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[New Jersey Devils]

Reasons To Be Optimistic About the Devils in 2025-26

As someone who has covered the New Jersey Devils for several years now and followed the team for far longer, and as someone who reads a lot of comments on social media, I’d like to think that I have my finger on the pulse of the fanbase most of the time. That doesn’t necessarily mean that I agree with the fanbase on every particular topic or story that pops up over the course of a season, but more often than not, I’d like to think that I’m on the same page with what most people who watch the team on a regular basis are thinking when it comes to the Devils.

My takeaway from reading such comments this summer is that the Devils offseason has been somewhere between a disaster and disappointing. The reasoning behind this is because the Devils “failed to dump Ondrej Palat”, “failed to land a star player”, and Luke Hughes is still unsigned. I think there’s also a perceived canyon-sized gap between the Devils and, say, the two-time Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers and the belief that if these two teams met in the playoffs, it would go similarly to how most playoff series have gone for Florida the last few years….with the Panthers bullying and emasculating their opponents en route to a series win.

Putting Florida aside for a moment, I can somewhat understand the trepidation going into this season. I also understand that negativity sells and the most vocal parts of any fanbase are the ones who are criticizing. Add in the Devils having a 4 month stretch of mediocre at best hockey post-Christmas through elimination that still needs to be explained and the only notable changes up front are the additions of Connor Brown, Evgenii Dadonov, and Arseni Gritsyuk, and I get it. Unless one thinks Gritsyuk is going to step in immediately be Kirill Kaprizov, which I would caution against levying those expectations on him, I don’t blame someone for thinking there’s not a difference maker there.

Still, I don’t necessarily buy into the doom-and-gloom prognostications when it comes to the Devils entering 2025-26. According to DraftKings, the Devils are -350 to make the playoffs, have the fourth best odds to win the Eastern Conference, and eighth best odds to win the Stanley Cup. I’m not saying that the Devils will do any of those things as presently constructed, but I think as more and more season preview thinkpieces come out, and considering opinions that include traditional hockey media, analytics-based media, and sportsbooks, the consensus opinion is that the Devils are definitely a playoff team. It’s just that they’re probably on that next tier behind teams like Florida. I think that is a fair and reasonable assessment until the Devils prove otherwise.

Whether or not the Devils can take any steps beyond being just a playoff team remains to be seen, but I think there are at least several reasons to be optimistic about where the Devils stand in the greater NHL landscape entering this upcoming season.

The Devils Young Players Probably Have Another Step or Two to Take in Their Development

I think the biggest mistake that people who are critical on how far the Devils can go is the assumption that what certain young players are right now is what they’re going to be for the rest of their careers.

It’s easy to forget that Jack Hughes is only 24 years old. That Nico Hischier is 26. That Jesper Bratt is 27. Luke Hughes and Seamus Casey haven’t even turned 22 yet. Simon Nemec is 21 years old.

We’ve seen players like Bratt and Hischier, who are veteran players at this point, continue to add new wrinkles and elements to their respective games as they get stronger, smarter, and more experienced playing in the hardest hockey league in the world. These players aren’t the same players they were three years ago. They’re certainly not the same players they were five years ago. Or eight years ago, when they were rookies during Taylor Hall’s Hart Trophy campaign. They’re significantly better players now than they were then. Bratt continues to raise the bar in terms of point production every season. Hischier found the back of the net more this past season while literally doing everything for the Devils in terms of two-way, all-situations play. Even last year, we saw players like Jack Hughes buy into Sheldon Keefe’s system, round out his defensive play, and earn time on the penalty kill. This is good, as the Devils best players need to be their best players for them to get where they want to go. We continue to see them make strides year after year.

No, not all Devils players have continued to show those signs of growth. Yes, it is concerning that Dawson Mercer has seemingly plateaued at 23 years old with two so-so seasons in a row. Mercer is at the age where, if he has those levels to gain as a player, he should be taking those steps. But its also probably too early to write him off as “this is what he’s always going to be”. He is young enough where there is still time for him to flip the script.

I’m not suggesting that Luke Hughes is going to turn into what Quinn Hughes is right now this season, or that someone like Seamus Casey will do enough to stick as a full-time NHL player this season. But I do think we’ve seen enough growth from some of these players already to suggest that there could be another step taken forward in 2025-26. We’ve seen the Hughes brothers continue to improve each season. We’ve seen Nemec have a strong postseason to end an otherwise disappointing 24-25 campaign on a high note.

I don’t know how much runway players like Hischier or Bratt have in terms of developing and continuing to get better, but I do think there’s more to improvement than sheer point production. It’s also about rounding out the other areas of your game where you can be relied upon in certain situations. We’ve seen Hischier become one of the best two-way players in the league, and Bratt plays in all situations as well. The more experience one has, the less likely one is to panic and the more likely they are to make the right hockey play.

Second Year In Sheldon Keefe’s System

My general rule of thumb when it comes to evaluating head coaches is that unless they’re egregiously terrible at their job, I tend to give them a pass in their first full year on the job.

Why? Because I do believe there is a learning curve when it comes to learning a new system, particularly one that is different than the previous one. Add that on top of the natural learning curve that comes with roster turnover and new teammates learning to play with each other and I do think this is a process that can take some time. And while it may sound like excuse making, I don’t think the Devils opening last season in Czechia and playing as condensed a schedule as they did in the early portion of last season helped matters even though they got off to a solid start.

Keefe took over for Mike Babcock early in the 2019-20 season, which was ultimately shortened by COVID. Toronto was successful in the 56-game “All Canada” season that they played, going 35-14-7, but I think its easy to chalk that season up in general as “stuff happens” between the realignment, lack of fans, and COVID restrictions. But in Toronto’s first full 82 game season under Keefe, they went 54-21-7. Second in the Atlantic division, second in goals scored, and comfortably in a playoff spot.

