill and depth. Hischier is one of the best two-way centers in the game.

When looking at the bottom-six forwards, the Blue Jackets match up well with the Devils given their new acquisitions. Charlie Coyle and Isac Lundestrom down the middle compare out favorably to the Devils’ projected centers in Dawson Mercer and Cody Glass.

The Devils did add Connor Brown from the Edmonton Oilers in the offseason to help the bottom six and penalty killing. Evgenii Dadanov could add some secondary scoring. It’s unknown where he slots into the lineup at this point. Could he make a run at playing higher in the lineup? Don’t be surprised if the Devils try to improve their team before the season especially down the middle lower in their lineup.

Hughes has to stay healthy. The most games he’s played in a season coming into 2025-26 is 78. He’s entering his seventh season in the NHL. His absence last season proved how vital he is to everything the Devils do.

But because the Devils can match the center depth of the Blue Jackets and exceed it in the top-six, they hold the overall edge in forwards.

Defense

The Devils and Blue Jackets both have significant questions on defense. The Blue Jackets have the best player in Zach Werenski. The depth below him will be together again but have questions to answer.

For the Devils, Dougie Hamilton has played just a total of 84 games in the last two seasons combined. Like Jack Hughes, Hamilton has to find a way to stay healthy. The defense took a major hit without him in the lineup.

While Hamilton was out, Luke Hughes stepped up. Although Luke had slightly better offensive numbers in 2023-24, he made important strides in his defensive game last season while maintaining almost the same level of offensive production. He appears primed to take the next step as being a dependable two-way, top-four defender. Brendon Dillon and Brett Pesce are projected to round out the top-four along with Hamilton and Luke Hughes.

Perhaps the most interesting player on defense for the Devils this upcoming season will be Simon Nemec. His career didn’t start off the way many thought it would. There were even some trade rumors around him.

After playing in 60 games in 2023-24, Nemec appeared in just 27 games last season with his average ice time significantly reduced. He too dealt with an injury that hampered him. But then he showed in the playoffs why there is still a lot of promise around him.

Nemec scored the game-winning goal in Game 3 against the Hurricanes in the playoffs. By Game 5, he logged just under 28 minutes of ice time. With the injury to Johnathan Kovacevic in play, Nemec appears to be in line to start the season with a significant role. Can he replicate the playoff success he had in a larger sample?

Like the forwards, the Devils hold the edge on defense. Coach Sheldon Keefe has brought a style of game that has helped lower the goals against. To put this in perspective, only the Tampa Bay Lightning (219) gave up less goals on the season than the Devils (222) in the Eastern Conference. This aspect of the Devils’ game didn’t get nearly enough attention.

The Blue Jackets will have a chance to show they’ve improved this season. But they have more significant questions facing their blue line and goaltending than the Devils do. Can the Blue Jackets stay healthy? And then can their depth take their games to another level?

Goaltending

The Devils hold the advantage in goaltending as well. They are running back the duo of Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen, who signed a five-year extension in the offseason. Both goalies finished with save percentages at or above .900 and with goals-against averages at or below 2.66.

Compare that with Merzlikins who had a 3.18 goals-against average and an .892 save percentage. Jet Greaves will get his opportunity to play an expanded role. Can he replicate any of his success from the end of last season?

Given the experience factor, the Devils hold a pretty significant advantage on the Blue Jackets at all three phases. It makes the Devils a team that could make a run at the Metropolitan Division. They have to stay healthy and they have to get key contributions from their bottom-six. But the pieces are there.

And while the Blue Jackets do have significant ground to make up, they’re in a good position to do so. The amount of progress their young stars make coupled with what their defense/goaltending do will dictate how much of that ground is made up.

Stay tuned for Part 3 of our series as we turn our attention to the Washington Capitals.