This is how the draft picks were presented in 2020. Players remotely shown on screens with everyone at a safe distance from each other. It was a Pandemic time. | Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images
As the 2025 NHL Draft is over a month away, let us take a look back at who the New Jersey Devils picked in the 2020 NHL Draft. It was led by three first rounders amid a global pandemic. How did it work out five years later? This post discusses all of the picks and which ones hit or not.
The
New Jersey Devils are in the offseason. While most of the focus this month at All About the Jersey has been about free agency and decisions related to that, I want to take some time to focus a bit on the other main event of the 2025 offseason: the 2025
NHL Draft. Specifically, a chance to look back at the draft class of five years ago. How have those players developed? Some have hit the ice blazing like Tim Stutzle and Lucas Raymond. Some needed time to develop but are thriving like Quinton Byfield and Brock Faber. Others are still trying to figure it out. Normally, five years is enough time to determine who thrived and who faltered with only late bloomers remaining in the class.
However, five years ago was far from normal. 2020 was the year where the world changed. A global pandemic over the COVID-19 virus impacted everyone. Hockey was no different. Just about every league ended their season early. Junior, college, and professional - all stopped. International tournaments like the World Under-18 Championships ended. The New Jersey Devils played just 61 games.
They did not win a lottery in 2020 and they did not qualify for Return to Play as the 2019-20 Devils were Bad. The 2020 NHL Draft was held remotely and in October. Teams had to make decisions on prospects who have only played most of a season and uncertainty about whether they would even have one in 2020-21. You could argue that the 2020 (and 2021) draft classes may lag in terms of results for a five-year look. However, the hockey world and the world at large returned to normalcy after 2021. We can make judgments on who was picked and what happened since then.
The Picks: The Devils selected eight players in 2020 with three first round draft picks. starting at first overall and then ten after 61st overall.
As per HockeyDB and
Elite Prospects, they were:
- First round, 7th overall - Alexander Holtz, RW, Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
- First round, 18th overall - Dawson Mercer, C, Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
- First round, 20th overall - Shakir Mukhamadullin, D, Ufa Salavat Yulayev (KHL)
- Third round, 84th overall - Nico Daws, G, Guelph Storm (OHL)
- Fourth round, 99th overall - Jaromir Pytlik, C, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
- Fourth round, 120th overall - Ethan Edwards, D, Spruce Grove Saints (AJHL)
- Fifth round, 130th overall - Artem Shlaine, C, Shattuck St. Mary’s (U.S. Prep High School)
- Sixth round, 161st overall - Benjamin Baumgartner, C, HC Davos (Swiss National League)
Out of these eight, four have played in at least one NHL game albeit Mukhamadullin did so for San Jose and not New Jersey. Additionally, five out of these eight have signed NHL contracts with
Edwards signing an entry level contract back in March. Shlaine did sign
an ATO with the Texas Stars of the AHL in March too, so a pro deal may be in the cards for him this Summer.
What We Thought Back Then: Despite the remote situation, the 2020 NHL Draft took an incredibly long time to get through.
Once it was finally over, my conclusion was that they just picked a variety of players. This was General Manager Tom Fitzgerald’s first NHL Draft with him in charge. While Paul Castron was and is the director of scouting, I could not spot a specific theme or trend. The picks included two overage players (Daws, Baumgartner), three perceived projects (Mukhamadullin, Edwards, Shlaine), and no one was particularly small but it was not a draft heavy on heavies. Throw in the fact that the whole draft class had their 2019-20 campaigns cut short with no World U-18s or league playoffs to help elevate opinions and it was just a real mix for the Devils. I was unsure then:
More important than any of that, was it a good one? That remains to be seen. Generally, it takes five or so years before you can really determine if the prospects have developed into anyone that can help the team soon or are already helping the team by then. As of how I feel about them today, I think they did OK overall. I think they could have done better at certain points. However, I do think they did get good value for most of their selections.
Five years later, I think that my overall feeling may still be correct. Just not in the way I expected.
As for you, the People Who Matter, you liked the draft class as it was selected back then. The only ones the majority of voters did not like were the Mukhamadullin and Shlaine picks, but those were more in the middle than disliking the picks.
Selection by Selection Review
Alexander Holtz, 7th Overall, 1st Round
Our Post About the Selection: I wrote up the first pick back then. It had this ominous sentence:
To that end, I appreciate that Tom Fitzgerald and Paul Castron did not over think this and took one of the three most offensively talented forwards available. What I do not like is whether we will be continuing to question Holtz over Rossi or Perfetti in the future like many still do with Pavel Zacha over Zach Werenski, Ivan Provorov, Timo Meier, Mikko Ratanen, or Mat Barzal.
Oh.