A lot of that offense came from Auston Matthews, who scored 60 goals himself and went on to win the Hart Trophy and Rocket Richard, and Toronto’s Big 4 forwards did what you’d expect from them. But they also got contributions down the lineup. 63 points from Michael Bunting out of nowhere. 51 points from Alex Kerfoot. Ilya Mikheyev with 32 points in 53 games. Ondrej Kase with 27 points in 50 games.

Is some of that smoke and mirrors? Perhaps. Someone has to play with Matthews or Tavares and someone will be the beneficiary in picking up those points. But my point is that the Devils core players, like Toronto’s, are familiar with what Keefe is demanding from them the longer they play under his tutelage. I’m not saying that the Devils have a 60 goal scorer on their roster (although I wouldn’t rule out Jack Hughes doing that if he plays all 82 games and goes nuclear one year), but there is room for growth. Heck, we’ve already talked about Bratt and Hischier taking another step last year, and that was in Year 1 under Keefe. Why can’t some of the other holdovers be more comfortable this season?

I also think its worth mentioning that unlike those Toronto teams, there’s a better baseline off of which to build. I think the Devils have a better blueline and better goaltending than what Keefe had for most of his Toronto tenure. I thought that last year and my opinion hasn’t changed. The Devils appear to be bringing back their entire blueline and their goaltending duo. They’re bringing back their Top Six forwards. Yes, they’ve revamped their bottom six, but it was a bottom six that frankly wasn’t very good to begin with. More importantly, the Devils have that continuity in key areas in their lineup. I think this continuity goes hand in hand with what I just wrote about the younger players having another step or two to take in their respective development as players.

The Devils Are Due For Better Injury Luck

The Devils had an uphill battle going into the playoff series last year versus Carolina, a team that is more experienced than them and has had their number.

What didn’t help matters were injuries.

It didn’t help matters that a team starved for offense lost Luke Hughes in Game 1 of the series. It didn’t help that veteran defensemen Brenden Dillon and Johnathan Kovacevic were knocked out relatively early in that series as well. It certainly didn’t help matters that Cody Glass got knocked out of a game due to friendly fire by Jacob Markstrom, who was taking a swing at someone on Carolina only to catch his own teammate instead.

And it definitely didn’t help matters that Jack Hughes’ season ended roughly six weeks earlier after sustaining another shoulder injury in Vegas.

Obviously, every team has to deal with injuries. Hockey is a physical game. And I don’t point out the Devils missing their best offensive player and half their blueline in a playoff series to make excuses for why they lost (never mind them barely getting Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler back in time because they both were injured late in the regular season). Rather, I point it out because of the timing, and how unfortunate it is. I think its silly to take the stance of “The Devils can’t win in the playoffs with Jack Hughes” when the only time we’ve seen him in the playoffs, he had 11 points in 12 games and was one of the Devils best forwards. But I can definitively say that the Devils can’t win without him. Not as presently constructed.

Is it blind faith that I’m just hoping that players like Jack will stay healthy for a playoff run? Or that Dougie won’t have a fourth season interrupted by injury? Or that the starting goaltender doesn’t miss six weeks like he did this past season? Perhaps. But what alternative do we have as Devils fans?

Some teams are luckier with injuries than others, both in terms of severity and timing. It’s not really the thing that a team can plan for in the offseason when building a roster. Acquiring players with a history of playing 81 or 82 games every year doesn’t mean they’re going to stay healthy. Conversely, players who are labeled as “injury prone” aren’t going to necessarily remain that way forever.

The Devils have certainly had more than their share of injuries the last few years. One would hope that over time, that sort of thing balances out.

The Rest of the Metropolitan Division Didn’t Do Enough To Concern Me That the Devils Playoff Spot is at Risk

I could be wrong in how I view the Metropolitan Division, but to me, Carolina is clearly the class of the division. And as you’re surely familiar with the old Ric Flair quote, “To be the man, you’ve got to beat the man.”

Carolina is the man right now and they probably had the best offseason of any team in the Metropolitan. I don’t know how much Nikolaj Ehlers will help them in terms of winning playoff games, but they have enough other playoff-style players on their roster where they can afford to take that risk. They also did a good job locking up key young players Jackson Blake and Logan Stankoven on long-term deals. But more importantly from a Devils perspective, the framework of what makes Carolina so tough to play against is still intact. There will come a time where this Devils group is defined by whether or not they slay that Carolina dragon, but there is still time for them to change the narrative there.

Other than that though, I’m not sure what team or teams in the Metropolitan I’m supposed to feel threatened by.

Washington will be in the mix, for sure. They’re well coached and probably have the next best roster in the division. But they were also a team that rode unsustainable shooting benders and the vibes that came with Alexander Ovechkin chasing the goals record to 111 points. Everything went right for them (until they ran into Carolina in the playoffs). They were already one of the oldest teams in the league. I’m not going to say that they’re going to drop out of the playoffs entirely, but it goes noted that they barely have lower odds than the Rangers to win the Metropolitan division again. Washington is currently +500 on DraftKings, trailing Carolina at +130 and the Devils at +280.

I do think pundits expect the Rangers to bounce back and reclaim a playoff spot. They’re a year removed from winning the President’s Trophy, they have a new coach in Mike Sullivan, they have a recent history of getting a “new coach bump” in the first year under said new coach, last year was a year where everything went wrong for them, and they have a goalie capable of throwing up a .930 save percentage in any given season. All of this is true. I personally don’t love their blueline though, despite the addition of Vladislav Gavrikov, and one of the Rangers biggest issues last year was that they couldn’t defend. They might have a good pairing in Gavrikov and Adam Fox, but the jury is out whether or not they have a good defense, one to six.

