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Originally Posted by Ferarri
Admittedly I don't pay attention to the Devils. Can someone tell me what the allure is of Mercer? Is he just playing lower in the lineup and in need of more ice time? His stats seem fairly pedestrian to me (28 points in 66 games). Is this a player with a high ceiling that just needs to prove himself?
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Since the Markstrom news came out I started watching some devils games on the background to see Holtz and Mercer. From the games I’ve watched, it looked like Holtz and Mercer didn't get much ice time. Mercer was typically behind Hischier and Hughes as the 3C, and didn’t get any of the quality PP1 minutes as they would play Bratt, Hischier, Meier, and Hughes as the 4 fwds. However, I think last game (I didn’t watch) they bumped Mercer up to PP1 and put him as a RW with Hischier and Hughes.
When I was watching, Mercer’s play style reminded me a lot of Brayden Point. Not the biggest guy, but would be able to win puck battles and beat guys on the rush. He’d be able to speed up the wing with the puck then slow it down to make the play across, dangle, or keep it for a shot. He looked like he had the inklings of a sneaky game breaker to carry his own line, but didn’t have the ice time to do it. I think that’s why a lot of people like his potential..
He probably will never be the puck distributor in NJ since Hughes and Hischier are the main guys there. He’s also probably not too happy leaving a decent amount of money off the table by being the 3C to the two former 1st OA center picks.