Since 2020...: The consensus around seventh overall was that, if the Devils were to take a forward, there were four main options: Holtz, Cole Pereftti, Marco Rossi, or Jack Quinn. The Devils took Holtz. He was seen as one of, if not the best shooter in the draft class. With Jack Hughes, The Big Deal, on the team, someone to finish his passes would have made a lot of sense in theory. I liked it then, many of you liked it, and while there were concerns about his skating and defensive play, you cannot teach that shot release.
Holtz did not take long to come to America. He did play a full-ish season with Djurgårdens IF in the SHL and joined Binghamton for 10 games after their playoff ended. Holtz represented for the Swedes in the 2021 WJCs. While the numbers were not popping, jumping into North American hockey was a positive sign. In 2021-22, Holtz would finish just shy of a point-per-game pace with the Utica Comets with 26 goals and 51 points in 52 games. He received nine games in a call up. So far, so good.
Maybe enough to be a regular in the NHL in 2022-23. It would be the next logical step in his career.
That step was not taken. Holtz struggled to stay in the New Jersey lineup in 2022-23. The issues with his skating and defense did crop up. As he was expected to play deeper in the lineup, the ask for the sniper was to play with more energy. Which does not really fit the talent profile that led to him getting picked seventh overall. As the Devils were hot that season, he often ended up in the scratch suite.
It was perplexing as Handsome Mike Stromberg put it back in January 2023. Demotions to Utica to give him minutes showed that he was beyond that level, given his six goals and 11 points in 14 games. They paled to the three goals and four points in 19 games in the season. Holtz did not see a playoff game in New Jersey but he did with Utica. Clearly, the organization was not happy with Holtz’ development. I would like to think Holtz was not happy either.
In 2023-24, it seemed that Holtz was figuring it out. He stayed in the lineup as he played in all 82 games. Those who wanted to see him score got to see him put in 16 goals and 28 points. Modest numbers but a big improvement for a player in his third full season in North America. But it was not all good under the surface. Holtz was still kept as a bottom six forward despite his scoring for a struggling Devils team. Lindy Ruff wanted more compete out of him despite finding the scoresheet.
It came to a head in January when Ryan Novozinsky challenged Ruff about this and Ruff retorted how Novozinsky did not watch the game well. Ruff was fired later in 2023-24 and while Holtz kept getting into games, the production really went ice cold with just seven points since the infamous post-game presser.
Whether you blame Holtz for not putting in the effort he needed to put in off the puck or the Devils organization to make him something he was not, the relationship was frayed even with a new head coach coming in.
Fitzgerald decided to cut his losses and a struggling goalie in Akira Schmid by dealing both of them to Las Vegas for Paul Cotter and a third round pick at the 2024 NHL Draft. I hated this trade then as it seemed like it was a negative. Cotter started off the season real well with six goals in twelve games in October whilst throwing all kinds of hits. Hits that Holtz was not going to throw.
Cotter proceeded to score 10 goals for the remaining 67 games he played in and nothing in the playoffs. But he still threw hits.
Did Holtz turn it around in Las Vegas? No. He ended up on a really awful bottom six with the G-Knights, scored just four goals and 12 points in 53 games and saw a demotion to Henderson in the AHL. Where, again, he produced quite a bit to indicate he is too good for the AHL and possibly not quite good enough for the NHL. Not what you want to see out of a top-ten draft pick after five years. As much as I hated the trade then, Cotter ended up being the best player out of all three in 2024-25. Fitzgerald was right to cut his loss.
The Conclusion: Sad to say, but this was a bust. Holtz was expected to be a sniper and scorer for the Devils. When it came time to play in New Jersey, he did not do what the coaching staff or management wanted him to do. Was it a case of trying to jam a square peg into a round hole? I think so - to a point. But ultimately, the player has to earn his minutes. I think the Devils could have handled the situation better than they did. At the same time, being put with other scorers requires having the skating and off the puck play be on point because those players are usually matched up against the opponents’ best players. If Holtz was struggling against fourth liners in the NHL, then how would he handle first or second liners? That he has not figured it out in a second organization does not speak well for the player either. He may need to be in a different system to thrive but it is up to Holtz to fit into it and not the other way around.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: Well, remember that ominous sentence? Well, either Perfetti or Rossi would have been better picks. Even Jack Quinn would have worked out better based on his NHL career. All three went right after Holtz did at seventh overall. While he slipped in the draft, Anton Lundell would have been a fine selection in retrospect. He also was not projected at the time for the top ten, but Seth Jarvis would have been a home run at 7th overall. Of course, in a re-draft, Jarvis probably goers within the first five picks.
For what it is worth, in our internal mock draft of the first round,
we picked Rossi as we thought Holtz would go to Anaheim. In the SB Nation mock draft of the first round,
we chose Perfetti as Rossi went fifth and our decision was really between Perfetti and Holtz. Alas, this did not match reality.
