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A few days ago the New Jersey Devils announced they'd be without one of their most important players, Travis Zajac, for the foreseeable future as a result of a torn pec.
Naturally, that has led to a lot of talk about who can and will replace Zajac on the top line.
I see three realistic options and am going to touch on each.
Adam Henrique
Henrique has experience centering the top line -- he did so as a rookie -- and in 2015-16 he averaged only a second less than Zajac on a per game basis. He didn't play the tough minutes, but he played a lot of them and fared quite well (he scored 30 goals). Part of that was due to an unsustainably high shooting percentage, which came down last season, but there's more to it than just pure luck.
On the other hand, Henrique's defensive game at 5v5 isn't as good as many believe -- I think John Hynes hinted at that when he moved Henrique to the wing towards the end of the season -- and he is probably not a guy you want shadowing the likes of Sidney Crosby and Nicklas Backstrom on a nightly basis.
Henrique also struggled when he was given the opportunity to play with Taylor Hall. The sample size wasn't huge but Zajac fared much better despite seeing fewer offensive zone starts.
Henrique seems like the most obvious candidate to play top line minutes, but that doesn't necessarily mean he's the best one.
Marcus Johansson
He isn't a great faceoff man and hasn't really been used as a regular center in five years, but I think the Devils should test him out there.
Zajac is one of the better playmakers on the roster and his style seemed to mesh well with Hall and Kyle Palmieri on the top unit. I think Johansson can bring those same abilities to the table, as well as much more speed, and could fit in nicely with those two.
Johansson is also a better shot suppressor than Henrique so, while I still wouldn't feel overly comfortable with him matching up against the league's best offensive players, he could be better suited for the job.
Nico Hischier
Hischier is the most talented and creative center on the roster and it would be loads of fun to see him play alongside guys like Hall and Palmieri. That would almost certainly be too much, too soon, though.
I have complete faith in Hischier's defensive ability and his willingness to put in the extra work to make sure he's always on top of his assignments and back in the play. In saying that, nothing good will come from an 18-year-old kid, who still needs to fill out, trying to defend Crosby down low.
I think the best way to handle Hischier is to play him in the middle-6 and slowly give him more responsibility as he shows he can handle it.
Conclusion
I'd test Johansson out down the middle in preseason and, if he handles it well, use him as the top center. If he struggles, I'd go with Henrique. Either way, I'd be hesitant to put too much on Hischier's plate to start out.
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