New Jersey Devils 2026-27 Player Projections: Evan Rodrigues – The Hockey Writers – New Jersey Devils

The New Jersey Devils are facing a ton of pressure heading into the 2026-27 season. They have a strong team, but last season, they crumbled and missed the postseason after a solid start. The Devils are determined not to let that happen again.

Each player has a role to fill, and as we gear up for the season, we can start predicting how each player will perform as we continue our Devils’ player projections through the forward group. Next up is newcomer Evan Rodrigues.

2025-26 Performance

Rodrigues spent the entirety of the 2025-26 season with the Florida Panthers. He played in 69 games and recorded 31 points via 11 goals and 20 assists. He suffered a season-ending injury on March 26, when he broke his finger just 49 seconds into the game against the Minnesota Wild.

Rodrigues’ overall points performance for the 2025-26 season was streaky; he would go a couple of games in which he would record a point, then he would go long stretches without recording anything. So the cycle would repeat.

While the injury was certainly not something Rodrigues would have wanted to happen to end his season, he still had a decent 2025-26 performance.

Expectations for the 2026-27 Season

Rodrigues was traded to the Devils on June 30. He was part of a package deal that included Jesper Boqvist and Ben Steeves. In exchange, the Panthers received Jacob Markstrom and Angus Crookshank. This trade was just one part of the Devils trying to upgrade their forwards group during the offseason. They also acquired Anthony Mantha and Luke Evangelista ahead of the 2026-27 season.

Although Rodrigues spent a lot of his time with the Panthers on the top six, he will likely slot into the Devils’ bottom six. He will be a great player to help train younger players, such as Arseny Gritsyuk, who will also play on the bottom six. Rodrigues averaged 17:00 on the ice last season, so he will be another great player to have on the bottom six who can also manage plenty of minutes each game. 

Rodrigues is on the final year of a four-year contract, with an average annual value (AAV) of $3.075 million. He will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2026-27 season at the age of 33. Of course, Rodrigues is going to want to perform well for his new team to make sure he gets another contract at the end of the season. The pressure mounting on his shoulders is something many NHL players are used to. Hopefully, Rodrigues rises to the ranks and doesn’t crumble under the pressure.

Upcoming Career Milestones

If Rodrigues can remain healthy and play in all 84 games in the 2026-27 season, the last game of the season will mark his 700th NHL game. That would be a great way to close out a season, marking it with another milestone moment.

Rodrigues is close to hitting his 300th point, just 30 points away. He just surpassed his 100-goal mark and currently has 107, so it doesn’t seem likely that he will reach his 200th goal in this season. However, Rodrigues is just 37 assists away from his 200th. There is a chance that he can reach this upcoming career milestone during the 2026-27 season.

Projections for the 2026-27 Season

My bold prediction for Rodrigues is that he will surpass 40 points for the season. He managed to do this once in 2021-22 with the Pittsburgh Penguins. In the two seasons that followed, he reached 39 points each time.

Although Rodrigues is getting older, a new change of scenery will be good for him. He will be a good addition to the Devils’ bottom six, as both a points producer and as a veteran player to help train up some of the rookies. His second 40+ point season definitely seems doable.

Other 2026-27 Projections