The New Jersey Devils announced today that the team has re-signed unrestricted free-agent forward Max Willman to a one-year, two-way contract. The contract details are as follows: 2024-25: $775,000 at the NHL level and $275,000 at the American Hockey League (AHL) level with $300,000 guaranteed. The announcement was made by President/General Manager Tom Fitzgerald and Devils’ Assistant General Manager/Utica Comets General Manager Dan MacKinnon.
Willman, 29, is coming off his first season with the organization, where he appeared in 18 games with New Jersey. The 6’0”, 185lbs. forward logged his Devils debut on Nov. 5, 2023, at Chicago, and became the 66th player in franchise history to score in their team debut. Willman finished the year with three goals and one assist, earning his first NHL game-winning goal on Mar. 26, 2024, at Toronto.
The lefthanded shot began the season with New Jersey’s AHL affiliate in Utica and recorded 22 points (12g-10a) in 33 contests. Willman spent parts of four seasons, 2019-20 to 2022-23, in the Philadelphia Flyers organization and was signed as a free agent by Philadelphia on Mar. 24, 2021. Willman made his NHL debut with the Flyers on Oct. 15, 2021, vs Vancouver, and played in 50 NHL games with Philadelphia. Overall, Willman has played in 68 career NHL contests and has earned 10 points (7g-3a).
Born on Feb. 13, 1995, the native of Barnstable, MA, was Buffalo’s fifth-round selection, 121st overall, in the 2014 NHL Draft. Willman played five seasons at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) level from 2014-15 to 2018-19, four with Brown University, before finishing his NCAA career at Boston University as a Graduate transfer in 2018-19. Additionally, he totaled 51 career points (17g-34a) in 135 games at the NCAA level. Willman made his professional debut in 2019-20, splitting time in the ECHL with Reading and the AHL with Lehigh Valley. He played in 142 regular-season contests with Lehigh Valley and totaled 67 points (32g-35a).
