Jesper Bratt has been great this season for the New Jersey Devils. This post goes into what he is doing on the ice this season, what could be better, and what it would take for Bratt to get more of the respect he deserves league-wide.
Jesper Bratt is one of the best offensive wingers in the National Hockey League. Period. Since breaking out in 2021-22 and through to November 13, 2024, Bratt has put up 250 points in 259 games. Only 26 players in the entire NHL have put up more than him since then. Of those 26, only 5 are officially listed as left wingers like Bratt. Bratt is ahead of the likes of the late Johnny Gaudreau, the Putinist, Filip Forsberg, “Ratfaced Thug” Brad Marchand, Zach Hyman, Chris Kreider, and Kevin Fiala. Among the officially listed right wingers, only 5 have more than 250 in the same timeframe. Bratt is in elite company among wingers in the league. No Devil has produced more points than Bratt in this timeframe, although The Big Deal was short by two points. This is relevant today as Bratt continues to be the team leader in points with 24 in 20 games on the New Jersey Devils. This is a post going into what he has done, what could be better, and how he can get some more attention for being a top offensive winger.
What Bratt Has Done in 5-on-5
On the surface and after last night’s brilliant game, Bratt has put up 8 goals and 16 assists for 24 points. Of those 21 points, 13 were at even strength and 10 were from power play situations. He has put up 59 shots on net while averaging over 18 minutes per game. From this alone we can conclude that Bratt plays a lot, shoots quite a bit (59 in 20 games means he is averaging 2.95 shots per game), and gets on the scoresheet. When you dig a little deeper into what he has done on the ice, Bratt becomes more impressive.
Let us start with his 5-on-5 play. When he is on the ice in 5-on-5 situations, the Devils are have done quite well the run of play. According to Natural Stat Trick after the big 6-2 win in Florida, here are the Devils’ on-ice rate stats when Bratt takes a shift:
- Corsi: 69.87 CF/60 (team leader), 52.12% CF%
- Shots: 31.27 SF/60, 50.19% SF%
- Scoring Chances: 32.92 SCF/60, 56.73% SCF%
- High Danger Scoring Chances: 11.61 HDCF/60, 48.04% HDCF%
- Expected Goals: 3.04 xGF/60, 55.05% xGF%
- Actual Goals: 2.61 GF/60, 55% GF%
These are not the very best numbers among Devils forwards in terms of percentages or rates, but they are up there in many categories. They do paint the picture of what you would want to see from a top winger. Yes, the Devils have been just under 50% in shots and high danger chances with Bratt on the ice, but they have been well above the breakeven mark for all scoring chances, expected goals, and actual goals with the player. Bratt even owns the team lead in CF/60, meaning the team is generating a lot of attempts when he is out there. Just as relevant, the Devils have out-scored opponents with Bratt in 5-on-5 play.
What Bratt Has Done on Special Teams
Since we know he plays on the power play – as evident by his 10 power play points – it is of no surprise that he is on the primary unit and he has fantastic offensive rates in power play situations. With over 3 minutes per game on man advantage situations per NST, the Devils have generated attempts at a rate close to 130 per 60 minutes, shots over 70 per 60 minutes, expected goals over 10 per 60 minutes, and actual goals over 12 per 60 minutes. In other words, Bratt is a part of the main power play unit generally doing great work out there. Especially crucial in last night’s 6-2 win where Bratt scored a PPG himself. Given how much motion is involved when the Devils are set up in the offensive zone in man advantage situations, Bratt is not just hanging out in a circle waiting for a pass. He is helping that motion function rather well.
What is not as obvious is his penalty kill work. Yes, Jesper Bratt is used in shorthanded situations. Up until the 4-1 win in Florida on Tuesday, Bratt has played in over 20 shorthanded minutes for an average over a minute per game. He is used on a secondary unit. He has also done well there too. Per Natural Stat Trick, the Devils have allowed 5.33 expected goals per 60 when Bratt is on the ice for a PK and the Devils have allowed a rate of 5.56 actual goals per 60 as well. That is both a low rate of goals allowed and the expected goals model speaks to what kinds of shots beyond volume are being allowed. In other words, Bratt has been a fine PK player. And just last night, he put in an empty net goal for his first shorthanded one of the season that also completed a hat trick. A feather on the cap, so to speak.
This also means that Bratt is an all-situations winger putting up a high rate of points. Which is all the more reason to regard him as one of the league’s best wingers.
