Sergei Brylin first arrived at the New Jersey Devils when he was 20 years old.
In 1994-95 Brylin made his NHL debut with the Devils and would go on to call New Jersey his home ever since. Every career milestone, every career step was played with the Devils franchise and he is just one of five players to win all three Stanley Cup titles in the franchise’s history. And now at 48 years old, Brylin is taking one more step in the franchise.
On Thursday, Brylin once again joined the Devils, this time as an assistant coach on Lindy Ruff’s staff.
After nine seasons in the American Hockey League, Brylin will join the NHL staff, and it could not be a better time for the man affectionately known as Sarge.
“It’s a good opportunity for me to, you know, help the team again,” Brylin said in his first interview since he was appointed to the role, “and I think it’s an exciting time for the New Jersey Devils organization. I think we are entering that phase when, you know, our guys, the young prospects are getting more experienced and mature. And I think the expectations are going up. So I think it’s an exciting time for everybody.”
There will certainly be new experiences for Brylin joining an NHL staff for the first time, but there will be fewer introductions that need to be made. The past few seasons have seen several players on the Devils’ roster graduate from the AHL to the NHL, players who have already grown and developed under the tutelage of Brylin.
“We usually gain those drafted players down there, for some of them it takes a short period of time, some it takes longer. But it’s great that guys that set their goals high and had high expectations, they do well when they go up in the big league and for us as coaches, that’s what you want to see.”
Some of those names included Jesper Boqvist, Nathan Bastianand Yegor Sharangovich.
“Some of those guys had a skill level, where you work hard to get to where they wanted to be. I’m looking forward to taking their game to an even higher level.”
With some of the Devils top-end talent, like captain Nico Hischier and Jack HughesBrylin is looking forward to getting to know them and building relationships with these players who never made a stop in the AHL.
“They’re talented and their skill level is special. Special players. You know, to get a chance to work with those kinds of players every day, it’s just going to be a great opportunity for me, to see if I can even help. them to achieve more.”
Ask any of Brylin’s former teammates, or even his AHL players, he is one of, if not the hardest working person on the ice at any given moment. He works his players hard because he believes in their abilities and brings out the best in everyone’s talent. He can be found on the ice at camps challenging his players to skating competitions and will take part himself. He’s a hard worker, and his drive seemingly hasn’t waived from the time he was 20 years old to now. The excitement has been palpable since the news was announced, demonstrating just what type of person is entering into the fold at Prudential Center. Fans and former teammates alike have been expressing their excitement at this new addition.
While others loudly sing his praises, Brylin is on the quieter side and very humble. Everything, it seems, is just about getting better.
He’s been an important person and coach in the development of a player like Sharnagovich, who once he made the NHL team, would often credit Brylin as a person who has helped him develop into the player he is. And that isn’t just simply because they share Russian as a first language, but the one-on-one work Brylin puts in with his players. When asked whether Sharangovich has another level to his game, Brylin gave a glimpse into the type of coaching mentality he has that should be a valued asset to lean on.
“I think we all do [have another level]. It’s a process, right? You want to keep working on stuff, keep getting better. Look at [Sidney] Crosby, a perfect example, [Nathan] MacKinnon the same way. These guys are the hardest working guys out there and they’re getting better. So I hope that all our players are going to have that kind of approach.”
Nearly 30 years after joining the Devils, it appears Brylin’s goals are the same set of expectations he set for himself, just now he’s bestowing those learned experiences to the next generation.
“All together we can do something really special.”