For players not on the bubble, camp is less about making the team, but leaving an impression. Here are three prospects who did that this year.
Ethan Edwards
The 24-year-old defenseman looked confident in the preseason, even scoring a highlight goal off a nice feed drifting down into the slot. Throughout camp, Edwards appeared every bit a defender who could potentially hold his own on the bottom pairing of a NHL roster. After call-ups last season only to sit in the press box, this seems to be the year for Edwards to earn
some games at the NHL level as a mid-season call-up. I wrote a few weeks ago that Edwards needed to become a top call-up option this season, and the young defender certainly made strides to be just that in camp.
While Edwards has never been a top offensive contributor during his career, the left-handed defender did pot ten goals for Utica last season, a career high dating all the way back to his time with the St. Albert Sabres U15 team in the AMBHL in 2015-16. The newly found offense is encouraging, but his poise and transition game will always be Edwards’s bread and butter. A strong start to his Utica campaign, especially with Seamus Casey’s injury, should put Edwards in a good position to play some games with the Devils this season.
Matyas Melovsky
The aforementioned feed to Edwards in the slot in the Rangers game was all due to the puck battle win behind the net by Matyas Melovsky.
Melovsky was excellent, winning puck battles, and setting up plays, earning points in just about every contest. Take a look at these metrics from his last preseason game.
Melovsky had a decent rookie campaign for Utica scoring 10 goals and 26 points in 55 games for an offensively-starved Comets roster. With better players his year, Melovsky has a chance to thrive, and if the 22-year-old center continues the momentum built up from camp, we should see him in some games for the Devils soon.
Mikael Diotte
With all the depth on the Devils blueline, Mikael Diotte was a bit of an afterthought coming into camp. The 6’3” 22-year-old defenseman scored one goal and added 7 assists in 53 games for Utica last year after missing most of his first professional season due to injury. As the top right-handed defenseman in Utica after Seamus Casey, Diotte’s job coming into camp was to get noticed and he did that, throwing hits, transitioning the puck, and playing steady defense.
Diotte still has a long way to go to becoming a full time NHL defenseman, and an ill-advised pinch in one of the preseason games shows there are still growing pains, but the talent that led to the Devils signing him out of the QMJHL were evident in camp this year, and I would not be shocked to see Diotte get a limited call-up opportunity late in the season. That’s not something I expected to write coming into camp, so Diotte did well for himself, and certainly warrants more attention in Utica this year.
Your Thoughts
Honorable mentions to Ben Steeves and Amadeus Lombardi, who also had strong camps. Lombardi, as expected, seems to have made the New Jersey Devils opening night roster. As I showcased here in an all too-early forecast of Utica’s potential lines, Lombardi making the Devils out of camp always appeared to be the most likely scenario, but he still had to earn his spot and he did that with a strong performance showcasing his speed and skill. Congratulations, Amadeus.
Anyone else surprise you in camp this year? Post your comments below.
