The Devils are getting a boost on the blue line.
On Saturday, New Jersey announced that defenseman Johnathan Kovacevic has been activated off injured reserve, putting him in position to make his season debut against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night at Prudential Center.
Kovacevic has been sidelined since the offseason after knee surgery in May slowed his preparation and limited what he was able to do in training camp. He’s now trying to put the injury-plagued 2025-26 season behind him and get back to the steady, productive form he showed in New Jersey.
The 29-year-old Grimsby, Ont. native was held to just 34 games last season because of injury and finished with eight assists, his lowest output since he became a full-time NHLer in 2022-23. That came after a strong 2024-25 campaign with the Devils, when he set a career high with 17 points after arriving in the organization in the summer of 2024 via trade from the Montreal Canadiens.
Kovacevic has long shown he can handle the defensive side of the job and chip in offensively when needed. Before landing in New Jersey, he put up six goals in 62 games with Montreal the year before.
He’s now in the second season of the five-year contract extension he signed in March 2025. The deal carries a $4 million average annual value through the 2028-29 campaign.
Across 258 regular-season NHL games, Kovacevic has 10 goals and 43 assists for 53 points. He also appeared in three Stanley Cup Playoff games with New Jersey in the spring of 2025.
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