Dawson Mercer, 18th Overall, 1st Round
Our Post About the Selection: Alex wrote up the pick and was quite pleased with the selection. Here is a choice quote:
He could become another scorer on this team, someone who thinks shoot first, pass second, someone who could really complement Jack Hughes or Nico Hischier quite well. It is clear that is the plan, between Alexander Holtz and now Dawson Mercer. They want guys who can be put alongside those centers, and who will complement their games well. Both guys drafted so far do that.
Holtz did not work out but Mercer actually did.
Since 2020...: The general reaction to this selection was a pleasant surprise. Most did not expect Mercer to be there at 18th overall. He was. The Devils picked him. And he would impress early on. He returned to Chicoutimi for a shortened 2020-21 campaign as well as representing Canada at the 2021 WJCs. He was a producer with 19 goals and 36 points in 23 games to go with two goals, six points, and a Silver Medal at the WJCs. Mercer continued his torrid scoring pace in the QMJHL playoffs to help Chicoutimi make a playoff run while earning the Best Defensive Forward, Most Sportsmanlike, and First All-Star team honors. It would be his final time where he was not a New Jersey Devil.
Mercer came into camp in 2021 and impressed the coaching staff. His smarts on the ice was a huge benefit as Mercer just worked his way through preseason to earn a spot on the opening night roster. That would be his first of an ironman streak with the Devils that has continued for four seasons and counting now. Mercer earned a NHL job and never looked back. He was impressive with 17 goals and 42 points as a rookie. A bright start on an otherwise dismal Devils season.
In the 2022-23 season, it seemed that Mercer’s breakout would make him a bigger player. He busted out 27 goals, 56 points, and a heap of “He’s got that DAWG in him” comments as #91 just kept making things happen. Mercer was thriving in all situations as well as getting on the scoresheet. This did not even stop in the playoffs with seven points in 12 playoff games. It was as if the Devils unearthed another scoring threat to go with The Big Deal, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, and the then-added Timo Meier. It seemed as if Fitzgerald needed to pay him long term and big-time before he increased his price in 2023-24.
That did not happen. Mercer started off 2023-24 ice cold and never really heated up that much. While he kept making appearances, he had more low-impact games than not. While he got to 20 goals, he put up just 33 points as he was shuffled throughout the lineup to get him going. It was apparent that as smart as he was on the ice and flexible as he was in terms of role, Mercer was not much of a play driver. And that hurt his usefulness since the production was not there from the prior season. It led to
a long negotiation in the following Summer.
Mercer would get a raise in 2024 but in the form of a bridge deal instead of a long-term commitment. Would he bounce back in 2024-25?
No. Mercer’s season in 2024-25 was pretty much like the prior season. The production was still limited to 20ish (not 20, he got 19) and fewer than 40 points. The on-ice impact was minimal and,
at points, actually awful. He got two goals in the postseason but it was more from being at the right place and the right time instead of making things happen himself. That Mercer is a complementary forward is fine. That the Devils are still figuring out if he is a center or winger by now is still odd. As well as his place in the lineup. Will Mercer even finish out his contract in New Jersey? Who knows. If only we could see the 2022-23 Mercer come back barking.
The Conclusion: As disappointing as that section read, the pick was actually a great success. Believe it or not, Mercer is the fifth highest scorer out of the 2020 draft class. Only Stutzle, Lucas Raymond, Jarvis, and Alexis Lafreniere have produced more than Mercer so far. And looking at the guys behind him, Mercer is in the mix of being a first-round caliber talent in a re-draft. He would not go 18th in one, that is for sure. You may be down about him these days but the pick was great.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: Not that I think Mercer is a center but there really was no other center available at this pick that would have worked out. It would be a stretch to suggest the Devils should have went for John-Jason Peterka (34th overall) or Brock Faber (45th overall) at this pick. Tyson Foerster (23rd overall), Connor Zary (24th overall), and Jake Neighbours (26th overall) would have been reaches too. I think this pick was the best possible one for the Devils to take, even with hindsight.
Which makes are mock draft picks look worse for it. Which is fine by me. In our internal mock draft of the first round,
we took Noel Gunler at 18th. Mercer went 12th. I am happy the real life pick was not Gunler. In the SB Nation mock draft,
we chose Rodion Amirov.
Shakir Mukhamadullin, 20th Overall, 1st Round
Our Post About the Selection: Chris wrote up the post about this pick. He was not initially excited but warmed up to it. Here is a select quote.
After more thought and research, I am still skeptical but also kind of excited by the pick. I think Mukhamadullin’s video shows he is aggressive enough to thrive in the NHL, and his reputation for his passes against aggressive forecheckers could spare Devils fans some of the headaches caused by our current crop of defensemen. However, I think they still could have done this by trading down a bit. This way, the Devils could have added more draft capital while getting a guy they were obviously high on.
I was not so happy about it. Of course, what was felt then ended up not mattering much.