So who does that leave in the Metro that I’m supposed to be intimidated by? A Penguins team that is clearly looking to tear down and sell the few quality assets they have remaining? A Flyers team that, in my opinion, downgraded at coach and is counting on Dan Vladar in net? An Islanders team that is heading in the right direction after moving on from Lou Lamoriello but still has to clean up the mess he left that roster in? Columbus is probably the most interesting of the also-rans in that they have young players capable of exploding and the team taking the next step as a result. They also have the cap space and draft capital to make pretty much any move they see fit, assuming they can convince players to go to Columbus.

That’s not to say that these teams didn’t make some worthwhile adds or had good summers themselves. Blue Jackets fans will say they expect Adam Fantilli to make the leap in Year 3, just as Flyers fans will say the same for Matvei Michkov in Year 2. Rangers fans will say everything went against them last year much like Devils fans said the same thing the year before. Nobody is necessarily wrong to believe that. But if we’re going to assume everyone else’s young players get better, why can’t the Devils say the same for their players. As I mentioned earlier, why can’t Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec take another big step forward?

The last thing I’ll add is that even though we didn’t see a lot of teams sell off players in the past calendar year, I think that mindset will change. Not everybody is going to be a contender in 2025-26. Coaches are going to get fired. General managers are going to get fired. And with a so-called generational talent in Gavin McKenna likely to be the 1st overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, I think its more likely than not that some of the teams cluttering up the mushy middle take a step back, sell off players at the deadline, and position themselves for more lottery ball combinations.

If I had to make a prediction right now, I’d take Florida, Toronto, and Tampa in the Top 3 in the Atlantic (not necessarily in that order) and Carolina, New Jersey, and Washington in the Metro (again, not necessarily in that order). I’d probably lean Ottawa and the Rangers getting the two Wild Card spots but I don’t feel too attached to either of those teams getting in.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/general/60436/reasons-to-be-optimistic-about-the-devils-in-2025-26

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Playing With Forward Lines

How will Keefe build out his new lineup?

Hi-Dilly-Ho Devils sickos.

Grits is in country (continent?), all my quarter zips and fleece vests are clean and pressed, and we have a few more sleeps until the season starts. The only impending dread I have is the obligatory apple picking session, which is still in negotiations (where we stand: I am driving, taking pictures, and am allowed to check my fantasy football team twice).

Are you excited? Am I? Yes, I am actively choosing to be optimistic about the Devils.

I thought it would be fun to play around with some lines. With some question marks and a variety pack of versatile new guys, we will probably see Keefe pull out the ole’ osterizer enough that it would make Lindy blush. While he tinkers trying to find good combos, we gotta start somewhere, so all of these options may see the light of day. Or none of them. That’s what makes it fun, because what else are we gonna do?

I think there are a few philosophical approaches to how we start out.

Based on morning skate lines it looks like Jack is in tonight, skating on his regular line.

Seamus Casey skating as an extra D.

Dowling is the odd-man out.

Here’s how the #NJDevils are lining up ahead of facing the Dallas Stars: pic.twitter.com/2xPKwH2w8y

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) February 22, 2025

Old Reliable Top 6/New Look Bottom 6​

Noesen – Nico – Timo

Palat – Jack – Bratt

Gritsyuk – Mercer – Dadonov

Cotter – Glass – Brown

Lammikko

MacDermid

Running it back up top. Nothing is particularly jazz hands about this, but familiarity certainly is a thing. This seems realistic based on history and where the new guys have historically played. Looking at Natural Stat Trick, Nico-Timo-Noesen only outscored opponents 12-11 at 5v5 in 323 minutes, but their fancy numbers are pretty encouraging and seem like they got a touch unlucky (57% xGF, 60% HDCF). Jack – Bratt – Palat, for all the ink spilled maligning what could be, outscored opponents 30-22 in 520 5v5 minutes at 53% xGF, 56% of scoring chances 52% high danger scoring chances.

That 4th line could be one of the best in the league (source: vibes) and the 3rd line could pop or be a total disaster (source: vibes).

New Year / New You​

Dadonov – Jack – Timo

Noesen – Nico – Bratt

Gritsyuk – Mercer – Brown

Palat – Glass – Cotter

Lammikko

MacDermid

There is a prevailing narrative that Jack-Timo doesn’t work. That isn’t necessarily true. What I think didn’t work was Bratt-Jack-Timo, based on the “there’s only one puck” theory. In 154 5v5 minutes together Timo and Jack outscored their opponents 11-4 and had an xGF of 62%. With Bratt, the trio was basically break even across shots, chances and goals (4-3). I think you balance them out a bit better with Dadonov as the perfect complimentary guy and loan Bratt to Nico and this could cook. Bratt and Nico are incredibly dynamic together as well and with Noesen they had 90 5v5 minutes and controlled shot generation at 57% CF, 53% xGF and a massive 67% high danger chances advantage at 5v5.

Kinda sucks putting $6MM on the 4th line, but once puck drops it doesn’t matter what guys make, and not sure Cotter has the hockey IQ to switch sides but that can be mitigated with deployment. Also gives the Mercer/Grits a good responsible wing in Brown.

Shut Down 3rd Line / Press Box Grits​

Mercer – Nico – Timo

Dadonov – Jack – Bratt

Palat – Glass – Brown

Cotter – Lammikko – Noesen

Gritsyuk

MacDermid

The glaring problem becomes basically writing Gritsytuk’s ticket back to the KHL and it exposes our center depth after Jack and Nico. Also, still not convinced Lammikko is a potential thing or what the intention is there.

