Sunny Mehta has added another piece to the Devils’ mix, and this time it comes with a bit of upside baked in.
New Jersey announced Friday that it has signed forward Amadeus Lombardi to a two-year contract worth an NHL average annual value of $875,000. The first season is a two-way deal, with a minor-league salary of $175,000, while the second year is a one-way contract.
The Devils landed Lombardi’s signing rights just last week, sending a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft to the Detroit Red Wings in the deal. Detroit used that pick on Adam Levac, who went 108th overall in Buffalo.
Lombardi, 23, arrived in the organization after building a reputation as one of the more intriguing offensive players in the Red Wings’ system. He spent his first three pro seasons with the Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit’s AHL affiliate, and established himself there as a top scoring threat.
Detroit’s decision to move him wasn’t hard to read. Lombardi would have needed to clear waivers next season to get back to Grand Rapids, and the Red Wings chose to get value back rather than risk losing him for nothing.
The appeal is easy to see. Lombardi is a fast, inventive playmaker, which is part of why Detroit took the Newmarket, Ont. native in the fourth round of the 2022 NHL Draft. Before turning pro, he put together a huge junior season with the Flint Firebirds of the Ontario Hockey League, finishing with 102 points in his final year.
Since then, he’s shown he can do more than just create offense. In Grand Rapids, he developed into a steadier two-way player, using his speed and better awareness to move closer to an NHL debut that never came in Detroit. Now he gets a new runway in New Jersey.
Even with injuries costing him time over the past couple of seasons, Lombardi has stayed near a point-per-game pace. He posted 40 points in each of the last two campaigns, then followed that up this past season with a career-best 42 points, including 16 goals and 26 assists. He also added three assists in seven postseason games.
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