Devils' Captain Nico Hischier Suffers Lower-Body Injury, Questionable for Opener
New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier has a hamstring strain and will need to be re-evaluated in 10 days, according to team reporter Amanda Stein.
After playing just 6:24 of the Devils preseason game against Montreal, Hischier left the game due to 'cramping.'
Hischier, 23, has found difficulty staying healthy over his career, and his string of misfortune continues. After playing all 82 games his rookie season, he appeared on just 21 games in 2020-21and missed 12 games last season.
In most unusual fashion, Hischier's offensive output has also decreased on a per-game basis over his career, having only reversed that trend in '21-22.
[HockeyDB]
New Jersey opens their season against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 13 -- 14 days from today. With Hischier's timeline set around 10 days, that leaves hardly any wiggle room. As such, Hischier's availability for the team's opener is questionable for now.
Devils' fans have high hopes for their group in '22-23, and Nico Hischier -- the captain -- is the heart and soul of the team. When healthy, Hischier is a strong two-way player with the skill to bury the rock at a decent rate. However, at his best he is an absolute beast.
That is the player fans want to see, but it is tough to do that when Hischier is hurt. Hopefully, this setback is only a minor one and short-lived.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Mikko Rantanen | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Jake Debrusk | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Ivan Barbashev | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Jack Eichel | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Brock Nelson | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Valeri Nichushkin | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Clayton Keller | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Anthony Cirelli | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Jonathan Drouin | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Roman Josi | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Kirill Marchenko | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Kyle Palmieri | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Sebastian Aho | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Rasmus Dahlin | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Leon Draisaitl | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Matt Duchene | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Samuel Girard | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Claude Giroux | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Oliver Kylington | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 21 | 17 | 4 | - | 34 | |
Wild | 20 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 30 | |
Devils | 23 | 14 | 7 | 2 | 30 | |
Hurricanes | 20 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 29 | |
Golden Knights | 21 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 28 | |
Capitals | 20 | 13 | 6 | 1 | 27 | |
Flames | 21 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 27 | |
Stars | 19 | 13 | 6 | - | 26 | |
Maple Leafs | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Rangers | 19 | 12 | 6 | 1 | 25 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||