Since 2020...: Shakir Mukhamadullin was picked after 27 games with Ufa’s main team combined with Ufa’s U-18 team, their VHL team, their MHL team, and Russia’s U-18 and U-20 teams. He was a well experienced man when he was picked. After, he stayed solely with the KHL team in 2020-21, playing in 39 games and getting 10 points. He also made Russia’s WJC team. All good progress for a prospect. Further progress showed in 2021-22. In fact,
he signed with the Devils in 2021 and the Devils loaned him right back to Ufa. A smart move so he could continue to get experience in a professional league without rushing him to the AHL. He did come to Utica for 3 playoff games.
In 2022-23, the Devils opted to loan him back to Ufa for another season. There, Mukhamadullin really shined. He not only played much more, but he produced as well. After just three goals and 7 points in 2021-22, he would put up 6 goals and 25 points in 2022-23. Of course, Mukhamadullin did not finish the season as a Devils prospect. Mukhamadullin ended up being
one of the major pieces in the trade that brought Timo Meier from the Sharks to the Devils in February 2023.
Since the deal and after Ufa’s season ended, Mukhamadullin made the move overseas to the Bay Area. He played for the San Jose Barrucuda in the AHL. He primarily played in the AHL in 2023-24 and made three NHL appearances to get his first taste of the league. Last season, he split time between the parent Sharks (30 games) and the baby Sharks (21 games). It remains to be seen if he will stick with the Sharks full-time in 2025-26 but he has at least made it to the league for more than a cup of coffee.
The Conclusion: The biggest value that Mukhamadullin brought to the Devils was the Timo Meier trade. Has Meier been all that amazing? No, one would like more production for him. But has he been better than anything Mukhamadullin could have done? Absolutely and without question. The Devils had the defensive depth in their pool to spend for Meier and their own blueline is not poorer for the trade. Similar to what I wrote about Nikita Okhotiuk last year, the pick was worth it if only to make the deal happen at all. I still say the Devils got the better end of it since I doubt Mukhamadullin would have cracked this blueline given future picks of Luke Hughes, Simon Nemec, and Seamus Casey. Worse, maybe the Devils would not have picked those defenders with him in the system.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: Given that Mukhamadullin has just 32 NHL games in over two seasons already, there is a plethora of players who have done more already in this league. Not so much for defensemen as the defenders who have made more appearances all went in the second round or later except for Justin Barron. They would have been big reaches. If it was just about picking the best players, then Foerster, Zary, and Neighbours were there if they would have been a small reach then. You could add in Ridly Greig if the ask was for a hard-nosed player.
What about our mock picks? Well, in the internal mock draft,
we picked Kaiden Guhle - who went in 16th overall in real life and was not available for New Jersey in real life. That was not possible to replicate. Our SB Nation mock draft pick was
Jacob Perreault, who has played all of one (1) NHL game so far. Even if you believe he will blossom, that would have been a tough sell as a pick of even over Mukhamadullin. Even if I would have preferred it in October 2020.
Nico Daws, 84th Overall, 3rd Round
Our Post About the Selection: Brian wrote up the pick on Nico Daws, the first of several picks in what would be an extra-long second day of the draft.
Since 2020...: Nico Daws was an overage selection as he was 19 at the time of the draft and would turn 20 before Christmas. Daws did standout as a 19 year old goalie. He was the OHL's goaltender of the year, posted an impressive 92.4% save percentage, and the Munich-born Daws represented Canada at the 2020 WJCs. All signs pointed to him getting drafted in 2020 and the Devils did so in the third round.
With the OHL cancelling their 2020-21 season in December 2020, Daws had to find minutes elsewhere. It was a difficult task for any OHL player to find a spot on a team with an established roster already in the middle of their season. The task was made harder as he is a goaltender, a position limited to 2 or 3 per team in most leagues. There are only so many spots available to begin with, much less for a 20-21 year old with major junior experience as their highest level. He went back to Germany and ended up making 10 appearances for EHC Ingolstadt. Not a full season but better than nothing. The Devils did sign him to an entry level contract to continue his pro career in North America.
It did not take long for Daws to be thrown into the NHL. Poor performances and injuries in the crease led to extended call ups for the rookie goalie in 2021-22. Daws started well but between the level of the game, the poorness of the Devils, and Daws own development, he posted a not-so-hot 89.3% save percentage in 25 games. In 21 games with Utica, he posted a 91.6%. A sign that he had talent at the pro level and he just needed experience.
Daws continued on to get it in Utica in 2022-23. 33 games and a 90.4% save percentage showed he was at least someone in the system to keep an eye on. Unfortunately, Daws would require hip labrum surgery after the 2023 season. He got the surgery in the Summer and the recovery meant he would not return to hockey until December 2023. Once he came back, he was recalled right away. Daws would get more opportunities in New Jersey once again out of necessity in 2023-24. Like his first campaign, he looked and played well to start but extended time was not as kind. An 89.4% save percentage in 21 games reflects that. Worse, when he was demoted, he put up a similarly poor 89% save percentage in Utica over 10 appearances. It was strange season overall.
