On Saturday afternoon, Curtis Lazar will skate onto the ice at Prudential Center as the opponent, making his debut as a member of the Edmonton Oilers.
On July 2, as a free agent, the former New Jersey Devils forward signed a one-year, $775,000 contract to continue his NHL career with the Oilers.
New Jersey acquired Lazar from the Vancouver Canucks on March 3, 2023, in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. The now 30-year-old appeared in 123 games with the Devils and collected 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists). He reached a single-season high of 25 points during the 2023-24 campaign.
For two years, Lazar sat next to youngster Dawson Mercer in the locker room.
"A good guy," Mercer said of his former teammate. "I loved him. He is a family guy, nice, and easy to talk to. We always had stuff to talk about, even just random stuff, not just about hockey. Obviously, (Edmonton is) pretty close to home for him, and then I think he is going to really like it there. You like to see guys continue on and hopefully have a good season."
Lazar enters Saturday's game with four goals and six points in 22 games against New Jersey. He has yet to score on former teammate and Devils starting goaltender Jake Allen.
Puck drop between the Devils (3-1-0) and Oilers (2-1-1) will be at 3:30 p.m. and can be viewed on MSGSN.
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