This was built from the 3rd line out, and part of me sometimes thinks that how a 3rd line is deployed really can dictate how the rest of the lineup is constructed. Jackson wrote about this philosophy and how Glass can be an elite shut down 3C . Pair him with Brown, who also has good defensive metrics and we hide Palat in plain sight and give him one job. The thought behind this is the Carolina model with Staal / Colorado with Drury / Dallas with Steel – This allows Nico to attack more and not get Atlas-esque minutes every night. See above about Dadonov being a great complimentary piece, and we put Mercer back up top with Nico where historically he has thrived. In 264 5v5 minutes, Nico-Timo-Mercer outscored opponents 9-4 at a 51% xGF clip with 53% of the scoring chances and 53% of the high danger scoring chances.

Now Let’s have some fun:

Pair Up and and Hit the Dance Floor​

Noesen – Nico – Gritsyuk

Palat – Jack – Bratt

Dadonov – Mercer – Timo

Cotter – Glass – Brown

Lammikko

MacDermid

This is based on something that kind of worked when Keefe was trying to find the best home for Timo, he and Mercer put together some good minutes. They outscored other teams 24-9 at 517 5v5 minutes, with strong shot and chance controlling metrics. Grits get some protection with two strong two-way players, and we run out that best 4th line in the league™. Do I like this? I think I might.

Top Line Gas / Jack Island​

Bratt – Nico – Timo

Dadonov – Jack – Gritsyuk

Palat – Mercer – Noesen

Cotter – Glass – Brown

Lammikko

MacDermind

OK, so I’ve talked myself into his 4th line as I’ve been writing. The 3rd line is the “just don’t get buried in your minutes line” and I LOVE the idea of a pure gasoline line with Nico/Bratt/Timo that has some strong underlying numbers in limited minutes, although they got outscored 5-2. This also creates a potentially fun line with Jack and the Russians, Dadonov is a good distributor and Grits as a shooter.

I could make a million more of these as we sit and wait for the season to start. Like any of these? Hate them? Any fun ideas you have?

Let me know what you think!

LGD

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/devils-issues-views-and-ge/60427/playing-with-forward-lines

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Devils in the Details – 8/29/25: Coaching Staff Edition

Here are your links for today:

Devils Links​

The coaching staff is set:

Just got off the phone with #NJDevils HC Sheldon Keefe. His coaching staff for the 2025-26 season is set.

Brad Shaw replaces Ryan McGill, working with defense & PK. Sergei Brylin will be on the bench, filling Chris Taylor's role. Jeremy Colliton & Dave Rogalski are returning.

— Kristy Flannery (@InStilettos_NHL) August 27, 2025

The Devils will be featured in 13 exclusive nationally broadcasted games this season. Those games listed here: [Devils NHL]

Jack and Luke Hughes on the NHL Network’s list of the top 25 players born this century: [Devils NHL]

"[Luke Hughes] can do everything… I think this is an awesome number one defenseman for a franchise." – @Rupper17 @TonyLuftman | @patmaroon | @NJDevils | #NHLTonight https://t.co/E3G2l05JLA pic.twitter.com/bM2ZCGhMJI

— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 28, 2025

Jack and Luke doing some Team USA media:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Team USA (@teamusa)

Hockey Links​

Connor McDavid on re-signing in Edmonton: “I have every intention to win in Edmonton. It’s my only focus, maybe next to winning the (Olympic) gold medal with Canada. But it is my intention to win there.” [The Athletic ($)] [NHL.com] [Sportsnet]

It has been … a slow offseason:

There hasn't been any trades in the NHL since July 25th. There were 8 trades during August of last year, plus the Dylan Holloway/Philip Broberg offer sheets.

— NHL Rosters (@NHL_Rosters) August 28, 2025

Mitch Marner on leaving Toronto: “The market’s very passionate. They love the team. I mean, I know it. I was born and raised there. I’ve been a part of the Leafs Nation for a long time. But, yeah, when your family’s safety comes into question, especially having a new son, I don’t think it’s acceptable.” [TSN]

Feel free to discuss these and any other hockey-related stories in the comments below.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/d...in-the-details-8-29-25-coaching-staff-edition

 

[New Jersey Devils]

On Luke Hughes, Extensions, and Internal Caps

The Luke Hughes contract extension discussion seems to have heated up over the past week, with Tom Fitzgerald speaking to RG.org about the issue. This came after Ryan Novozinsky postulated that Luke Hughes was taking long to sign because his camp must want his contract to align with his brother’s, meaning he would be seeking a five-year deal. To me, it seems a bit more like conjecture (i.e. it is taking a long time so it must be for this reason) than a specifically-sourced report, but that is where we are. In his interview with RG.org, Fitzgerald did not talk about term, but only about what makes sense with the cap and comparative contracts. Specifically, James Murphy quoted Fitzgerald responding to a question about players not wanting to get locked into lower cap hits down the line with a fast-rising cap ceiling:

Well, yeah, I’m sure that’s the case, but as a team, you can’t ignore the present. The future is laid out for us via the league and what the cap is going to be. And again, you’re just trying to find common ground today that may work down the road for both parties, too, but you need to live in the present, and this is no different. They’re just looking out for Luke’s best interest, but the reality is you still have to stay in the present time and look at, in my opinion, the comps that are there.

