Devils’ Zack MacEwen to return vs. Islanders

The New Jersey Devils will welcome veteran forward Zack MacEwen back into their lineup for Monday’s game against the New York Islanders, as was announced by head coach Sheldon Keefe.

MacEwen has played in just one game for the Devils this season. He left the team’s 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 11 with what was reported at the time as an undisclosed injury. He was eventually put on injured reserve with an upper-body injury.

New Jersey acquired MacEwen from the Ottawa Senators prior to the season in a one-for-one trade in exchange for forward Kurtis MacDermid. The Charlottetown, P.E.I. native split time last season between Ottawa and the AHL’s Belleville Senators. In 21 games with Ottawa, he put up just two goals and an assist to go along with 21 penalty minutes. In 23 games with Belleville, he notched seven goals and nine assists for 16 points while racking up 29 penalty minutes.

That type of grinding, minimal-offense style is what the Devils can expect from MacEwen in his return to the lineup. His most productive NHL season to date is when he scored four goals and tallied six assists for ten points in 56 games split between the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings in the 2022-23 season.

Having gone undrafted following his junior career in the QMJHL, MacEwen signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks in 2017. After four years in the Canucks organization, in which he played largely for the AHL’s Utica Comets, MacEwen was claimed on waivers by the Flyers at the start of the 2021-22 season. Partway through the 2022-23 season, MacEwen was dealt to the Kings. The next offseason, he would sign the three-year, $2.325 million deal with the Senators on which he is currently playing.

Following Monday’s game against the Islanders, the Devils will kick off a five-game road trip against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday.