Exploring Connor Brown's Potential Impact on the Devils

Connor Brown is a versatile winger who will provide the New Jersey Devils a bit of everything. Let's explore what he'll bring to the team.

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As we wait for something, anything, to happen in the trade market across the NHL, we'll continue reviewing what the New Jersey Devils have done so far this offseason. After evaluating Evgeny Dadonov and what he should bring to the Devils, today we'll look at Connor Brown.

The Devils signed Brown in free agency to a four-year contract worth $3 million per year. He had a solid season with the Edmonton Oilers and, like Dadonov, should provide a needed upgrade to the Devils' scoring depth.

Brown Seems to Have Put Injury Woes Behind Him

Brown's faced some adversity the last couple of years. He suffered a torn ACL in October 2022, and it took him a while to return to the player he was before the injury.

Brown played in just 71 games for the Oilers in 2023-24 and finished with only four goals and 12 points. He even struggled out of the gate this past season, totaling only a goal and an assist through the Oilers' first 15 games.

It looked possible that Brown wouldn't be the same player anymore, especially since skating is a big part of his makeup, but he found his game as the 2024-25 season progressed. He totaled 12 goals and 28 points across the Oilers' final 67 games, a 15-goal, 34-point pace over 82 games.

Those totals were about in line with the player Brown was before tearing his ACL. Before the injury, he averaged 17 goals and 40 points per 82 games, which is solid middle-six production.

Brown is 31 and will be 32 about halfway through next season, so I won't go as far as to guarantee he'll be a 17-goal, 40-point player for the Devils, but I wouldn't rule it out when looking at his microstats.

You might think Brown is a rugged, bottom-six winger, but that's not the case. He plays with some pace and is more of a rush player than anything else.

Brown's top skating speed ranked in the 66th percentile this past season, and he ranked in the 85th percentile in speed bursts over 20 mph. The Devils were a noticeably slower team last season, especially in the bottom of their lineup, so that will improve with Brown and Dadonov.