Filmon Filling Out | FEATURE

The Devils took a gamble in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft. And that gamble may hit for a big payout.

With the 166th overall selection, the Devils chose a player that appeared to be a bit undersized. Forward Josh Filmon stood at 6-foot-1. That's not too bad. But at 17 years old, a year before his draft eligibility, he weighed just 140 pounds.

That's when he put a plan into place. As he put it: "Eat, sleep and workout."

The Winnipeg, Manitoba native added roughly 20 pounds of muscle onto his frame, pushing him to 161 pounds at the 2022 Draft. But was there still more room for growth? That's what the Devils scouting staff had to ask itself.

But the Devils staff did its research. They knew that a late growth spurt could be in Filmon's future. It was, after all, in his DNA. Filmon's older brother and father were late bloomers, hitting a growth spurt in their late teens.

Would the same hold true for Filmon?

If so, New Jersey may end up making a shrewd play by taking Filmon. And if his 2022-23 season is any indication, the Devils are looking pretty good on their prediction.

A bigger, stronger Filmon scored 47 goals last year - including a six-goal game against Edmonton - and 75 points in 64 games for the Western Hockey League's Swift Current Broncos while serving as an alternate captain. That more than doubled his 23 goals from the season prior.

A big reason for the uptick in production was the uptick in strength.

"A lot of it is getting used to the speed and physicality of things, and learning how to maneuver your body through the inside of the ice better," Filmon told NJD.tv. "That's an area I made a big jump in, just playing inside the dots, getting comfortable finding open space in the slot. That allowed me to score a lot more goals this year."

Filmon has always had a great shot and skill. But last year he was able to muscle his way into better scoring positions. Prior to adding his strength, Filmon had to rely on skill, shiftiness and a sneaky quality to find open ice for scoring. These days, he's able to break through the perimeter and score from the inside.

But the skills he developed before the size he developed will pay dividends with his new physicality.

"I think it's good that I had to learn how to be creative as one of the smaller guys and learn how to process the game mentally," he said, "and be able to get open and become a better passer. It taught me a lot of things that are going to help me out in the long run when I do put on size."

Another thing that could help Filmon is a sample of the next level. With Swift Current missing the playoffs, the left-hand shot joined Utica of the American Hockey League for a four-game rendezvous of the pro level, scoring his first pro goal in the process.

"It was great. It's going to be awesome for my confidence going into next year," Filmon said. "One, going back to junior (next year) and playing against guys my age and the following year hopefully making the jump full time into the AHL. Just already having that taste and knowing what to expect going into the season are going to allow me to get off to a great start."

Filmon's biggest takeaway from his AHL stint was how strong players are at that level, and how much further he needs to go.

"Getting bigger and stronger and what it takes to win loose puck battles and get to the front of the net and score goals," he said of the AHL game. "It's a lower scoring league than junior just because everybody is so much more detailed in their defensive habits. It just reassures me that I have to become a more complete player to become a full-time pro guy."

In the meantime, Filmon will return to the WHL next season. And he hopes to build on his success from the previous year. Maybe next year he'll score seven goals in a game.

"It pushes me because when you start to improve and improve, when you have success at one level it makes you want to jump up to the next level," Filmon said. "It gives me the confidence that I think I can reach any limit here, (I'll) keep going and try to make the next level."