The Devils opted to sign him to an two-season deal in 2024. Last season was a two-way deal and this coming season is one-way, so Daws will get paid more. It remains to be seen where he is in the organization. The Devils kept Jake Allen to backup Jacob Markstrom and that went well. Daws did get 3 appearances amid Markstrom's injuries and he was fantastic in those games. However, he posted a not-fantastic 89.3% save percentage in Utica. Although that Utica team was also terrible. Is Daws progressing? It is a good question and the stats are not so clear about it. We shall see by July 1 or so if the team is ready to give Daws the #2 spot behind Markstrom or if they want to entrust it to someone else.
That all stated, Daws has the most NHL games played (53) of any goalie in this draft class so far.
The Conclusion: From the third round and onward, getting a prospect who plays in the NHL at all is a success in of itself. Especially at a position where minutes and analysis are more difficult to get a handle on. Even if the overall stats have not been good, Daws has been a successful pick for even playing as much as he did. I do worry about whether a different goalie coach or developmental environment could have led to a better performing 24 year old goalie. Still, that he could even be seriously considered for a NHL job is for better than a lot of prospects picked around 84th overall.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: The only other goalies who have played a NHL game and picked after Daws are Jakub Dobes (16 games this season) and Devon Levi (39 games). Both were picked well after the Daws pick. I do not think the Devils really missed on either of them.
As for other players, only 2 third rounders picked after Daws have played in the NHL: Justin Sordif (4) and Jack Thompson (34). Hardly impact guys the Devils missed on.
Jaromir Pytlik, 99th Overall, 4th Round
Our Post About the Selection: Dan wrote up the selection of Pytlik in the fourth round, first of two for that round by the Devils in 2020.
Since 2020...: Pytlik was a Czech-developed player who made the jump to the OHL in 2018-19. He stepped in and looked great for the Greyhounds. Skill on the puck, awareness in all three zones, and he demonstrated he could play in various situations. Pytlik continued that with Sault Ste. Marie in 2019-20. He was an all around center. The questions were common for a prospect. Would he be able to translate his game to the next levels? Would he further develop his talent?
Unfortunately, Pytlik did not. That canceled 2020-21 OHL season meant he joined the many to finding a roster spot from December onward. It took a while. After some spot appearances internationally, Pytlik got to make 4 appearances on loan to HC Stadion Litoměřice in 2021. Hardly what a developing prospect needs. It was a lost season.
Pytlik's path continued to go pear-shaped. He opted to sign with KalPa in the Finnish Liiga for 2022-23. He only made 5 appearances for them. Pytlik did get loaned to IPK in the second tier Mestis league. There, he played 12 games and put up 3 goals and 5 points. Pytlik would go back to Czechia. He signed with Rytíři Kladno, a.k.a. the Kladno Knights a.k.a. Jarmoir Jagr's team. Pytlik did get into 30 games there. He also only put up 3 goals and 5 points. It was not an impressive campaign. Good for Pytlik to find a more stable situation but his progression as a player seemingly stalled.
As Pytlik was drafted out of major junior, the Devils had 2 years to sign him to keep his rights. They let them lapse. Pytlik was and is a free agent in the eyes of the NHL. No matter: Pytlik has remained in Czechia. He continued to play in Kladno for the next three seasons outside of a very short loan in 2022-23 to LHK Jestřábi Prostějov. Pytlik has signed with Bílí Tygři Liberec for next season. If nothing else, he has a pro hockey career in his homeland.
The Conclusion: This pick did not work out. And it is hard to ignore the OHL cancelation as a factor. The league made their decision fairly late while others were in mid-season. Prospective players need to play at some level to get better and that decision really made it hard for Pytlik. This is not to say he makes it in the NHL if the OHL canceled their season earlier or had some kind of shortened season. It is to say that it was a factor.
The main factor was Pytlik himself. As well as he played with the Greyhounds, that talent did not transfer to the pro level. His path in pro hockey may have take turns but he didn't really stick around until Kladno. And even there he was not a major producer or player. He did not develop as most mid to late draft picks usually do not. It is what it is.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: In the 2020 fourth round, only three players have made it to the NHL: defenseman Adam Wilsby at 101st overall, winger Mikael Pyythia at 114th overall, and Sean Farrell at 124th overall. Only Pyythia has played over half of a season at that too. This is to say the pickings were slim in the fourth round (as you may expect), and so it was not as if the Devils missed on anyone big at this point in the draft.
Ethan Edwards, 120th Overall, 4th Round
Our Post About the Selection: Brian took the other fourth rounder for a write up, which was about the then-Michigan bound defenseman, Ethan Edwards.
