The Devils had a surprise participant at practice on Sunday when Nico Hischier stepped on the ice.
"I wasn't sure if he was going to make it for practice, but that was all on him. He wasn't required to be here, per CBA rules," said Devils interim head coach Alain Nasreddine. "He wanted to make sure that he got on the ice and got a good practice in so it was good to see him out there."
Hischier added that he wanted to get on the ice in a real practice situation ahead of the team's game on Monday in Ottawa.
"I felt like I needed to touch the ice a little bit and get a good practice in, so that's why I went out there," he said.
BLOG: Hischier Opts to Practice Despite Not Having To
A day after playing in the NHL All-Star Game, Nico Hischier had a CBA-backed day off but decided to practice with his team anyway
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