To me, that sounds more like the issue is that Pat Brisson, Luke’s agent, is more concerned about his guy only making $7 or 8 million eight years from now, when comparable defenders will probably be making closer to $13, 14, or 15 million. As the NHL has projected the salary cap to be making large jumps over the next three seasons, a “fair deal” under a $95.5 million cap ceiling will quickly turn into a team-friendly deal by 2027-28, when the cap rises to $113.5 million. The NHL has not seen such large-scale cap ceiling increases since the cap was brought into being in 2004. Since 2020-21, the cap had only risen $7.5 million by the 2024-25 season. So, many of the league’s megadeals have not really matured into something more cap-friendly since the pandemic. Say what you will about the certainty or uncertainty of world economics, but professional sports seems to chug along just fine. At the very least, they have gone full steam ahead with these cap increases, and that changes the game a bit. The cap is going to increase more from 2025-26 to 2026-27 than it did from 2020-21 to 2024-25.

What I don’t get about Tom Fitzgerald’s answers is his affirmation of teams having internal caps. As Fitzgerald said, “There’s only one Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers, and Toronto, and then everybody else tries to make money differently.” You might be put off by Fitzgerald saying that, as if it indicates the Devils are currently being cheap, but they are going to be against the cap ceiling when Luke Hughes signs a contract, however long it is. They are about $7 million below the cap right now if you exclude Seamus Casey, who will likely be the corresponding move on the 23-man roster for Hughes. Currently, there are 12 teams within about $2 million of the cap ceiling, including some bad teams like Philadelphia and some mediocre likely non-playoff teams like Boston, Montreal, and the New York Islanders. It will be 13 teams when the Devils re-sign Hughes, and it could be even more if remaining free agents like Jack Roslovic and Matt Grzelcyk sign with teams with between $3 and $6 million remaining in cap space (seven teams). There are eight teams with $10 million or more in cap space, as well, and only one of them (Carolina) is a certain playoff team, though they have signed multiple players to deferred contracts, which means they will be paying more cash to Seth Jarvis and Jackson Blake several years from now that won’t affect their cap situations when said money is paid.

I think that rebuilding teams, like Chicago, San Jose, and Anaheim, are much more certain to have an internal cap than a playoff team. I imagine the Devils had an internal cap about five years ago, when they were in a much poorer state of affairs than they are now. But do I think the New Jersey Devils presently have an internal cap? Going by the fact that they’re going to be a cap-ceiling team this year, and they are, if anything, questioned for having too many people in the front office, it’s a bit of a stretch, and probably more blind fear than anything based in reality. Their front office features Fitzgerald, Brodeur, two AGMs in MacKinnon and Madigan, a senior advisor in Chuck Fletcher, and another advisor in Andy Greene. They also have an eight-person analytics department and a 23-person scouting department. So, they have two fewer people in their scouting department than the New York Rangers and three more scouts than the Boston Bruins. The Rangers also list one person in analytics, while the Bruins have five. The Rangers have one AGM and one hockey operations advisor. The Bruins, like the Devils, have two AGMs, but only one operations advisor. If I were trying to sniff out a bare bones operation, I would expect significant disparities in hiring. The Chicago Blackhawks, for example, only have 14 people in their scouting department.

But I will play along to some extent: maybe the Devils have made some cuts from a financial standpoint. I would not be the first to say that their in-game experience is a bit low-effort, and that their social media presence is a bit weak. My point would be, though: it does not seem to hold the Devils back from running a full hockey operation, or from spending to the cap ceiling. Before I judge them and the league too harshly, I want to know what they do in two years when the cap is $18 million higher than it is this year. Will they still be spending to the cap? Will other teams be spending to the cap? If teams are hesitant to actually go through with raising their expenditures as the league believes it is making enough money to support those cap increases, then I wouldn’t blame any fanbase for calling for their ownerships to sell.

Should the Devils have to worry about that? Harris and Blitzer have their hands in many cookie jars, from the Washington Commanders to the Philadelphia 76ers to the upcoming Philadelphia WNBA team to the Cleveland Guardians. They’ve also invested in MLS teams and European soccer teams — and even in the return of niche sports such as SlamBall. At this point, the Devils are just a speck in the HBSE books. I am sure they want a return on investment to some extent, but the way a competitive team maximizes their revenue in the NHL is by getting to the Stanley Cup Finals and selling merchandise. The Devils already have one of the top-selling jerseys in the league by having Jack Hughes on the roster, so signing Luke Hughes is basically revenue protection, at the very least. His development also happens to be essential to their Stanley Cup hopes.

In terms of what Ryan Novozinsky wrote, though, I would be a bit annoyed if I were Tom Fitzgerald and Pat Brisson was asking for a five-year deal for Luke Hughes. It is uniquely the sort of contract that makes no sense for the team to give out, even if Luke Hughes and Jack Hughes were entirely unrelated. It takes away exactly zero of Luke’s UFA years (since it would take him through his seventh season), putting him in free agency with no protection for the Devils. However, I still think the five-year thing is more conjecture than a sourced report.

From a team perspective, the balance of team protection and more or less aligning the brothers’ contracts would be six years. If the Devils’ front office failed so thoroughly that the brothers wanted to go to a different team by that point, they would lose Jack Hughes for nothing in free agency, but still be able to trade his younger brother. Otherwise, a three-year deal would still leave the team with RFA protection, but Luke would be able to sign a seven-year max extension under a more appropriate cap hit after the cap has risen and he has gotten closer to unrestricted free agency.

If we are then considering Quinn Hughes, though, there is more complication. If Jack and Luke were signed for five years from now (a situation that I do not even expect to play out) and the Devils acquired Quinn in one or two seasons, would he really turn down a long-term deal to stay aligned with his younger brothers? Quinn would be turning 28 in the 2027-28 season, after his current contract expires, so that would really be the prime time for him to sign a seven-year megadeal. With how volatile the game of hockey is, as well, it is not usually considered an amazing idea for a guy to turn down a megadeal when they can get it.

