Ondrej Palat: A Player of Influence | FEATURE

Ondrej Palat joined the New Jersey Devils out of Free Agency on July 15, 2022. It was the first time the 10-year NHL veteran had hit the open market; it was the first time he was a part of another NHL system other than the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Palat was to be a part of the next step of team building for a team poised to take the next step in its evolution.

"He's probably the closest thing to a player/coach there is out there because of how he thinks the game, his beliefs in how to practice, the habits and the details you need to create that winning culture," Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald said at the time of the signing.

Little did he know that the player/coach aura Palat exudes may have been the most critical part of his first season in New Jersey.

Just six games into his tenure with the Devils, Palat was put on the sidelines. After his appearance in the Oct. 24 game against the Washington Capitals, it wouldn't be until the New Year that he would play again, having undergone groin surgery on Nov. 1, returning to practice only on Dec. 27.

The injury forced his on-ice play to come to a grinding halt. But inside the locker room, behind closed doors, the influence and experience that Fitzgerald coveted in the off-season in acquiring Palat didn't.

It was crucial to Fitzgerald that Palat remain involved. He was not only brought on to the team for his skills, and his ability to create something out of nothing in high-pressure moments, but his arrival in New Jersey was also about the respect that he commands, just by being himself, which is a professional by any definition of the word.

"Guys look at him differently, they admire what he's gone through, they respect him immensely," Fitzgerald said of his significant 2022 off-season acquisition.

"He brings a lot, he's won it all," Nico Hischier, who sits next to Palat in the locker room, said. "He knows exactly what you need to do in certain games in certain stretches. He is definitely just a big part of our group."

Based on playing just 49 games this season, it could be easy to overlook the type of impact he had in such an extraordinary Devils season. But that's because we're not privy to what happens behind closed doors.

Tom Fitzgerald partially pulled back the curtain in his end-of-season press conference to offer some insight into how essential Palat was to the team's season-long success. While the public may not have seen Ondrej Palat from the time he underwent groin surgery on Nov. 1, to his eventual return to practice on Dec. 27, he was always lurking in the background, out of sight to others, but not to his team.

And that was by design.

"He and I would speak often during his rehab," Fitzgerald said, "and all I said was, even if you're not on the ice, your presence is very impactful. I asked him, I wanted him to be in meetings, I wanted him to be around. No, he didn't travel, but he was involved."

During his rehab, Palat was at the rink on a regular basis, he was around the team, despite not being able to join them on the ice. He was being leaned on by both players and the coaching staff, his influence being felt in a different way.

"I know Lindy used him as a resource in a lot of areas," Fitzgerald added, "I know Lindy would be the first to say, even in the playoffs, he would ask (Palat) to speak to the group. He had an impactful year with us because of how he impacted all our players in their games."

In fact,

Fitzgerald revealed earlier this season

that his intention was to suggest to his head coach to have Palat as involved as possible, but when the conversation finally came up Lindy Ruff already shared that Palat was there on his own accord, no need to ask.

"That's not something you have to nudge," Fitzgerald said, "it comes natural for him to integrate himself into the lineup."

"I saw the coaches a lot," Palat said back in January. "I was always first (at the arena) in the morning with the coaches, and they were asking me about different types of situations in the game. How we did it in Tampa, things like that. So, they're asking questions, I'm asking questions about what they see."

Palat is generally soft-spoken in front of the media, clearly more reserved and to those outside of the locker room, perhaps not even the most vocal of leaders. Lindy Ruff joked in April that although Palat "might not like talking to (the media), he's pretty good around us." In Game 1 of the First Round series with the New York Rangers, the Devils were down by 2-0 after 20 minutes of play, it was Palat who spoke in the locker room.

When Palat speaks, it matters.

"He's a guy that a lot of people look up to and do what he says." Hischier said, "That's why we brought him in. He's obviously just a great leader for us."

The reverence his teammates have for him is palpable. On more than one occasion this season, his name was synonymous with learning about what it takes to get to the next level, to compete night in, and night out at a high and consistent level.

His experience is second to none on the Devils' roster and as he does with his on-ice play, he takes his off-ice influence just as seriously. He has a profound understanding of his role and how it exists on a dual level. There's the on-ice veteran presence and there is the off-ice veteran presence.

"I'm a very positive person because I've been through a lot of winning and losses too," Palat shared, "You know, sometimes the younger guys sometimes they're too hard on themselves, and sometimes they need just you know, to hear something positive. Even when we lose sometimes, I feel we get too down on ourselves (…) I think positivity is very important for the young team."

The "younger team" will now be a year older with a wealth of added experience when the team gathers for the start of the 2023 training camp. It will also have a full year of influence of Ondrej Palat.

And you can't ask for much more than that.