I'll be doing the preview in two parts: the forwards and then later the defensive unit including the goalies.
New Jersey has brought multiple new faces to Newark and some could have an impact now and two, in particular, are a large part of the future.
The Devils forwards have improved in talent with additions, but things may take a while to truly show the improvement with the missing Travis Zajac, who suffered a torn pectoral muscle in August.
The prognosis was four to six months, which means Zajac could return in as early as December and as late as February.
Another missing piece is veteran center Brian Boyle, signed from Toronto to a two-year contract, only to discover that Boyle is suffering from Chronic Myeloid Leukemia.
Boyle expects to return sometime during the season, but it's unknown when that time will arrive.
With Zajac and Boyle missing, the Devils will be counting on young players to step up at center with second-year man Pavel Zacha and rookie and first overall pick Nico Hischier centering the first two lines.
It's not an ideal situation, but when you consider the Devils situation and the playmaker abilities of the two, it's the best solution as long as you realize that there will be some growing pains to ride out.
Zacha will center the first line, which will feature the explosive Taylor Hall and Kyle Palmieri on the wings.
Hall and Palmieri tied for the team lead in scoring last season with 53 points with Palmieri leading the team in goals with 27.
Palmieri's 27 and Hall's 20 goals were only matched by Adam Henrique's 20 as the only Devils to score more than 14 last season with the net effect being a team that struggled offensively.
With two talented wings around him, Zacha will need to step up his game after a rookie season that saw him finish with eight and sixteen assists in seventy games.
Nico Hischier is being challenged early as the Swiss native will center the second line with his wingers starting the season with two newcomers that were acquired in the off-season.
Marcus Johansson was obtained from Washington for a second and third-round draft pick, which didn't hurt the team since it had extra picks in those rounds.
Johansson scored career highs in both goals (24) and points (58) and Washington didn't trade him for the cost of draft picks, the Capitals were almost forced to by their crushing salary cap.
Johannson will be on the left wing with Drew Stafford being signed to play on the right side.
Stafford scored just eight goals last season in a year split between Winnipeg and Boston but popped in 21 the season before with the Jets.
I think he can rebound as he's still far from washed up as he turns 32 at the end of the month.
The third and fourth lines will see a lot of different combinations in an effort to try to find something with chemistry, but the one player will be consistent is Adam Henrique as the third line center.
The fact that Adam Henrique is the third line center shows the improved depth this season among the New Jersey forwards.
AHL veterans Blake Coleman and Brian Gibbons surprisingly made the team over John Quenneville and Joseph Blandisi, but I think that situation will correct itself as the season goes on.
There could be the chance that this could be a paper move to keep some options open for other dealings.
Both of the younger players were assigned to Binghamton but should be back in New Jersey fairly quickly.
The left wings will be the speedy Miles Wood and rookie Jesper Bratt from Sweden, who surprisingly made the team with a strong training camp.
Wood's skating ability would make him a good fit with Adam Henrique, but Bratt is smallish (170 pounds) and not sure if he's a good fourth line selection.
Both will likely see time with each line as will both right wings with Jimmy Hayes making the Devils off of a training camp tryout and Stefan Noesen returning.
Hayes has been a solid player in the past and with his frame (6'5 215) might see some power play time, while I liked Noesen's touch around the net last season after being added from Anaheim in mid-season.
The Devils forwards still are far from elite, but the team is far deeper than they were last season and with the fortunate addition of Nico Hischier, the Devils suddenly have a top notch talent that was unexpected.
I think they will score more this season and should be a bit more freewheeling on offense.
This should be a much fun team to watch on offense.
I'll be back soon with the look at the defensive crew and the goalies as part of the preview...
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