A lot to think about, perhaps. I wouldn’t hate seeing a three-year bridge for Luke Hughes, personally, though I have advocated using deferred salary to give him a long-term extension in the past. A three-year bridge would probably leave them enough cap space to sign Jack Roslovic, who I think would really help the Devils’ third or fourth-line take the next step to being championship-worthy depth. And considering that the Devils would have the opportunity to sign Quinn Hughes in two years, a three-year bridge would not instill very much fear in me, as the NHL GMs repeatedly show that they are bigger talkers than anything in terms of sending offer sheets.

Your Thoughts​

What do you think of the latest on the Luke Hughes contract talks? Are the rumors hot air, or do you think there’s something to them? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/2...2/on-luke-hughes-extensions-and-internal-caps

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Devils in the Details – 9/1/25: Hughes Talk Edition

Here are your links for today:

Devils Links​

Tom Fitzgerald talks about negotiations on a new contract for Luke Hughes: “Eventually, this will get done. The 11th hour is training camp. Right? A lot of times, a lot of the stuff doesn’t get done until the 11th hour. We’re hoping we can get something done here in quick fashion, and both sides are working hard at it; that’s for sure.” [RG]

More Luke Hughes talk:

Here's the latest I've got on the #NJDevils-Luke Hughes talks.https://t.co/Glh74GKn1q

— Ryan Novozinsky (@ryannovoNHL) August 29, 2025

“While there is still a month and a half to clear the necessary cap space to A) fit in Luke Hughes’ extension and B) maybe acquire another top-nine forward, the pressure will only ratchet up once rookies begin reporting for camp on Sept. 10. General manager Tom Fitzgerald could punt a cap-clearing move until later in the regular season, but that’s probably not in everyone’s best interest.” [Devils on the Rush]

Congrats to Dougie:

Hockey Player
Admin
Professor
Mascot
HUSBAND

Congrats to Dougie and Bree! pic.twitter.com/9DDsKuqkA7

— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) August 30, 2025

Hockey Links​

Looks like Carey Price’s contract will be on the move:

Carey Price's contract should be traded this upcoming week, with sources suggesting San Jose, Chicago or Pittsburgh as destinations.

The Canadiens are trading Price's contract to open themselves to the possibility of another trade.

Timing on that is TBD. https://t.co/xr4Pjy0YyW

— Marco D'Amico (@mndamico) August 31, 2025

“(Patrick) Kane, who didn’t make the roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off earlier this year, wasn’t here to be a charity legacy inclusion or mentor to the younger players. He knows the competition will be furious, but plans to do whatever he can to have a great start this season to convince USA Hockey management to select him for his third Olympics and fourth best-on-best tournament.” [The Athletic ($)]

“Now that NBA player Jeremy Lin has retired. Which NHL player had the best ‘Linsanity’ run?” [r/hockey]

Feel free to discuss these and any other hockey-related stories in the comments below.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/d...ils-in-the-details-9-1-25-hughes-talk-edition

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Working On Labor Day; The New Jersey Devils And The Value Of Working On Your Craft

Happy Labor Day to you and yours. I hope the unofficial end of summer treats you well, and the day off from work (for some of you, anyway) has been spent having fun.

Labor Day is a holiday meant to celebrate the working American, the average Joe and Jane who puts in a hard day’s work to provide for themselves and their loved ones. Even though the majority of the New Jersey Devils’ roster is not American, we can still appreciate the labor they’ve put in to become better hockey players and (hopefully) help this team compete for a championship.

On this Labor Day, let us celebrate the work Devils players have put in recently. Last season, each player on the Devils showed improvement or development in one aspect of their game or another. Not including the new players, here are some of the most notable examples of hard work leading to improvement for every key player on the roster:

Nico Hischier: Sharpshooting

The Devils’ captain scored a career-high 35 goals in 2024-25. Don’t look now, but Hischier is slowly becoming one of the league’s premier sharpshooters. Through the first six seasons of his career, Hischier’s shooting percentage sat at 11.9%. In year seven, 2023-24, Hischier shot 14.8%, and last year was his best work yet, shooting the lights out at 18.7%. This was good for 24th in the league, one slot ahead of the greatest goal-scorer of all time, Alex Ovechkin. Perhaps Hischier won’t shoot close to 19% again, but he’s shown clear improvement in this area of his game not just last year, but over the past two seasons.

Jack Hughes: Shutdown Ability

Hughes has been an elite offensive player for some time now. And while his defensive game was never abysmal, there was clearly room for growth in this area. This past season, he grew up big time. Thanks to Sheldon Keefe, Hughes took a quantum leap forward in his defensive ability. Evolving Hockey measures his defensive impacts as almost literally off the charts:

Meanwhile, Hockey Stat Cards had Hughes in roughly the 84th percentile in defensive value in 2024-25. And according to Natural Stat Trick, Hughes posted the second-lowest 5-on-5 Expected Goals Against per 60 of his career, behind only the funky 2021 Covid-shortened season. If Hughes’ newfound defensive ability is here to stay, then I feel comfortable putting him on Hart Trophy watch.

Jesper Bratt: Laying The Smackdown

Everyone knows the hallmarks of Bratt’s game: Elite skating ability (specifically his otherworldly edgework), terrific playmaking instincts, and wonderful puck skills. But last offseason, apparently he worked hard on becoming a much angrier human. Bratt set a career-high in hits with 96, shattering his previous career-high of 66 that he set the year before. Over the last two seasons, Bratt has been playing with much more of an edge, and while no one will confuse him for Brendan Shanahan, he’s proving that he knows what it takes to play the physical brand of hockey a lot of people love.

