Meier doing it all for Devils during playoff push

NEWARK, N.J. -- Timo Meier takes great pride in doing a little bit of everything when he hops on the ice for the New Jersey Devils.

The 28-year-old forward, now in his ninth NHL season and third with the Devils, has long been praised for his ability to generate offensive chances, throw big hits and block shots.

It's the reason the Devils coveted him as the type of player they needed down the stretch and in the trenches if they were serious about qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs with regularity, signing him to an eight-year, $70.4 million contract ($8.8 million average annual value) on June 28, 2023.

Meier ranks in the top five among all Devils players this season in goals (fifth; 18), game-winning goals (third; four), points (fourth; 43) and hits (fourth; 117), and is seventh in blocked shots (53).

He might not be scoring at the rate he once did when he was with the San Jose Sharks -- he had three 30-goal seasons from 2016-23 -- but truth be told, he's become a more responsible player. New Jersey has a 53.2 shot-attempts percentage at 5-on-5, and 61.5 on-ice goals for percentage 5-on-5 when Meier is on the ice.

"Honestly, I just want for us to get into the playoffs," Meier told NHL.com. "That's the goal, that's the focus. I think you got to believe that if you do the right things over and over, (goals and points) are going to come. If they're not and we're winning, I'm happy, but you can also be influential in the game without scoring ... being physical and doing things the right way."

Meier, incidentally, is a plus-player (plus-9) for the first time in six seasons, an indication he's doing much more for the crest on the front of the jersey than the name on the back.

"If you do that, I think that will help the team and that will automatically drive your success," he said.

The Devils are hoping Meier can continue and perhaps raise his game even more to help them secure a spot in the playoffs for the second time in three seasons. New Jersey (36-25-6) is third in the Metropolitan Division, six points behind the Carolina Hurricanes, who have played one fewer game.

They visit the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday (3 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, SN1, TVAS) having won three straight games following a 3-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday.

"Timo can play the physical brand hockey, the skill brand hockey, because he's got the speed to play that style, too," said Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon, who spent four seasons as Meier's teammate in San Jose (2016-20). "I got to see young Timo and I've seen now an established veteran Timo that's in more of a leadership role. Guys look up to him and we need him to be at his best every night, and that's not an easy ask for what he does.

"We always seem to reminisce on the Sharks' days ... we had a lot of success in the playoffs. Timo knows what it's like to play this time of year in important games. He's been physical and he's just such a bull to handle."

Meier is two goals from his fourth straight 20-plus goal season and appears to be in a very good place with his game and contributions.

"I think you got to realize the situation, not just as an individual, but as a team, too," Meier said. "If we're up two goals in the period, and you think, 'OK, maybe it's not so smart if I go finish a hit now because then I'm taking the risk of getting stuck behind.' I think as you go on in your career, you begin to learn how to use your emotions the right way at the right times. At the start of the game, I might want to be physical to bring that emotion in and get the guys going."

It's also worth noting that Meier wasn't part of the top power-play unit for a few months this season but has since returned following the season-ending injury to center Jack Hughes (shoulder surgery).

"I think Timo can produce at a higher rate, but I don't think he's been short on chances or shots or anything like that," New Jersey coach Sheldon Keefe said. "Some more pucks could fall for him and some of that is difficult, so you got to kind of recalibrate yourself a little bit after losing your power-play time ... you're sort of trying to find yourself."

The injury to Hughes has given Keefe reason to give Meier more time in critical situations.

"With the injuries, a lot of things are running through Timo now, so we expect to increase his puck touches and just his overall offensive feel, which we hope there's some benefits from," Keefe said. "He's showing signs of that but there's no question he's a difference-maker. I like a lot of the other things he's done in his game, so you don't want to draw too much attention to [scoring]. But we're a team that needs more goals, so we need to find ways to do that without sacrificing our structure or attention to detail defensively."

Since Feb. 1, the Devils are tied for 26th in the League in goals per game (2.57) and tied for seventh in goals against (2.64).

"Keeping the puck out of our net has been a staple of ours throughout the season and we've seen great strides in Timo's game in that regard," Keefe said. "Obviously, you'd like to find that balance where he can remain consistent defensively and manage the game but also break through offensively."