The New Jersey Devils are winners in five of their last six games and are being heavily driven by Cody Glass’ line. Glass is flanked by standout rookie Arseny Gritsyk and impact call-up Lenni Hämeenaho, who is also a rookie.
NJ.com’s Ryan Novozinsky joined Devils Rink Report to break down Hämeenaho’s strong NHL arrival and how the Finnish winger—alongside Gritsyuk—is giving New Jersey surprising forward upside from the pipeline.
“The most noticeable thing about him is his positioning, right? He’s always in the right spots,” Novozinsky said. “I mean, he got the first shot on goal a couple of games ago. It was a slick feed from Dougie Hamilton, but he’s just on the right side, near the right face-off circle, and just wide open, and he wires it through. Obviously he didn’t score, but it was an impressive shot. He has a more impressive release than I thought, too.”
Gritsyuk’s acclimation to the NHL is less surprising. He was a five-year impact KHL pro hockey player. Hämeenaho, however, spent fewer years playing pro hockey, playing three seasons in Liiga and half a season in the American Hockey League. Novozinsky highlighted how quickly both rookies have looked comfortable.
“I think he’s just looked like he’s belonged. It’s been two promising starts for two guys in Lenni Hameenaho and Arseny Gritsyuk. Obviously, Gritsyuk has a bigger sample size here, but two things that you can hang your hat on are, ‘Oh, we do have some forward prospects here in the pipeline.’ You didn’t think you had that maybe going into the season. You were blindly hoping for a decent Gritsyuk season or for Hameenaho to at least scratch the surface of a second-round pick’s ceiling, and he looks like he’s fit in well so far.”
Nichols echoed the praise for Gritsyuk’s breakout.
“Touching on Gritsyuk quick. I mean, I think many people, if they would have said that he had nine goals and 20 points by the end of the season, that’d be a good first year for him. He’s got that now with 30 games to go. Gritsyuk has been as advertised and more, I think.”
On Hämeenaho’s style and fit, Nichols drew a comparison.
“But you know, with Hameenaho, you’re right. I get a hint of when I was watching him… He reminds me of a young Tyler Toffoli.”
Hämeenaho scored his first NHL goal against the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night, opening the scoring in a 5-4 victory.
Gritsyuk, Glass, and Hämeenaho have been deployed as New Jersey’s third line in terms of minutes. However, each project to be middle-six players. On Hämeenaho’s future, he doesn’t project as a top-line player, but he can work alongside the Devils’ captain.
“In my opinion, I agree that he is not somebody for Jack Hughes. I do think that maybe at some point he’s a middle six guy, right? I believe he will be somewhere in the bottom nine, so not a top-line player. But could he be a solution on the second line if they need somebody to play there? I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t play well on a Nico Hischier-driven line with Timo Meier, for instance. Let’s say they end up moving Dawson Mercer. I think Hameenaho is cut from the same cloth in terms of defensive responsibility and will [eventually] be able to play up with Nico Hischier. But overall, I think he will be some sort of career third-liner. I think he’s someone who can play well if needed up in the lineup, but is really going to thrive in that bottom six, preferably on the third line. I don’t think he’s a career fourth liner.”
*Analysis transcribed from the latest Devils Rink Report show on YouTube.