Timo Meier: Shooting Analytics

Meier was brought in to be an elite goal-scorer. Thus far in his Devils career, he’s filled the net well (54 goals in his two full seasons in New Jersey), but not to the level he was expected to. After a 2023-24 that saw him battle a few different injuries, we did see some of his shooting metrics tick back up even if his raw goal total went slightly down. According to NHL Edge, in 2023-24, Meier was in the 89th percentile in shots on goal and the 65th percentile in top shot speed. Last season, he upped those numbers to 96th and 81st respectively. I know we keep waiting for the Meier breakout and it keeps not happening, but if he can maintain these gains, I think we finally see the 40-goal season we all want from Meier.

Dawson Mercer: Sacrificing The Body

There are some players for which this exercise is easy, and some for which this is hard. Mercer is firmly in the latter camp, as he once again failed to reach the heights of his sophomore season. With two years of stagnant development, I’m certainly not counting Mercer out, but the dream of him becoming a strong top-line player is fading. Even still, he’s a useful player as is, and one area that Mercer put work in this past season was blocking shots. According to Natural Stat Trick, Mercer registered a Shots Blocked/60 rate of 2.16, the highest of his career. It feels to me like Mercer should be a much stronger defensive player than he is, but while he looks the part, he’s never had strong defensive impacts. But if he continues to work hard to keep pucks away from his own net, that would be a step in the right direction.

Ondrej Palat: The Need For Speed

Speaking of players for which this exercise is harder than others, say hello to Mr. Palat. He’s a hard-worker and a leader, but clearly his best playing days are well behind him and most Devils fans want him gone. Still, even for someone like Palat we can find improvement in certain areas. Believe it or not, one of them is skating ability. Per NHL Edge, In 2023-24, Palat was near the bottom quarter of the league in top skating speed. NHL Edge does not list the specific percentile for any number below 50% (probably to not embarrass the players), so I can’t give you a precise percentile for this. But using the eye test, Palat appears very close to the 25th percentile, a poor number. Last season, Palat actually took a big leap in this category. Granted, he’s still listed as “Below 50th” in percentile, but looking at the table, he appears very close to average, probably around the 47th or 48th percentile. It’s still not great, but hey it’s a notable improvement for the hard-working Palat.

Stefan Noesen: Pucks On Net!

It was a banner year for Noesen in the goal-scoring department. He set a new career-high with 22 goals, eight more than his previous career high that he set in 2023-24 with Carolina. Was this accomplished through a fluky run of good shooting luck? Not really. While his 13.3% shooting percentage was a career-best, it was not notably higher than in 2023-24 when he shot 12.6%. What made the big difference was Noesen also posting a career-high in shots on goal with 165. Noesen will never be a premier offensive player or a shot machine. But it is encouraging that he found another level as far as getting pucks on net in 2024-25.

Cody Glass: Faceoffs

Cody Glass has the potential to be an elite shutdown center. His defensive impacts are magnificent, even if he doesn’t usually take on the opposition’s best players. But while he’s a strong defender, one part of his game that he’s struggled with is faceoffs. Obviously faceoffs are a small part of the game, but we all know there are certain draws over the course of any game that are more important than others. The first faceoff during a penalty kill, the defensive zone draw while defending a one-goal lead in the final minute of regulation…you get the idea. Prior to 2024-25, Glass had never been above breakeven on faceoffs in any season of his career, averaging 46.5% at the dot. But last year, Glass finally got his head above water, winning 51.2% of his faceoffs. Sadly the Devils didn’t benefit from this improvement though, as while Glass won draws at a 52.7% clip with the Penguins, he fell to 47.4% after coming over to New Jersey. Still, the season as a whole was a step forward. If Glass can continue to work on his faceoff craft, he could become a real weapon on draws.

Paul Cotter: Defense, Defense, Defense

Call it the Sheldon Keefe effect, call it a change of scenery, call it sheltered deployment. Call it what you will, but Cotter had the best defensive season of his career in 2024-25. Per Natural Stat Trick, Cotter set career-best marks in Corsi Against per 60, Shots Against per 60, Scoring Chances Against per 60, and Expected Goals Against per 60. Most of these are career-bests by a lot, too. Over the course of the season, we grew to learn Cotter’s abilities and limitations, and while I certainly wouldn’t call him a defensive ace, he put the work in to become a much better defensive player than he was in Vegas.

Dougie Hamilton: Penalties

Hamilton is another player that is hard to find improvement for. I cut Hamilton more slack than players like Palat and Mercer though, as he was returning from a major injury in the season prior. But it’s not impossible to find areas in which Hamilton worked hard to improve, and one of them is actually pretty significant: Penalties drawn and taken. For all he does well, Hamilton unfortunately takes a lot of penalties. In 2024-25, however, Hamilton only logged 30 penalties in minutes in 64 games. In his last full season before that, 2022-23, Hamilton sat for 50 PIMs, which is more than the 82-game pace Hamilton posted this past season. And if that wasn’t enough, Hamilton actually did a really good job drawing penalties too. According to Natural Stat Trick, Hamilton registered a Penalties Drawn per 60 rate of 0.42, by FAR his best as a Devil, and third-best in his career behind 2014-15 and 2018-19. Hamilton is still an elite power play quarterback, so if he can continue to stay out of the box himself and put opposing players in the box more, that would go a long way toward setting his team up for success.

Jonas Siegenthaler: Returning to Form

This isn’t so much an improvement as it is a bounce back, but after a down 2023-24, Siegenthaler worked hard to regain his status as an elite shutdown defenseman. Hockey Stat Cards had him in the 99th percentile in defensive impact last season. Yes, 99th. Unfortunately it was another year in which Siegenthaler could not play a full schedule due to injury, but over his 55 games played, almost nobody shut down opponents better than Siegenthaler. If he can manage to stay healthy this season, the Devils will have the luxury of deploying one of the game’s premier stoppers in 2025-26.

