Grades based on expectations + role.
Forwards:
Sharangovich A
The guy established himself as a building block. Only an A instead of A+ cause I hope he has even more room to grow and there was that stretch about 10 games in when he looked lost. He might be more important than Bratt today.
Wood B+
Love this guy's game and he's a great 4th liner. He was someone I wasn't sure should be protected before the season started. With that said great 4th liners paid almost 3 million dollars are a luxury, and not really core pieces. He might best serve the Devils as trade bait next deadline unfortunately, even though I really like watching him play.
Hughes B+
I was very worried about Hughes after his rookie year. Now I am less worried, but still see a major hole in his offensive game; namely his shot. Will it take 3 years to get up to average? 1 offseason? will it never come? I also thought he'd be better on the PP by now, given he'd have more space but his strength appears to be transition play. He needs to become a PP weapon next year, that's essential, and upgrading the shot may take longer. I think Gomez 2.0 is his floor more so than his projection. He's the most important Devils player, Devils need to do what they can to help him reach his full potential and take advantage of his unique skillset. He's going to be a positive valued top 6 center in this league for the next 8 years I think easily and those are so hard to find. TBD if he can be a star caliber player (i.e. someone in the top 10 of Hart trophy voting).
Kuokkonen B+
Kuokkonen to me is someone that should probably be a 3rd liner on the next Devils playoff team. I really like what he brings and he's an NHL player but unlike Sharangovich I don't really see his game going to another level. Still great work to establish himself as an NHLer and work his way up the lineup to the 1st line.
Zacha B+
The most polarizing player on the team established himself as a complimentary scoring winger. I hope he never plays C again and Fitz decides to add a C to make sure Zacha doesn't move there in case of injury. I don't see him as a building block necessarily and am willing but not eager to trade him in the right deal.
Bratt B
Came into the season late and with rust but ended up with a 50+ point pace. He needs to score 50+ points next season to shut up the haters, and prove he's as good as we all see him as being. I really like Bratt but think he's a bit overrated cause he brings flash, and once he gets caught and engaged physically he's easy to knock off the puck. With that said he brings a ton to the 2nd line and if he can establish himself on the PP should start piling up points.
McLeod B-
McLeod is a great 4th liner I think at this point. Unlike Wood though I think he's probably needed in NJ for a few more years cause Cs are so hard to find, in particular speedy Cs that can play the style Ruff wants to. He started to PK a bit and if he can do that effectively he might really have a place in NJ for a long time.
Bastian B+
Maltsev B+
Merkley C+
Studenic C+
Not much to say about these guys, they showed well at times but all look to be AHL tweeners to me. Maltsev got pretty crazy hype for a while and if he can play C that would be very helpful to NJ. Bastian I expect to lose in expansion which is unfortunate but tolerable.
Hischier C
Bit of nightmare season for him. Expect better things and health next year
Boqvist C
I wrote him off but he showed well at the end of the season. I project him to be the 5C next year and a scratch if everyone is healthy.
Johnsson D
We got hoodwinked by the boy wonder. I hope next year he's good enough in training camp that he makes the team, in some capacity, and excels. At this point I don't know what the role would be, seems like he should be in AHL in case of injury and to prove he's a cut above Holtz and Foote next year personally.
Former Devils
Zajac B-
I remember a few years ago thinking his contract was a nightmare. He never fell below replacement level for its duration and showed remarkable longevity. Thanks for the memories.
Palmieri D
Nightmare season for him in NJ. Looked bad, didn't seem to help Hughes develop at all, and likely won't get a contract offer from NJ this offseason. If someone showed me statistical analysis that losing him was addition by subtraction I wouldn't be surprised.
Gusev F
I thought at least one of Palmieri or Gusev were going to be re-signed when the season started. Gusev was beloved on this board last year. Insane what happened there. Coach + player mismatch? A failed experiment but one worth running I suppose.
Defensemen:
Smith A
The grades here seem to reflect recency bias. Smith established himself as a core piece, and a PP weapon in his rookie year. He will be a top 4 dman for NJ for the next 5 years. He is the only person in the organization you can say that about. Big season for him and I think he's got room to grow. You can't really ask for a better rookie year for a 20 year old (!!!) dman.
Severson B+
The best Devils dman. I wonder if he's going to be a member of the next Devils playoff team, or he's going to be moved in 1.5 years at the deadline.
Subban C+
Everyone's Subban grade likely reflects their expectations, I guess I expected more looking at some grades here. Only reason his grade isn't lower is he was so bad last year it was a bit of a bounce back. This season he lost his PP job, only really looked good next to Kulikov, and projects to have zero trade value next deadline at 50% retention. I can't give him a grade higher than C+ based on that reality and this trade was a clear loser for NJ.
Murray C
Uneven year for the big offseason acquisition. Basically lost his job to Kulikov and was dropped to the 3rd pair. The Devils are so desperate for dmen who won't get caved in I want him back at 2 years or under though.
Butcher D
He looked ok when he got playing time post deadline but appears to provide very little, especially if Smith is on the PP. He now doesn't appear likely to be in the NHL in 2 years.
Siegenthaler INC
I am worried by what I've seen so far though.
Former Devils
Kulikov A
This guy stabilized the 2nd pair and was a revelation given he was projected to be the 3rd pair / 7th dman behind Butcher possibly. Great signing by Fitz, would be happy if he came back to NJ for 2 years. Trading him for a conditional 3rd round pick was a mistake, I'll stand by that take.
Vatanen D
Vatanen looked bad for most of the season, which is a shame cause he was a solid Devil for many years. Don't expect him in the NHL next year.
Goalies:
Blackwood B+
Blackwood appears to be a 1A/B type at this time which is very valuable and needed in NJ. I don't know if bonafide starting goalies will even be a thing in 5 years or if we are headed for the hockey equivalent of "running back by committee" taking over in the NFL, but he should be expected to start 40-60 games for the next few years and be decent in those starts. That's a valuable piece to build around.
Wedgewood B
He was supposed to be the third goalie and was forced to become the backup. He played above his head most of the year but also confirmed that he's not NHL backup goalie caliber. I guess he can remain as the 3rd goalie next year but really don't mind the Devils moving on.
Dell F
We had our pick in the goaltending carousel and we chose poorly. Dell on paper was the best 3rd goalie out there, to the point that he could have been reasonably expected to be Blackwood's backup. He got outplayed by Wedgewood and now is likely out of the NHL. Shame cause his goalie gear was awesome.