Andrew Gross

NorthJersey

NEWARK – Don’t call them grizzled veterans just yet. After all, it’s only been three months since Pavel Zacha passed out of his teenage years and Michael McLeod still has seven months to go before turning 20.

But the two first-round picks are certainly no newbies at Devils development camp, with Zacha attending for the third time and McLeod for the second.

“It’s kind of funny I’m a vet already,” Zacha said.

Thursday was reserved for off-ice workouts and community outreach visits for the development camp participants. They’ll be back on the ice for practice on Friday before camp concludes on Saturday with a full scrimmage.

With general manager Ray Shero and coach John Hynes entering their third season as they try to rebuild the Devils, who finished last in the Eastern Conference last season and out of the playoffs for the fifth straight year, Zacha and McLeod’s growth is integral as the franchise works to establish a solid foundation of young, fast talent.

The two forwards are at different stages in their development right now.

Zacha, the sixth overall pick in 2015 and seemingly physically mature at 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, played 70 games as a rookie for the Devils last season with eight goals and 16 assists. He started the season used mainly as a center and ended on left wing, where he was more productive.

McLeod, the 12th overall pick in 2016, was a development camp standout last summer but the center did not make the Devils’ roster out of training camp and was returned to Mississauga (Ontario Hockey League), where he had 27 goals and 46 assists in 57 games, then added 11 goals and 16 assists in 20 playoff games.

He is still not eligible to be assigned to the AHL so McLeod will come to training camp in September knowing he’ll either make the Devils or again be returned to his junior hockey club.

“I just feel stronger,” the 6-foot-2, 195-pound McLeod said of the difference between this summer and last summer. “I’ve gotten a lot bigger and faster and put on some weight. I’m a better skater now.”

That’s exactly what the Devils want to hear as Shero and Hynes look for players – young players – who can help them push the pace more and compete with more of an up-tempo style.

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McLeod, whose skating and stickhandling stood out last summer, knows what the Devils are expecting as he approaches his second training camp with the team.

“I just have to make sure I work my hardest every shift and play the system and backcheck hard,” McLeod. “Bring everything to the table.

“It’s kind of my goal right now to make the league as quickly as possible,” McLeod added.

There should be tight competition for spots among the top 12 forwards at training camp between McLeod and Zacha, John Quenneville, the 2014 first-round pick, this year’s No. 1 overall pick Nico Hischier, Blake Speers and Miles Wood as well as other younger players such as Joseph Blandisi, Stefan Noesen and Blake Coleman.

Barring further offseason moves, Marcus Johansson, acquired from the Capitals, Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, Adam Henrique and Travis Zajac would seem likely to have spots in the top six. Shero also signed veteran forward Brian Boyle to a two-year, $5.1 million deal and he can play either center or left wing on the third or fourth line.

One advantage Zacha has, having played last season with the Devils, compared to McLeod is an understanding of how difficult NHL life can be. Zacha said the Devils’ heavy travel schedule in November proved to be a huge adjustment and he acknowledged that there were times during his rookie season where he felt worn down.

Watching Shero’s offseason moves also counts as an adjustment.

“They changed some players,” said Zacha, who is now eligible to be re-assigned to the AHL, unlike last season. “It’s my first offseason being with the team so it was kind of hard [seeing players leave from last season’s team], it was the first time it happened to me. But Boyle and Johansson, those are guys we need.”

Specifically, Zacha is excited to perhaps play on a line with the 6-6, 245-pound Boyle, hoping the veteran can serve as a mentor much like Vern Fiddler did last season before he was traded to the Predators.

“I stayed in the same building with him,” Zacha said of Fidder. “He was like a dad.”

E-mail: grossa@northjersey.com