Since 2020...: This is going to make me seem old. Once upon a time, if you wanted to play college hockey in America, then you needed to avoid the three Canadian major junior leagues as that would void the amateur requirement the NCAA imposed. Players would have to play in the USHL, European junior leagues as an amateur, or in Canadian Junior A leagues to maintain eligibility before enrolling. Ethan Edwards was one such player and so he played in Alberta's junior A league as he had a commitment with Michigan.
Edwards was touted for his offensive game and confirmed it with his production at the junior A level. Edwards made a switch to Sioux City of the USHL in 2020-21. He performed well as the league had a season with 27 points in 51 games. Edwards enrolled with Michigan and began his college career.
Edwards was a regular third pairing defender as a freshman. He understandably played behind Owen Power, Luke Hughes, and Nick Blankenburg. 36 games and 11 points later, he was in about the same spot as a sophomore. Again, understandable as Luke Hughes and Seamus Casey were playing in front of him. Edwards provided 14 points in 37 games from a depth role. Between experience and roster turnover, Edwards would get a bigger role as a junior as well as an "A" on his jersey. Unfortunately, his season was cut short due to injury that kept him out of the lineup at the start of the season. Edwards would return - and often behind Casey - as he only played in 21 games and contributed 10 points as a junior. Edwards returned to Big Blue as a senior. He played significant minutes with 21 points in 36 games. Not exactly astounding production on its own, but he finished third on the team in scoring and most among defensemen.
Based on Alex Drain’s review-autopsy of the 2024-25 Wolverines at MGoBlog, Edwards was one of the better players on the team.
As a graduating senior, Edwards had the option to wait until August 15, 2025 and become an unrestricted free agent. However, that did not happen. The Devils, clearly pleased with his development, offered him an entry level contract in March. Edwards signed it. Further, he reported to Utica on an ATO to get a taste of pro hockey. He made 10 appearances with the Comets and provided 3 assists.
The expectation for next season is that Edwards will play a full season in Utica. He adds depth to the team's prospect pool at defense. Should he thrive in the A, do not be shocked if he gets an opportunity down the line.
The Conclusion: It is unknown as to whether Ethan Edwards will get into a NHL game. He is not alone as a fourth rounder getting a entry level contract to have that possibility. It is not common - see Pytlik and the next selection - for a player picked in this round or later to get that ELC. It was not a wasted pick for that reason alone. Edwards' offensive potential for Utica could prove useful for a team bereft of it in 2024-25. For where the pick was made, an outright success is still possible. It is working out better the Pytlik pick.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: Only Sean Farrell has made it to the NHL among fourth rounders picked after Edwards and even that was just for six games. Reaching into the fifth round, Isaak Philips and Matt Kessel have broken through. Arguments could be made for Brett Berard or Elliot Desnoyers. Still, I am not convinced the Devils missed out on anyone significant by picking Edwards here. Especially if Edwards eventually makes it to the NHL at some point.
Artem Shlaine, 130th Overall, 5th Round
Our Post About the Selection: Dan wrote up the post about Shattuck St. Mary’s player and then UConn-commit, Artem Shlaine.
Since 2020...: Shlaine primarily played with the famous prep school in his pre-draft season and his draft season (he did make 6 appearances for Muskegon in the USHL). Part of the reason was to maintain his NCAA eligibility as Shlaine committed to the University of Connecticut. He kept it and became a Huskie for what would be a truncated 2020-21 season. Shlaine found out how much of a step up college hockey was with one goal and nine points in 23 games. Shlaine kept at it and found more of a footing as a sophomore on and off the ice.
He made the All Academic team in Hockey East for a second straight season while putting up 7 goals and 17 points in 36 games. It seemed that he started to blossom.
However, all was not so well for Shlaine. He wanted something different and explored the transfer portal after the 2022-23 season.
Shlaine chose Northern Michigan due to a better feeling of belonging with the coaching staff there. As a junior and a senior, Shlaine’s production certainly picked up. He put up 11 goals and 32 points in 38 games as a junior. His senior season was cut short due to injury but still put up 10 goals and 23 points in 27 games.
With the COVID Pandemic, the NCAA did allow for a fifth year of eligibility for athletes. Shlaine opted to take it and transferred to Arizona State. There, he shined even further. Even with missing the first six games of the season with an injury, he put up 17 goals and 38 points in 31 games for the Sun Devils.
He earned NCHC First Team honors and was named to the second All-American team for the West. Shlaine was also entirely free from his rights with the Devils. While the NCAA allowed for an extra year of eligibility, the NHL’s rules on draft rights did not change. Teams have until August 15 of the fourth year of the player’s time in college to sign the player or risk losing their rights - rendering the player as an unrestricted free agent. Shlaine was not signed by the Devils. He was free as soon as August 15, 2024 passed.
That is how he was able to sign an ATO with Texas of the AHL after his season at Arizona State ended.