What Could Be Better on Offense
Let me go back to Bratt’s shooting. We know that the Devils have a high rate of expected goals when he is on the ice. What about Bratt himself? According to Natural Stat Trick after Thursday’s games, Bratt has the 5th highest individual expected goals generated in all situations at 8.45. That is the 5th highest in the entire NHL. This is ahead of some massive names like McDavid, David Pastnak, Auston Matthews, and Mikko Rantanen. Since he is fifth, here are the four skaters ahead of Bratt: John Tavares (8.66), Kirill Kaprizov (8.89), John Tavares (8.48), Ratfaced Thug (9.25), and Nico Hischier (9.48). Yes, Nico Hischier leads the league. As of today, Bratt sits at 8 goals – which is comparable to his individual expected goal count. Last night’s hat trick brought up from just five to eight.
What drives this expected goals model at NST? More than just volume of attempts, it is based on location so scoring chances and high-danger chances really boost it. Bratt is no slouch there with 110 attempts (tied for 24th in the NHL), 66 scoring chances (tied for 9th in the NHL), and 30 high danger chances (tied for 11th in the NHL) as per Natural Stat Trick after yesterday’s games. The man is shooting and taking chances in addition to setting up others. Which has mostly been productive for Jack Hughes and Hischier given that six and four of his 16 assists have respectively gone to their goals. So it is not for a lack of trying by Bratt. The efforts bore more fruit last night with a near-last-second PPG, a puck trickling through Sergey Bobrovsky that crossed the line before Tomas Tatar touched it in, and an empty netter.
At the risk of falling for the Gambler’s Fallacy, it would be a frightening thing for New Jersey’s opponents if last night is the start of something to come from Bratt. Prior to Thursday’s game, Bratt’s shooting percentage was at 9.26% in all situations and a woeful 2.86% in 5-on-5 situations. Prior to Thursday’s game, the only knock one could have about Bratt’s offense is a lack of goals from Bratt himself. Thursday night corrected some of that with a hat trick. Bratt’s shooting percentage is now 13.56% in all situations and 5.26% in 5-on-5 play That shooting percentage will likely rise as we have the evidence that he has been putting in the work to take shots himself in addition to creating for others. Provided Bratt keep firing away as he has been doing, I would like to believe that there will be more goals coming. A great possibility for me, the People Who Matter, and the Devils. Not so much for the critics.
What Could Be Better on Defense
The other aspect that could get better is the defensive play when Bratt is on the ice. Per NHL EDGE’s data, Bratt ends up spending 40.5% of even strength ice time in the defensive zone. That is a bit above the league average for forwards. And it contributes to spending 40.2% of his ice time in the offensive zone, which is also below the league average for forwards. We know he has been generating offense at a high rate and taking plenty of shots himself. Why would he spend such a proportion of his ice time in his own end?
A look at his most common teammates in 5-on-5 play and even strength play reveals some answers. Bratt’s most common forward linemates are The Big Deal and Ondrej Palat. Not that Jack Hughes is a defensive wizard, but the against rates for attempts, shots, scoring chances, and high danger chances are worse for Bratt-Palat than Bratt-Hughes. They are not so bad that the Devils are getting beat in those categories, but it is a noticeable difference. Especially when you consider that the Bratt-Hughes combination has produced far more on the scoreboard than a Bratt-Palat combination.
The defensive pairings reveal a mix between the Brenden Dillon-Dougie Hamilton pairing and the Jonathan Kovacevic-Jonas Siegenthaler. Bratt has at least 77 even strength minutes of ice time with each of those four defensemen with Hamilton topping out at just over 100. The Dillon-Hamilton pairing with Bratt appears to yield high rates of shots against close to 34 per 60 and an expected goals against rates above 3. In fact, Hamilton with Bratt yields a xGA/60 over four. But the Devils are also attacking a lot with that pairing and Bratt. Hamilton and Dillon both have very high SF/60 rates and xGF/60 rates close to five with Bratt. There is a lot happening at both ends when Bratt and his line have Dillon-Hamilton behind them. That could mean extended shifts in the defensive zone as well as extended shifts on offense.
The against rate stats with Kovacevic-Siegenthaler are far less alarming. In fact, both defensemen have xGA/60 rates with Bratt below two. They have SA/60 rates in the 25-26 range. That is great. The issue is at the other end. While both defensemen have xGF/60 rates above 3 with Bratt, the Devils’ shooting rate is 25.41 per 60 with Siegenthaler and 28.79 with Kovacevic. That means the Devils may be stronger defensively with Kovacevic-Siegenthaler, but it is not turning into a whole lot of offense either. The chances in front of that pairing may be potent but the volume of shots and even attempts are much lower. Which means there is not as much time spent in the offensive zone.
To put it simply: Bratt with Dillon-Hamilton could lead to a lot of offense or a lot of defensive work because they allow a ton. Bratt with Kovacevic-Siegenthaler leads to a lot less allowed but seemingly at a cost of the offense also being dulled.
