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New Jersey Devils Stock Up/Stock Down: ‘O Canada’ Edition

In this edition of Devils stock up/stock down, the Devils traveled out to western Canada, the goalies did their thing, and Bastian is hurt.

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4 weeks ago

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New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils' Nico Hischier (13) celebrates his goal against the Vancouver Canucks during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia, Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. (Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via AP)

Following their home win against the Anaheim Ducks last Sunday, the New Jersey Devils set flight for the long trip up to Western Canada. Since our previous stock up/stock down, the Devils played in the first “Hughes Bowl” of the season against the Vancouver Canucks, Jacob Markstrom made his first return to Calgary to face off against the Flames and wrapped up the trip against the Connor McDavid-less Edmonton Oilers.

The Devils return to New Jersey with an 8-5-2 and currently sit atop the Metro division with 18 points.

Devils Stock Up/Stock Down

Stock Up

Goaltending

Like the power play and penalty kill flip-flopping each week, the Devils’ goaltending is now on the uptrend. Against Vancouver, Jacob Markstrom recorded his first shutout as a Devil and of the season in their 6-0 win. Despite the Devils offense getting the headlines, Markstrom stopped 2.06 Goals Saved Above Expected on 20 shots. His next outing against the Flames didn’t go as well as he would’ve hoped, ending with a -0.12 GSAx on 31 shots, but he did stop all high-danger chances. Jake Allen was called upon in Edmonton and delivered in a big way. Allen stopped a flurry of Oiler scoring chances on his way to a 31-save, 3.35 GSAx performance in the Devils 3-0 win.

Stock Down

Nathan Bastian

Nathan Bastian was having a tough time staying in the lineup as it was, and a jaw injury suffered in a fight against Ryan Lomberg only made it worse. Bastian took multiple punches to the chin, which caused him to miss the rest of the game, and subsequently flew back to New Jersey the following day. Despite five points in 12 games, it’s been a tough season for him. He was taken out of the lineup for performance-related reasons for Kurtis MacDermid a few weeks back. Now, he’ll have to try and re-earn his spot in the lineup after weeks of rehabbing the injury.

Stock Up

Dawson Mercer

Similar to last year, Dawson Mercer has taken some time to get going. However, over the past few games, Mercer’s game has come to life. He registered a goal and an assist against Vancouver, one of which was a pivotal, momentum-snatching short-handed goal, and delivered a beautiful lob pass to Timo Meier for the insurance goal against the Oilers. Mercer is up to eight points in 15 games after a slow start and analytically was one of the Devils’ best players during their western Canada road trip.

Stock Down

Simon Nemec

It’s been a struggle this season for Simon Nemec. His play to start the year wasn’t great, and Johnathan Kovacevic’s strong play, combined with the returns of Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce, has only made it more challenging for him to get back into the lineup. Nemec has played in just nine games this season and only amassed one assist to show for it. We’ve talked about how the Devils need to handle Nemec’s development very carefully, but as of right now, it seems like there will be more viewings from the press box for the time being.

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