Prospects Practice Ahead of Showcase Finale | NOTEBOOK

The Devils prospects are practicing Monday afternoon at the RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House inside Prudential Center. 

On Sunday afternoon, the Devils hosted the New York Islanders prospects for a contest. New York prevailed, 5-4, in overtime. The two teams are set for a rematch on Long Island Tuesday. More details and live streaming information can be found here. 

Stay tuned to the notebook for the latest info, updates, interviews, videos and more from the practice session!

Iron Malek

Devils goalie prospect Jakub Malek will enter his second year of hockey in North America this season. He made his NA debut last season with Utica, posting a 13-14-3 record with a 2.75 goals-against average and .895 save percentage.

On the precipice of his second go around, Malek feels much more comfortable for what to expect.

“My excitement is bigger than last year because I didn’t know (what to expect),” the Czechia native said. “Now I’m excited because I know what’s going to happen.”

Like all Europeans, Malek, 24, had to adjust to the ice size, the pro schedule, the language barrier and living abroad for the first time in his life.

“Everything was different. Practices, games, even traveling both games sometimes,” he said. “The rink size, I didn’t know it would be this big a difference. There’s more on the positioning of the angles. It’s important to get used to it. It took longer than I expected. Now it’s fine.”

Malek’s game ebbed and flowed last year, which included a two-game stint with Adirondack of the ECHL. But much of that, according to Utica head coach Ryan Parent, was due to the players surrounding him.

“With a goaltender, he carries a lot of weight on his own, but it’s the team in front of him that is a big factor in his success,” Parent said. “As a team we struggled in front of him at the start of last year.

“There was a lot of positive growth for him. We started playing better in front of him and things started going our way and his way. That’s where you see where he left off at the end of the year. He had a lot of success down the stretch.”

Malek, the team’s fourth-round pick (100^th overall) in 2021, knows there are a lot of bodies in the goaltending position within the organization.

“I just keep it day by day and see how it’s going to be,” Malek said. “Most important for me will be development for myself. The results are also important, but the results will come if you work well. Those are the goals.”

Shane's Lachance

Devils forward prospect Shane Lachance knew that last season was going to be a learning season. It was his first year of pro hockey after playing two seasons of college hockey at Boston University.

“A learning experience last year. It was double the games I played coming out of college. That was the first thing,” he said. “It was getting used to that and making sure you’re consistent and coming ready to play every night. I think once you get that down it makes the game a little bit easier.”

Playing that many games and the extensive grueling schedule was quite the adjustment. Lachance realized that he wasn’t always feeling his best, but there were no excuses at that level.

“Understanding that you’re not going to feel your best every night and trying to find a way to make a difference,” he said. “If you don’t’ have you’re A Game, you have to find a way to make a difference. Mentally, that’s what I tried to focus on throughout the year. If your legs don’t feel good, you’re tired, back-to-back, three-in-three, things like that, both teams are in the same situation usually. You just have to find a way to make a difference even if you don’t feel good.”

Though he is no longer in college, Lachance is still pursuing his degree. He took a class this summer and will take more throughout the season, including two online this semester. He needs 14 more to graduate.

“Chipping away,” he said. “My mom’s been all over me about it. If I don’t do that she’ll be upset.”

While he’s studying and training, maybe he’ll find time to squeeze in another NHL game during the year. He made his NHL debut in his long game of the season last year against Washington in November.

“I just remember lining up against Alex Ovechkin,” he laughed. “After that I blacked out.

“It was fun and the guys were great with me. It’s motivation for getting back up there.”