I am not sure if it was a case of the Devils not thinking his development warranted an entry level contract, Shlaine not being interested in signing, or something else. Either way, he at least has a shot at a pro career in North America depending on how the Stars organization (or someone else) think of his future.
The Conclusion: Shlaine’s path in college showed growth but it was in line with being older and more experienced. It was not necessarily because his game became better. I am pleased to see that he made the most of his fifth year and he has a pathway to play in the AHL. However, since the Devils did not sign him (or he did not want to be signed, either way), I cannot say it was a successful selection.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: In the fifth round, the following players have reached the NHL for at least a little bit: Brett Berard (134th), Elliot Desnoyers (135th), Jakub Dobes (136th), Isaak Phillips (141st), Matt Kessel (150th), and William Dufour (152nd). Only Phillips and Kessel have played in more than one season and did so through call-ups. I can agree that they ended up being better picks. Again, I am not sure if they would have been vastly superior picks. It is the fifth round.
Benjamin Baumgartner, 161th Overall, 6th Round
Our Post About the Selection: Brian wrote up the final pick of the Devils’ 2020 draft class, Austrian overager Benjamin Baumgartner.
Since 2020...: I was excited about this selection because I thought this would be a repeat of Yegor Sharangovich. A 20-year old Austrian forward who shined at a smaller stage and could come to the AHL in a short amount of time. He did shine. He played a full season with HC Davos in 2019-20 with 27 points in 37 games. He was a star for Austria’s under-20 national team, who won Division I-A World Junior Championships led by Baumgartner’s five goals and eleven points in five games.
The issue was two-fold. One: Baumgartner did not really improve a ton since his draft pick. He played in 47 games with Davos in 2020-21 but he put up only 25 points. He transferred to Lausanne HC in May 2021. There, he put up 15 points in 45 games. While he appeared for Austria’s main national team for Olympic qualifying games in 2021 and the 2022 World Championships, he put up just one assist across five of those appearances. Remember that he was a double-overager so at age 22, the lack of production suggested that he was not really blossoming for a future career. This was further confirmed when he transferred to SC Bern for 2022-23 and put up 18 points in 48 games with them.
Two: Baumgartner was seemingly not interested in moving over. He has remained in Swiss hockey for his entire hockey career. He developed through HC Davos’ youth teams. He made his top league debut with them. His transfers kept him in the National League with Lausanne and SC Bern. Baumgartner remained with SC Bern since joining them in July 2022. Whether the Devils reached out to him or not, his interest to play has been to stay in the National League.
Fair enough. It has worked out for SC Bern. Baumgartner’s production did pick up in 2023-24 with 12 goals and 31 points in 50 games and he followed that with 35 points in 52 games in this past season. He is set to return to them for another season. It has been a good situation for both the team and player. Austria’s national team certainly does not mind Baumgartner staying in Switzerland. Baumgartner has become more of a regular call up to the national team in recent seasons. He was a member of their Quarterfinal-earning squad in this year’s World Championships. Baumgartner will continue to ply his trade in Switzerland.
The Conclusion: The pick did not work out either. The Devils took a flyer on a 20-year old in, what I think, was an attempt to repeat what happened with Sharangovich. Lightning did not strike twice. Baumgartner did not have that breakout season that facilitated a move to North Americna pro hockey. Whether the Devils did not make an offer or Baumgartner was not interested is beside the point. He has remained in Swiss hockey at the club level and he has a fine career going while also representing his nation in hockey. Good for him. Not so good for the Devils. But it was a sixth round pick; it was very much a shot in the dark.
With the Benefit of Hindsight: The Devils and a lot of other teams missed out on Nils Aman. He could have been picked much earlier. The 167th overall pick has 130 games with Vancouver already over the last three seasons. While that may have been more out of necessity given he spent time with Abbotsford in each of the last three seasons. And he has not exactly commanded a roster spot in Vancouver either. Still, he is far and away the most successful of the late round picks in the 2020 draft class. Other sixth rounders that have made it is the infamous Matt Rempe, Rory Kerins, Cole Reinhardt, and Riley Duran. In the seventh round, Louis Crevier, Adam Raska, Chase Bradley, Ben McCartney, Ilya Solovyov, and Devon Levi have all made it to the NHL for at least a little bit. Are any of those players impact players either? No. But they have made it and therefore would have been better picks than Baumgartner in retrospect. Still, it is difficult to get worked up over missing a fourth, fifth, or sixth round selection.
Five Years Later, Final Thoughts
The 2020 draft class tends to be brought up as an example of the Devils’ poor drafting in recent years. I kind of get why. The Devils had three first round picks, all within the first 20 picks. Only one of them has actually worked out for the Devils as a player for the Devils and that has been Dawson Mercer, who has disappointed for the much of the last two seasons. The Holtz pick was a bust. Mukhamadullin was moved for Timo Meier so how you feel about Meier is going to partially drive how you felt about that pick in retrospect. The Devils are short on center depth and either did not or could not sign any of the three centers they drafted after that first round as Pytlik, Shlaine, and Baumgartner were listed as centers. I get the complaint.
