New Jersey Devils’ defenseman Dougie Hamilton is about to reach an impressive career milestone: Tonight against the Dallas Stars, he will skate in his 900th-career NHL games.
The team acquired Hamilton in 2021 when they signed the veteran to a seven-year, $63 million contract. Since then, he’s provided solid defense in addition to high point production on the back end. In the midst of his 14th NHL season, he remains an important piece of the Devils’ blue line.
After a slow start to the season, trade rumors began to spread, but Hamilton continues to prove his worth with the Devils. He has seven points in his last nine games, including the game-winning goal against the Florida Panthers earlier this month.
His high shot volume provides the Devils with countless scoring opportunities and his offensive impact is staggering, as demonstrated by data from NHL Edge. The average defenseman in the league has 57 shots on goal, but his 175 puts him in the 98th percentile. Furthermore, 87 of those shots were between 80-90 miles per hour, which falls into the 99th percentile.
So far this season, he ranks second among all Devils’ defensemen in both goals (nine) and points (30). This also marks his 11th season hitting the 30-point threshold. Hamilton also has a strong impact on the man advantage, quarterbacking the Devils’ top unit. He’s earned 13 power-play points this season and has been on the ice for 23 goals for.
The Devils are looking to make one final push before the season ends and will try to earn as many points as possible to avoid falling to last place in the Metropolitan Division. In their remaining 13 games, they’ll look to Hamilton as a crucial veteran leader.
