AHLers Around the League Who May Be Ready for a Next Step in 2025-26

While fans remain rightfully focused on top-end talent, the Devils could afford to build up their organizational depth by trying to find some players who have flown under the radar without NHL contracts.

Despite the importance of organizational depth, the New Jersey Devils have not had much of a recent history of minor league affiliate success. They did not have a single Calder Cup Playoffs appearance in Binghamton from 2017 to 2021. The Albany Devils only made the playoffs in three out of seven seasons, only making it to the second round once, thanks to Scott Wedgewood’s goaltending. While much AHL success derives from players who just cannot get over the hump to the AHL (and the team’s ability to identify the best of those players). While that is an important task for giving prospects the structure to develop properly, I am looking today at young players who have had some AHL experience who look like they might be able to contribute as depth on two-way contracts. This could be especially beneficial for the Devils, who are likely to be pressed right up against the cap in 2025-26.

Please note that, per many checks and rechecks of PuckPedia, none of the following players are under NHL contract, and are thus unrestricted free agents.

John Leonard — 26 Y/O Winger from Westwood, NJ; Drafted in 6th round in 2018

John Leonard just completed his fourth AHL season, scoring a career-high 36 goals and 61 points with a +21 rating for the Charlotte Checkers. Prior to this season, Leonard’s career highs were 17 goals and 44 points in his age-24 season for the Milwaukee Admirals. Additionally, Leonard has appeared in 70 NHL games, scoring six goals and 11 assists, mostly playing for the San Jose Sharks in the 2020-21 season, when he was just 22 years old. With good underlying numbers in his few NHL appearances, Leonard may very well be someone flying under the radar.

HockeyViz

I would actually really like to see this happen. I am not quite sure if he grew up in New Jersey, as he went to high school in Massachusetts, per his Elite Prospects page, but I imagine a chance to make a team in the northeast may entice him. With passable bottom six production in the NHL in his younger years and an apparent growth in his play in the AHL, Leonard may be a good PTO or two-way contract candidate. In my opinion, this could be someone who could fill Tomas Tatar’s role on a contract that helps keep the team under the cap. He also seems to like scoring shorthanded goals.

Zach Metsa — 26 Y/O Defenseman From Delafield, WI; Undrafted

If you are looking for a small, right-handed defenseman who might be able to chip in some offensive production, look no further than Zach Metsa. At this point of time, the best plan for Seamus Casey should be to keep him in the AHL as much as possible, so he can play a full season there and master that level of hockey while gaining the necessary weight and strength to make him a fully-viable starting NHL defenseman. On the other hand, I love what Casey brings to the table, and the Devils still need offensive help on the blueline, so taking a league-minimum shot on a young and improving defenseman could prove helpful to the team and whoever they sign to be the team’s depth. With Johnny Kovacevic out, apparently, for the beginning of the season at minimum, another right-handed option would give them the depth to ensure that the team does not have to rely on Casey for those calls.

It is entirely possible that the Buffalo Sabres end up signing Metsa to an NHL contract, but they do not own his exclusive rights. Since he is an undrafted player on an AHL contract, the Devils could sign him if Buffalo only prefers to continue keeping him stuffed in Rochester. With two good seasons in the AHL, improving from 24 to 46 points with +15 ratings and 16 PIMs in both years, after a solid five years at Quinnipiac, Metsa could be one of those rare late-developing blueline gems. Also made an assistant captain in his second season at Rochester, Metsa has a reputation for being a model of hard work.

Aidan McDonough — 25 Y/O Left Wing from Milton, MA; Drafted in 7th round in 2019

After being non-tendered by the Vancouver Canucks in 2024, Aidan McDonough looked to be on track for an excellent year in his second AHL season with Charlotte before a serious injury in a fight cut him short at 16 games, with 10 goals and six assists at that point. At 6’2” and 201 pounds, McDonough could be a depth option with the hope of having fourth line potential. Blocked in Florida by A.J. Greer and Jesper Boqvist, McDonough is an unrestricted free agent on an expiring AHL deal and should garner some level of attention if he is now recovered from his injury.

If Florida ultimately offers him a two-way contract, I imagine he would sign there because of his relationship with the staff at Charlotte. But in the spirit of looking for bigger players who could handle more physical play — while chipping in goals — in fourth line minutes, I find myself liking McDonough. Many of his goals seem to be scored around the net, and the Devils should be looking for players with accuracy in those areas.

Rhett Pitlick — 24 Y/O Left Wing from Coral Springs, FL; Drafted in 5th round in 2019

After being drafted by the Montreal Canadiens, Rhett Pitlick signed with the Bakersfield Condors after his time in the NCAA came to a close this year. In six games with Bakersfield, Pitlick had six assists and a +8 rating. Standing at 5’10” and just 170 pounds, Pitlick’s path to the NHL is as a third line secondary scorer, but he could prove to be a useful extra forward in the near future. Rhett’s brother, Rem, had one good NHL season in 2021-22 (37 points for Minnesota and Montreal), but has since largely been trying to find his game in the AHL. Their cousin, Tyler, has largely bounced back and forth between the NHL and AHL, but has accumulated 420 NHL appearances. It’s a hockey family, and Rhett is the smallest — but he may have the most offensive impact. While he does not have any 2024-25 data because of a school transfer, Mitchell Brown and Lassi Alanen’s NCAA tracking data from his third season at the University of Minnesota marked him as one of the better offensive play-drivers in college.

Mitchell Brown and Lassi Alanen

He is great at getting the puck into shooting areas around the slot, has pretty good handles, and helped propel Minnesota State as a transfer to the NCAA tournament in 2025, where they fell to Western Michigan, the eventual champions. I am not sure how well he would handle some defenses in the NHL, but he seems like he has the skill to be more than an AHL dead-ender.

Riley Fiddler-Schultz — 23 Y/O Center from Edmonton, AL; Undrafted

The youngest player on this list and the second son of Vern Fiddler to be mentioned on this blog over the last two days, Riley Fiddler-Schultz just finished a two-year deal with the Rochester Americans in the AHL. After finishing his WHL career as the captain of the Calgary Hitmen, Fiddler-Schultz played his first season under professional contract in the ECHL with the Jacksonville Icemen, where he had 43 points in 51 games. After finally getting AHL ice time in 2024-25, Fiddler-Schultz had 26 points in 51 games.

Also from Mitchell Brown and Lassi Alanen’s tracking data, back from his final WHL season in 2022-23, Riddler-Schultz was placed in the 78th percentile of skaters that year, being very involved in the offense and having a lot of transition success above average. especially when entering the offensive zone. Also that year, he tied a franchise record with a five-goal game. Fiddler-Schultz could have gone to college after his time in Calgary, but instead chose the professional hockey route, and he turned only turned 23 a few weeks ago. With a good AHL season already under his belt, Fiddler-Schultz may be a bottom six NHL center in the near future, as he is already listed over 200 pounds at 5’11”. Like the others in this article, he is an unrestricted free agent given his draft status and his AHL contract, so I think he may be worth giving a look given his age, availability, size, and ability to play center.

Your Thoughts

What do you think of the players mentioned here? Do you think any of them have a future in the NHL? Would you be intrigued to see any of them signed to PTOs or contracts? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.