That said, I kind of cannot agree that the year was a big waste. Again, the 2020 draft class was thrown off by a global pandemic. Their draft year and their draft-plus-one year were hugely impacted. Some to a point that they are only now realizing their potential later than you would expect from other draft classes. As disappointing as you may feel about Mercer, he is fifth among the 2020 draftees in scoring and would absolutely go top-ten if there was a re-draft. That pick was great. As was the Nico Daws selection. Finding a goalie is hard in the draft and despite a hip injury and getting shelled the longer his call ups went, Daws is still very much in the mix for a NHL job. That is more than almost all of the goalies picked in that year’s draft, Yaroslav Askarov excluded. They found success with that 84th overall pick. There could be more success if Ethan Edwards, a 120th overall pick, ends up even getting just a taste of the NHL. While Mukhamadullin did nothing for New Jersey, he was part of the package that brought in Timo Meier. Regardless of your opinion of Meier, Timo Meier is doing more for New Jersey than Mukhamadullin likely would. This was not that bad of a draft class.
It was also not very good. Missing on fourth, fifth, and sixth round picks is one thing. It happens. It is common. It is far from the end of the world. Missing on the seventh overall pick is a problem. It is something that the Devils, in an indirect sense, are suffering from now. Even the largest fans of Paul Cotter have to admit that getting someone usually worthy of a top-ten selection in an NHL draft would be more useful to the team now than anything Cotter did last season. What makes the Holtz pick sting even more are the successes that followed. Jack Quinn may be coming on as a Sabre. Marco Rossi just had a 60 point season and would have been a perfect antidote to the Devils’ current lack of quality center depth. Cole Perfetti just dropped a 50 point season in his fourth straight improvement in point production at the NHL level. Those wondering why the Devils do not have their own Anton Lundell can remember that the Devils could have had Lundell in this draft. Those who coveted Dylan Holloway can recall that the Devils could have reached for him. Those who gnash their teeth about how good Seth Jarvis is can gnash their teeth at the thought that the Devils could have had him. If he pans out, Askarov can be added to the list. I hate to write it but the Holtz pick really was a repeat of the Pavel Zacha pick in 2015. And that is understandably going to cast a shadow on the rest of this draft class.
The larger issue, thanks to these looks back, is that the Devils struggled to really hit on more than two guys for multiple drafts. 2017 had Hischier, Jesper Boqvist, and Fabian Zetterlund and that is a high mark. Also, only Hischier has remained. 2018 had Ty Smith, Akira Schmid, and Yegor Sharangovich and all three are elsewhere.
2019 was The Big Deal and some guys with the hope Arseni Gritsyuk can be someone in the NHL right away. While the class has another year, 2021’s class is going to be Luke Hughes and hopes that Samu Salminen and/or Jakub Malek being players - so it is just Luke Hughes and a bunch of dudes at the moment. Again, late picks are shots in the dark. But the lack of successes add up. You can see that impact in the prospect pool, a Utica team that needs to sign veterans for their own depth and competitiveness, and a Devils team that also needs to sign veterans for depth since Utica is not providing them. It flows downstream. And this is while acknowledging some successes with the 2020 draft class.
If there is a lesson to take from this lookback for 2025’s draft class, then it is to have some kind of identity with the picks. Part of what made 2020 seem so various was because the picks were various. Even though this was not Castron’s first draft with New Jersey, it was Fitzgerald’s and you can see him sample a bunch of different things. This is not to say he needed to repeat 2019 and just get a bunch of safe, low-ceiling, high-floor defensive defensemen prospects. But having a general trait to prioritize like skating or awareness with the puck or a great shot would have gone a long way to at least have some consistency with the selections. You do not want to pick players for current needs but the pool does need offensive skill and especially centers. I would suggest that from a big-picture point of view a month-plus away from the 2025 NHL Draft. You can see in 2020 that varied picks may have varied results - for better and worse.
I want to think my feelings on this are now clear. It is not the worst draft I have done a look back on. There were successes and I can even argue them. It could have been much better, though. Even amid a pandemic, some teams nailed 2020 - regrettably I write Our Hated Rivals - so I cannot really excuse the Devils. So it goes.
Your Take
Now that you read through my look back at the Devils’ 2020 draft class, I want to know your take. How do you feel about how the Devils did in the 2020 NHL Draft? How have your thoughts changed about them compared to what they were five years ago? Are you pleased with what the Devils did with their eight picks? What lessons should the Devils take away from this draft class in retrospect in their preparations for 2025’s draft? Please leave your answers and other thoughts about the Devils’ draft five years ago. Thank you for reading.
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