New Jersey Devils’ Ondrej Palat 'looks like he’s going to be good to go'

Palat, 32, joined the team for a full practice on Wednesday, appearing to have fully healed from his lower-body injury. Based on Ruff’s words and the Thursday morning line rushes, Palat will make his return to the lineup against the Canes.

“He’s been skating for a while now and got a full practice in,” said Ruff. “He looks like he’s going to be good to go.”

Palat has been out of the lineup with his lower-body injury since the Devils final game of 2023, a 5-2 loss to the Boston Bruins. There wasn’t a particular instance in that game that caused the injury, but a lingering issue caused him to decide to sit out for a bit to let it heal. The Devils have gone 5-4-1 in the 10 games without him in the lineup, while also missing several other players like Jack Hughes, Dougie Hamilton and Timo Meier.

Palat has struggled to produce when he’s been healthy this season, with just 5 goals and 9 assists for 14 points in 35 games. That puts him on pace for just 32 points in a full season, which would be the first time he’s ever produced so little in a season with at least 50 games played.

However, Palat’s value comes from more than just offense, as he’s also one of the best defensive forwards in the league. Since gaining a full time role in the NHL in the 2013-14 season, Palat ranks 24th in defensive goals above replacement among forwards with 19.

Palat was a former seventh-round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2011 NHL Draft, and spent parts of 11 seasons in the Tampa organization, winning two Stanley Cups with the team in 2020 and 2021. He then signed with the New Jersey Devils as an unrestricted free agent in the 2022 offseason to his current deal, a five-year contract with a $6 million cap hit that is currently in its second year.

Based on lines run by the Devils on Thursday morning, Palat is going to slot in on the second line with Tyler Toffoli and Dawson Mercer, a line combination that has yet to play together this season.

The Devils will look to build off of Monday’s 6-5 win over the Vegas Golden Knights when they visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. EST. They currently sit in fourth in the Metropolitan Division with a 24-18-3 record and are two points behind the Detroit Red Wings for the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.