Devils Prospect J.D. Dudek Pulled Off A Shootout Dangle For The Ages

Well, if that doesn't make you smile as a Devils fan in the middle of July then I don't know what will. Obviously a breakaway move that completely embarrassed the goaltender 2-3 times over was nothing more than a meaningless goal in an even more meaningless shootout, but it's pretty indicative of the direction the franchise is heading in. As a 6th round pick in the 2014 draft - who I completely forgot existed - it's pretty likely that this Vine will be the most important thing that J.D. Dudek ever contributes to the team that drafted him. However, the fact that the New Jersey Devils now host a developmental camp that has more than two or three intriguing prospects capable of jaw dropping, highlight reel displays of creativity is a welcomed boost in pace. Let's be honest, up until recently the organizational cupboard was pretty bare of players with a high level of skill. How quickly things change, because the narrative that the Devils prospect pool was only puddle deep is now one of the past. J.D. Dudek probably won't be the manifestation of that franchise-wide refocus at the next level but it's higher ranked players built from his mold that absolutely could be. If some of the reports surfacing after this past week are accurate then it's very possible that time is coming sooner rather than later. 

P.S. Good to see a couple of the most promising draft picks wasted no time in getting acquainted/publicly busting each other's balls on social media...

@cwhite97 snowplow pic.twitter.com/kDpd6vM9WM

— Nathan Bastian (@14Nbast) July 23, 2014

@14Nbast @cwhite97 why does that look familiar? Guess some things never change pic.twitter.com/7fzxlgFDjA

— Blake Speers (@Bspeers18) July 23, 2014