Devils Joint

WOULD THE DEVILS HAVE JESPER BRATT IF IT WASN'T FOR SUNNY MEHTA?
(First article of the season)
Check it out, lmk what you think! #NJDevils It seemed as if Jesper Bratt came out of Nowhere in New Jersey. He Didn’t. And neither did Sunny Mehta.

WHY ASK THIS QUESTION?
To start, just to get it out there, if you weren’t aware; Sunny Mehta has worked for the Devils before. That’s right sports fans, Sunny built the NHL’s 1st full time analytics department for the Devils around 2014. That analytics machine is the origin of Jesper Bratt. The BRATTMAN looks like a 6th round miracle if you only saw a headline saying “Drafted 162nd in 2016, played in the NHL a year later, had 2 points in his 1st game, all without a shift in the AHL”. While that version is true, it leaves out the part where he was (1) already a pro overseas, (2) already on the Devils radar, and (3) already under contract before training camp had even started in 2017. That 2017/2018 season started with the hopeful emergence of 1st Overall Pick Nico Hischier, yet other rookies including Will Butcher at the time stole Hischiers spotlight to start the season. Bratt was 17 when the New Jersey Devils table called his name in Buffalo. He was 5-foot-nothing, 174 pounds, playing for AIK in Sweden’s 2nd league. He had 17 points in 48 games against men. While that’s great for a smaller, younger player it is surely not a draft-year explosion. Size and a 2ns division box score are why he sat into the 6th round. (After his 2017 debut I am sure every other GM in the league was slapping themselves for missing this gem) The Devils still liked what they saw despite a size issue. Devils scout Paul Castron told me they talked about the skating, the puck skill, the motor/speed the kid had. The team’s amateur staff had him higher on their board than 162. Analytics director…guess who? Sunny Mehta’s model, (according to later reporting) had him absurdly high in that class. They took him because he was still there, not because they were just taking a chance on a kid that was still available. In fact, they were shocked that no other team had scooped this superhero up before pick 162.
Bratt did not jump to North America the next morning. He went back to AIK for 2016-17 and put up 22 points in 46 games, plus a couple in a qualification round. Still not anything to scream about. What changed the contract situation was a summer event, not an NHL or AHL game. This is the part where I always like to mention that Bratt is the longest tenured Devil on the team.

Jesper Bratt right after being chosen by the New Jersey Devils in the 6th Round, 162nd Overall at the 2016 NHL Draft
WHEN IT HAPPENED
In May 2017, Bratt played at the under 20 Summer Showcase in Michigan. At the time NJ Devils GM (R.I.P.) Ray Shero was impressed with what he saw, impressed enough to sign him on the spot. ON. THE. SPOT. On May 12, 2017, the Devils announced a 3 year ELC. Bratt was 18 and had never played an NHL game. He had never played an AHL game. He didn’t need to According to the Coaches, Scouts and GM’s. Bratt was already a professional in Sweden, so the Devils could lock him up out of Europe. That‘s how a 6th rounder gets an ELC before he ever dresses in North America, he wasn’t a junior waiting on a 1st pro contract. He was a contracted European they wanted off the market. And they got him.
The original plan after the signing was still to take the slow path. Many fans don’t know this but the London Knights held his CHL rights from the 2017 Import Draft. The idea (at first) was for him to sign the ELC, then send him to London if he couldn’t make the NHL squad out of camp. Bratt even went to Knights camp and even played one preseason game for them. Before he left London for Devils camp, he packed a suitcase of winter clothes. He left it behind so it could be mailed if he got sent back. He wasn’t walking into New Jersey assuming he had a roster spot. I have always seen Jesper Bratt as a humble player and this proves it even further in my opinion.
Then camp happened. Development camp, rookie games, main camp, through it all, Bratt was hard not to notice. John Hynes noticed the same things Shero had seen in Michigan; he wanted hard minutes, he didn't get rattled, he kept playing his game. By the end of the preseason he believed he could/should make the team. Thankfully the Devils agreed. He was on the 2017-18 opening-night roster. At the time he was the lowest-drafted teenager to debut in the NHL since the mid 90's.
GAME 1 SURPRISE
October 7, 2017, against Colorado: a power-play goal and a shorthanded assist in his very 1st NHL game. While everyone was watching for Nico Hischier, Bratt stole the show. Bratter added 2 more goals in Buffalo 2 nights later. He never played a regular season game for London. He never needed Binghamton (The AHL City at the time). The suitcase in Ontario became a positive story.
People say that Jesper Bratt came out of nowhere. Not true. He came out of Allsvenskan, a late round gem with skating and skill, a summer showcase that convinced Ray Shero to sign him and a training camp that made juniors unnecessary. The surprise was not that New Jersey knew who he was. The surprise was that a 6th rounder from Sweden’s league 2 was ready for the NHL the first time they put him in a real camp!
i'll end this with a fun fact. Jesper Bratt wears the number 63. It looks great on a Hockey Sweater, the short 5 letter name with the 2 big numbers...it sticks out. Why did he choose this number? Being picked number 162 he simply added 1 plus 62 and the Bratt 63 was born!
Thanks for reading, let's hope the Devils have a great season.
LET'S GO DEVILS!

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