What can be done? A couple of goals come to mind. Dillon-Hamilton tightens up or the line tightens up with them or, ideally, both. This could lead to less time having to be in the defensive zone to backcheck and more time heading into the offensive zone. There, Bratt can continue to generate more and that can lead to even more goals and more points. This could also be accomplished should the play from Kovacevic and Siegenthaler yield more offensive opportunities. The duo are not particularly offensive and while they are clearly getting more stops in their own end, it is not translating to the ice being tilted so much to the other end. Unlocking that could mean to bigger gains since that pairing has done so, so well in their own end. But it may be more preferable to sort out the veteran pairing than touching a defensive pairing that is at least succeeding at what they are intended to do. If it were me, I would put more attention to making Dillon-Hamilton more effective or at least having Bratt and his line adjust their support of that pairing to reduce what has been allowed while trying to sustain what they gain with them. Again, that could lead to Bratt being in the offensive zone more – and therefore getting more opportunities to create, attack, and ultimately produce. Something he is already doing so well at this season and since 2021-22.
What Could Get Bratt More Notice?
For the most part, Bratt has been playing great for the Devils in this season and over the last three seasons. To that end, what else could get Bratt more notice than just producing plenty of points on the New Jersey Devils?
Bigger stages. It has not helped Bratt or Hischier or anyone who is not The Big Deal (who is a star) that the Devils have made the playoffs just one time under General Manager Tom Fitzgerald and one time under the previous GM, Ray Shero. Bratt played in just one game in 2018’s short playoff appearance and his 12 games in 2022-23 yielded one goal (an empty netter) and five assists in 2023. The latter was seen as a disappointment and something that will bear on the People Who Matter’s minds if and when the Devils return to the postseason. A strong playoff performance – hopefully in 2025 – will go a long way to further cement the view that Bratt is a top winger.
There could be an opportunity for that in February, though. The NHL is running a four-nation tournament featuring NHL players appropriately called the 4 Nations Face-Off. Sweden is a part of this group and already announced six players for this tournament. Bratt was not one of them. On December 4, the full roster for each nation will be announced. Bratt should absolutely make Sweden’s team. He is currently the highest scoring Swede in the NHL out of the 64 Swedish skaters in the league. Bratt has not suited up for the Three Crowns since 2019’s World Championship, but this is a prime time for the player to represent his nation. With all eyes on the tourney in February – helped by the season pausing for it – a good performance for Bratt at 4 Nations will help his profile. It may also ease some of the concerns one may have when the playoffs roll around since those 4 Nations games will be best-on-best affairs.
And coming up big on nationally televised broadcasts will also help. Tuesday’s win in Florida was limited to ESPN+ and Hulu, but it was for one of the league’s national broadcasters all the same. Cringy as John Buccigross has been and cliche as ESPN tends to be, they had a lot of nice things to say about the Devils in their 4-1 win. Bratt’s pass for Jack Hughes’ goal was a legitimate highlight on its own. More than just online, but both the in-game and studio broadcasters could not get enough of it. The broadcasters praised Bratt among other Devils by name as the team’s performance turned around the game. Given how tight-knit hockey media is, effusive praise of a player helps the media’s perception, which will help fuel perception of the player to the hockey world at large. The Devils will have more games in this season on a larger platform than MSG. By my count, there are six left on ESPN+, five on TNT, and two on ABC. Should Bratt stand out in those games, he will get more attention and it will build upon itself.
Why would we want that? Because it is not enough for Jesper Bratt to be seen as an underrated winger or a hidden secret. It is not enough to just be a meme on X. He is one of the best forwards on a team currently in the top-10 in the NHL by points percentage and top two by total points prior to Wednesday’s games. He deserves his respect beyond the People Who Matter. Something he is not getting when the league’s network kept him off a top-20 list after an 83-point season.
Your Take
Until then, let us hope Bratt keeps up the very good work. The goals will likely come as he continues to generate chances and shots for himself. The assists will likely continue as he continues to make plays in 5-on-5 and power play situations. Should the defensive pairings behind him either get sharper defensively (Dillon-Hamilton) or be more supportive on offense (Siegenthaler-Kovacevic), then that can yield additional opportunities for Bratt to be in the offensive zone to do more the good things he has been doing. And when he does this on bigger platforms either internationally or in the playoffs, his reputation will only increase.
Now that you read this post praising #63, I want to know what you think about Jesper Bratt this season. What have you noticed from his game in 2024-25? What do you appreciate from what he has accomplished so far? What do you expect him to do? Will he continue to produce? Do you think he will get more goals? What has to happen for Bratt to get more attention? Please leave your answers and other thoughts about Jesper Bratt in the comments. Thank you for reading.