It's not very often that a juggernaut National Hockey League team also has a stacked prospect pipeline — but that's exactly the position the 2023-24 New Jersey Devils find themselves in ahead of another hockey season. The Devils came within three wins of advancing to the Eastern Conference Final in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, proving that they could be the next big thing in the NHL.

After a few tough years, things are really looking up in Newark. Jack Hughes is a superstar. Captain Nico Hischier is one of the better two -way forwards in the sport. And Timo Meier is now a long-term Devil after being acquired at the NHL Trade Deadline and subsequently extended. New Jersey is expected to take another step forward next season, and they could legitimately challenge to win the Metropolitan Division crown.

And they are going to have help. The prospect pipeline is excellent, starting with a player Devils fans are going to get to know well over the next few seasons: Luke Hughes. Hughes had an electric start to his NHL career last season, and is one of two potential top-four defensemen along with 2022 No. 2 overall pick Simon Nemec.

New Jersey has the offense, and they are going to get help from two key prospects in Hughes and Nemec as soon as next season. They also have two other solid prospects that should play meaningful games for the team within the next two seasons. Let's get into it.

4) Akira Schmid, G

It's hard to still call Akira Schmid a prospect, as he is 23 years old and was the team's No. 1 goaltender at times during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but we'll include him for the sake of this exercise. The former No. 136 overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft was absolutely incredible in relief of Vitek Vanecek against the New York Rangers in Round 1, highlighted by a pair of shutouts against one of the league's best offenses.

The Swiss netminder is knocking on the door of being the team's goalie of the future, and he showed it with his impressive postseason run in 2023. Schmid is waiver exempt and could remain on the roster in 2023-24 to backup Vanecek. If that doesn't happen, he'll head to the AHL's Utica Comets, where he would immediately become of the league's premier goaltenders.

3) Alexander Holtz, RW

The No. 7 overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, Alexander Holtz broke onto the professional scene in 2021-22, scoring 26 goals and 51 points in 52 games for the Utica Comets. It's been tough sledding for the 21-year-old in the NHL, though; he's scored just three goals and six points in 28 games for the Devils, and has spent significant time as a healthy scratch throughout his tenure with the team.

The additions of Timo Meier and Tyler Toffoli this summer make it unlikely that Holtz will be able to carve out a meaningful top-six role with the team, and the onus is on him at training camp to prove that he belongs in New Jersey and not Utica in 2023-24. He's still got a few years of leeway, but the Swedish winger needs to start turning heads.

2) Simon Nemec, D

Simon Nemec is almost certainly going to be a future top-four defenseman in the National Hockey League after being drafted No. 2 overall by the Devils in 2022. The Slovakian just put in a full shift with the Comets, scoring an excellent 34 points in 65 games as a rookie and proving right off the bat that he can hang with the pros.

The 19-year-old has spent the last few seasons playing with men, and it will only be a matter of time before Nemec is ready to challenge for an NHL spot. That could come as soon as next season, especially with Damon Severson now in Columbus. The bottom pairing of the Devils is not set in stone, and expect Nemec to challenge for a spot in September.

1) Luke Hughes, D

Luke Hughes is the prize of the New Jersey Devils prospect pipeline, and it's only a matter of time before he follows brothers Jack and Quinn into NHL stardom. Jack just broke out with an incredible 99-point campaign, and Quinn has been the best player on the Vancouver Canucks' blueline for years.

Luke is the youngest of the three brothers, but the 19-year-old seems poised for an NHL spot next season. Daily Faceoff already projects Hughes as the second-pairing left defenseman beside John Marino next season. The No. 4 overall pick in 2021 won the Big 10 championship and rookie of the year honors with Michigan a year ago, and he also finished as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award as the best player in NCAA hockey.

It's incredible that the Devils will have both Luke and Jack Hughes on the team next season, and it was a treat to watch the two of them in Newark in a limited showing last year. Luke Hughes was playing over 20 minutes a night against the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 2, and expect him to be pushing that number on an everyday basis with New Jersey next year.