The Story
After missing out on the Johnny Gaudreau sweepstakes, the Devils had to turn their heads in a new direction. A lot of wingers have already been taken, and there was not much left on the board. The Devils did, however, land a top-notch winger that provides value to the lineup.
It has been reported that the New Jersey Devils have signed a former Tampa Bay Lightning winger to a five-year contract that carries an AAV of $6 million per season. This is huge for the Devils as they get a significant boost to the top six of the lineup.
The Player
As shown above, Ondrej Palat is a solid two-way winger in this league that can play in all situations. He does everything well, from even strength to being on the power play and even on the penalty kill. Just an all-around good hockey player that is an immediate addition to the top six of the lineup.
He becomes the best veteran presence the Devils have had in the locker room since Travis Zajac and Andy Greene.
His Career So Far
Ondrej Palat is a former seventh-round pick in the 2011 draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. A gem in the rough he was, and he turned out to be a tremendous player. In 10 seasons with the Lightning, Palat has skated in 623 games and has scored 143 goals, 280 assists, and 423 points. He has the ability to chip in on the power play and has amassed 95 power-play points.
As we all know, the Tampa Bay Lightning are no strangers to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Throughout his career, he has skated in 138 playoff games, which includes 71 in the past three seasons. Plenty of miles are on the legs of Ondrej Palat. In the postseason, he has scored 48 goals, 46 assists, and 94 points. In 23 games this postseason, he scored 21 points. Palat brings a championship mentality to the dressing room and is a 2x Stanley Cup Champion. That goes a long way to a young team with many youths in the locker room.
Closing Thoughts
This is an excellent signing by the New Jersey Devils. They did land the biggest fish, but they sure landed a big fish. Ondrej Palat is a good hockey player and was arguably one of the best players to put on Lightning Jersey. A top six with him in the lineup should look like this:
Jesper Bratt-Jack Hughes-Dawson Mercer
Yegor Sharangovich-Nico Hischier-Ondrej Palat
This is the best the top six have looked, and this is another need that manager Tom Fitzgerald has chalked off the list. The team still has around $17 million in cap space to make any extra moves. This is a good day for the Devils.
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