An Exercise in Analytics: What Would the Ideal Devils Forward Lineup Be?

NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - MARCH 3 : Jack Hughes #86 and Cody Glass #12 of the New Jersey Devils warm up before the NHL regular season game against the Florida Panthers at the Prudential Center on March 3, 2026 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andrew Maclean/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images Happy Fourth of July, Devils fans. Relive a good moment for a second.

Now, Sunny Mehta is not done with his offseason work yet, but he has already made several moves that are designed to improve the short and long-term outlooks of the New Jersey Devils. Perhaps it’s just the remnants of the last several painful years of Devils fandom, but it seems that many fans out there are still wanting more for the 2026-27 season. With that in mind, I thought it would be a good idea to look at the Devils roster as it is today and project who should slot where in the lineup, who should be scratched, and who might be left as trade pieces over the summer or upcoming season.

For the purposes of this exercise, I am operating under the assumption that the Utah Mammoth will NOT match the New Jersey Devils’ offer sheet of Barrett Hayton, accepting a second-round pick as compensation for him. However, please keep in mind that Utah has until July 8 to make any decisions on the matter.The Analytical Sources:HockeyViz’s Synthetic Goal model: a catch-all evaluator that balances on-ice shot impacts, finishing and playmaking impacts, penalty impact, and special teamsEvolving-Hockey’s RAPM: a simpler evaluator that largely focuses on a blend of expected goals, Corsi, and team goalscoring impactAll Three Zones: a microstat evaluator that dissects what specific actions players perform more or less often than averageNatural Stat Trick: a collection of data on individual, line, and team performance over long spans of timeNHL EDGE: player tracking data that includes skating speed, shot speed, shot location, and team time of possessionThe Forward LineupWhen constructing the New Jersey Devils’ lineup, I opera