Following some of the bigger names we looked at last week, we continue to look at two more New Jersey Devils UFAs with depth forwards Nathan Bastian and Daniel Sprong.
The free agent profile series continues again today at AAtJ with us looking at two more unrestricted free agents for the New Jersey Devils. This time it’s a pair of unrestricted free agents and both are forwards to boot. Our focus today sees Nathan Bastian and Daniel Sprong enter the spotlight. Are either of them worthy of a roster spot on the 2025-26 New Jersey Devils? Will they be worth their expected price? Let’s dive in and take a look!
Who is Nathan Bastian and What has he Done as a Devil?
I think most Devils fans know who Nathan Bastian is by this point, but just in case you don’t, Bastian is a now an almost decade old second round Devils selection being taken 41st overall back in 2016. He started his career with the Binghamton Devils before he had a seven game cup of coffee with the big club in 2018-19 contributing three goals. He would return to Binghamton for the 2019-20 season before becoming a regular for the Devils in the abbreviated 2020-21 season.
He was left exposed in the NHL’s most recent expansion draft prior to 2021-22, and was the selection made from the Devils by the Seattle Kraken. After appearing in 12 contests with them, he was placed on waivers with the intention of sending him down to their AHL affiliate. The Devils, however, put in a claim and brought him back, and he has remained as somewhat of a fourth line staple over the last four seasons. While he has provided some value for the team defensively, he has never totaled more than 16 points in any NHL season an his points per game dropped to the lowest of his career this past season.
What Will Bastian do Going Forward? What is His Value? What Would I do With Bastian and What do I Think the Devils Will do?
In terms of the first question, I’m honestly not sure. Bastian has been trending downward for the past couple of seasons, and was invisible offensively i the playoffs. If the Devils are looking to go further, they’re going to have to make some changes and this could be one. His last contract was a two year deal at $1.35 per season and AFPAnalytics has him at roughly the same price on a projected one year deal. I’m honestly not even sure he gets an offer at that rate with how awful he looked at times this season. He was a ghost in the playoffs for the Devils and there were times in the season where, for a guy who’s supposed to be in the lineup for his toughness, he was just bullied off of pucks.
If I were part of the Devils management team, I make the decision to let Bastian go in free agency. One goal for the team this summer is to upgrade the depth and a player who brings next to nothing in the opposing end of the ice and wasn’t even an every night guy due to his inconsistency is an easy subtraction for me. I’m not sure if Tom Fitzgerald or others see something in Bastian that those of us watching the games don’t see, but if they do maybe they bring him back as a cheap 13th/14th forward. That or he gets another one year deal as a loyalty/prove yourself type of move. If Bastian is on the roster and plays 50+ games again next year, however, I think we’ll all see it as one indication that management failed at upgrading the team’s depth.
Who is Daniel Sprong and What has he Done as a Devil?
Daniel Sprong is a player who actually WAS drafted a decade ago now, as he was the 46th overall selection in the 2015 NHL draft. Originally a prospect of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Sprong became a journeyman during his career, having now played for the Penguins, Anaheim Ducks, Washington Capitals, Seattle Kraken, Detroit Red Wings, and Vancouver Canucks before going back to Seattle prior to his arrival in New Jersey. Originally projected as a goal scoring winger, Sprong took a while to get close to the potential originally envisioned for him. He did wind up posting a pair of good seasons for Seattle in 2022-23 (21 goals, 25 assist) and Detroit in 2023-24 (18 goals, 25 assists) before he seemingly regressed while spending his time in 2024-25 across three different franchises.
The Devils were the third franchise as Sprong was a late season addition to the roster, coming in at the trade deadline for a 2026 seventh round pick. I won’t spend more than this sentence critiquing once more the abject stupidity of spending any draft capital on a guy who could have been claimed off of waivers earlier in the season for free, but it does bear reminding. As for what he did in his time in New Jersey? Well…not very much. Across a mere 11 regular season contests, Sprong managed only two assists for the Devils and in his lone playoff appearance, he was held scoreless. A small sample size for sure, but in line with how his season went during his stops in Vancouver and Seattle as well.
What Will Sprong do Going Forward? What is His Value? What Would I do With Sprong and What do I Think the Devils Will do?
Sprong is a player who fell off a cliff in 2024-25 after two pretty solid seasons prior. As such, I could honestly see him bouncing back in 2025-26; unlike Bastian, Sprong has actually shown himself to have some offensive acumen, and perhaps with training camp and more time to acclimate to Sheldon Keefe’s system, maybe the Devils can get Sprong to return to a 40-ish point player. At the same time, perhaps his time as an effective NHLer was limited to that two season window. I wouldn’t necessarily bet on that without giving him the benefit of one full season with one team. Eight points across 30 games with three different teams who all play differently isn’t the best way to judge a guy who could still be a realistic Middle Six scoring option.
Sprong’s value, according to AFPAnalytics projects a one year deal for a lower cap hit than he was signed to last season. If a million or less is all that it takes, I think Sprong is worth taking a gamble on. Sprong has not had the benefit of a full season with the Devils and I think a factor like that needs to be considered when looking at improving the depth forwards. Sprong COULD bounce back and be a depth goal scorer for the Devils, and if he doesn’t, then the team can waive him with little to no penalty. And if he gets claimed on waivers? Well, if the Devils are putting him there, then he wasn’t doing what the team needed to do in the first place, and it wouldn’t be a big loss. The Devils should offer Sprong a one year, $1 million deal. The risk is low, and if he doesn’t pan out, as I said a moment ago he can be waived essentially without consequence in favor of trying to get more production by using a different player in that lineup spot.
Final Thoughts and Your Take
Letting Bastian test free agency is, in my opinion, addition by subtraction. He just does not do anything well enough to warrant bringing him back to a team that wants to be markedly better than last season. Again, if you want to be loyal to the guy and have him come back as a 13th/14th forward I can understand it, but that means that as soon as there’s injuries, he’s entering the lineup as a semi-regular or regular again. The Devils can’t afford to have that be the case, so I think it best to just cut him loose completely.
Sprong, meanwhile, does not have the benefit of multiple seasons (or even one full season) as a Devil and posted strong stats in both 2022-23 and 2023-24. I roll the dice on 2024-25 being an anomaly for him and give him the opportunity to come into camp and compete with new additions such as Lenni Hameenaho and Arseni Gritsyuk for a regular role next season. If the youngsters blow management away and/or Sprong struggles, the deal has minimal impact on the cap or the team. At absolute worst, maybe it is Sprong who winds up being a 13th/14th guy, and at that price, you take the chance that he rebounds and becomes a depth contributor.
What are your thoughts on Nathan Bastian and Daniel Sprong; do you want the Devils bringing one or both back? If you had to bring just one of them back, which would you prefer it to be and why? Would you rather the team look elsewhere to upgrade their forward depth? Leave any and all comments below and thanks as always for reading!