New Jersey Devils fans were excited when then prospect winger Arseny Gristyuk signed his entry level contract with the team at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season. His KHL success as a relatively young player had everyone hopeful that he could provide some much needed supplemental offense at a bargain price. In his first North American season, “Grits” did just that, posting 13 goals and 18 assists for 31 points in 66 games. While he would need a new contract at season’s end, he did sign a relatively modest
three year deal at a cap hit of $3.5 million per season.
The infancy of the 2026-27 season saw Gritsyuk begin on the third line, before being slotted in next to Jesper Bratt and Jack Hughes for the sixth game of the campaign. While he had only registered one goal and one assist up to that point, Gritsyuk would explode after the Detroit game. He would put up five goals in his next five games before adding two more against Vegas for seven total goals (and three assists) in his last nine games. With eight goals so far in 15 contests total, Gritsyuk is currently on pace for 44-45 goals across the entire season, which would be Top 5 all time for goals in a season for a Devils player.
Now there has to be some concerns about whether this pace can be sustained. Over his last nine, Gritsyuk is on a 65 goals pace across a full 84 game season. With a 22.2% shooting percentage currently, I hate to say it, but the current scoring pace is unsustainable. However, there are a few factors that have changed which could result in Gritsyuk continuing to score at a higher clip than he was at season’s start.
Firstly, playing with Hughes and Bratt will absolutely give Gritsyuk more opportunities to put pucks on net more often. Playing with two Devils who are more known for their playmaking rather than their goal scoring (although with Jack nowadays, it could be either or) means that Arseny is the shooter on that line. Let Bratt and Jack feed him pucks and let’s see how many more pretty moves “Grits” has in his arsenal. Additionally, being paired with Bratt and Jack has the byproduct of more ice time. Being on one of the top two lines as opposed to the third means more shifts, more minutes and more opportunities for Gritsyuk to put pucks on and in the net. Perhaps one of those is more responsible than the other for the increased production, but regardless of which it is (honestly, maybe both) the increased offense has helped the Devils.
But again, is the pace going to be sustainable? Shooters go cold throughout NHL seasons, and additionally in his career, Gritsyuk has never scored 20 or more goals in any professional, non-junior league. That’s not to say that he can’t or won’t, especially with him being on pace for that at around the halfway point of this season, but it is to say that has to be some caution. Right now, things are firing on all cylinders for this trio, but if the offense slows, does Gritsyuk get put back in a third line role if Sheldon Keefe makes some adjustments? Can he continue to put up numbers with the wear and tear of the full season? These questions will get answered as the season rolls along, but the hope here has to be that Gristyuk just keeps producing at a high pace, and the Devils keep rolling due at least in part to his offensive spike.
What are your thoughts on the offensive production of Arseny Gritsyuk so far this season; are you happy with his eight in 15? Do you want to see him somehow keep going at his more recent pace of seven goals in nine games now that he’s with Bratt and Hughes? Are you worried about the scoring pace declining as his shooting percentage evens out? Can he find a way to take one of the top five all time Devils goal scorer spots this season? Leave any thoughts down below and thanks as always for reading!
