Honest question... Was Meier a good fit with NJ??
I admittedly don't watch many NJ games except in playoffs and he didn't look like he did with SJ. Stats look pretty average too with NJ
Like a lot of deadline acquisitions, it takes time to sort things out. I'm always reminded of when the Devils got Alexander Mogilny in 2000. He put up modest numbers the rest of that season (3-3-6 in 12 regular season games, 4-3-7 in 23 playoff games). Then he led the team with 43 goals the following regular season.
They started him off on a line with Hughes-Bratt and after several games they shifted him around and he played with different centers. The Tatar-Hischier-Mercer line was going well in the second half, so I think the staff didn't want to break that line up. But with Tatar likely not being retained, that opens up a spot potentially with Nico. 9 goals in 21 regular season games wasn't too bad either. Maybe they put him back with Hughes; I'm also reminded of Patrik Elias and Scott Gomez not clicking in 2002-03 then it worked the following year.
Timo created a decent amount of chances in the playoffs, just didn't get the results (as opposed to Bratt who kinda disappeared). 5.4% shooting percentage is usually a decent bet to rebound back up.