Luke Hughes: Spreading The Wealth

Putting aside his – at the time of this writing, anyway – contract standoff with the Devils’ front office, I think it’s safe to say Devils fans are excited to see what the youngest Hughes can do in his third full season. He’s not a star defenseman yet, but the skillset and potential are there. So long as he keeps working hard to develop, he should get there eventually. One notable part of his game we did see improvement in was his ability to generate assists. In 2023-24, Hughes posted 38 assists in 82 games. Last year, he played in 11 fewer contests, but only registered one fewer assist, 37 total. According to Natural Stat Trick, Hughes upped his Assists per 60 rate from 0.57 in 23-24 to 0.89 in 24-25. And perhaps more importantly, his Primary Assists per 60 more than doubled from 0.22 to 0.56. Again, Hughes still has things to work on to reach true stardom, and while I think most of us are focusing on his defense as an area that he has improved a lot and should continue to improve, his ability to generate offense is another part of his game that Hughes has not reached his full potential in. If he continues to grow in this regard, it’s over for everybody.

Brett Pesce: Proving He Doesn’t Need A System

This is perhaps a bit of a random one, but hear me out. 2024-25 was not only Pesce’s first season in New Jersey, it was also his first season outside of Carolina. While he did play a couple years prior to Rod Brind’Amour’s arrival to coach the team, Pesce spent the majority of his career in the Hurricanes’ vaunted system. For years, Pesce looked like a high-quality top-four defenseman playing under Brind’Amour, but the question for any player exiting a team like that is if they really are that good, or if the system was hiding their weaknesses and propping them up. While I’m not saying Pesce was a Norris Trophy candidate in his first season with the Devils, he showed he wasn’t just a product of the system. He teamed with Luke Hughes to form a terrific pairing, one where Pesce served as the defensive conscience while Hughes had a little more room to roam offensively. Again, Pesce wasn’t an elite defender, and his pairing with Hughes had a few issues, but it was great to see Pesce work hard to prove he wasn’t just a product of Brind’Amour’s system in Carolina.

Johnny Kovacevic: The Big Breakout

This one is difficult and easy all at once. It’s difficult in the sense that it’s hard to pinpoint one specific thing Kovacevic improved on the most. But it’s easy in that…he improved in just about EVERY aspect, enjoying a true breakout campaign. Of all the players on New Jersey’s roster last season, I would argue that Kovacevic was the biggest surprise. The only player I can see challenging him for that title is Noesen, but I would still give the nod to Kovacevic. Coming over in an afterthought of a trade with Montreal in the summer of 2024, Kovacevic was penciled in as the seventh (or lower) defenseman in the organization. But offseason injuries to Pesce and Hughes opened the door to playing time, and Kovacevic never looked back. He teamed with Siegenthaler to form arguably the best shutdown pairing in the entire league. According to Moneypuck, among defense pairings with at least 500 minutes together, Kovacevic and Siegenthaler had the lowest xGA/60 of any pair, smothering opponents to the tune of 1.82 xGA/60. Yes a lot of that is because of Siegenthaler, but Kovacevic deserves plenty of credit too. If he can prove last year’s breakout wasn’t a fluke, Tom Fitzgerald can be proud that he unearthed another gem.

Brenden Dillon: Establishing a Culture

Maybe you think I’m reaching with this one, and it’s true that Dillon did not have the best year on the ice for New Jersey, so it’s difficult to find improvements. But from everything we hear about the man, Dillon is a locker room leader and an overall good dude. I know we can say the same thing about Palat and we all want him gone, but Dillon’s contract isn’t nearly as egregious so we can give him a little bit of a pass. In any case, establishing yourself as a leader and inspiring your teammates to follow you is hard to do for anybody, let alone someone in their first season with a new club. Dillon quickly helped establish a culture of hard work and playing “the right way”. Even though I personally am a big believer in analytics, and Dillon’s analytical profile left a lot to be desired in 2024-25, I appreciate what he seemingly did for the team off the ice. Heck, even on the ice he was known for playing extremely hard and serving as an intimidating presence, so it’s not like it was all doom and gloom when the games were actually played either. Dillon worked hard to help his teammates buy into a hard-working, team-first culture. Salute to him for that.

Simon Nemec: Overcoming Adversity

We’ve talked about Nemec’s 2024-25 season to death in these parts, so I won’t belabor the point. I’ll just say that through all the trials and tribulations, through all the injuries and on-ice struggles and crises of confidence, Nemec overcame all of that in the end and finished the year with his best work yet. His overtime goal in game three against Carolina was arguably the best part of the entire New Jersey Devils season. Even beyond that goal, Nemec stepped into the lineup after the raft of injuries to the blueline and not only survived, he thrived. It was a grind of a season for Nemec, but he worked hard to regain his form. Here’s hoping the end of his campaign is indicative of what his 2025-26 will bring.

Seamus Casey: American Sniper

Like Hischier, Casey also enjoyed a terrific season shooting the puck. Granted, Casey only played in 14 games, but his 33.3% shooting percentage was out of this world. Yes I know, it was fluky and unsustainable. But Casey clearly has a good shot, even if he’s not going to turn into the modern day Paul Coffey. If he continues to work hard on his shot, he could still develop into an offensive weapon from the blue line.

Jacob Markstrom: Giving His Team A Chance To Win

After years and years of poor goalie play outside of 2022-23, Markstrom helped stabilize the crease for New Jersey last season. He started very strong, but then suffered an injury in January and upon his return in March, he struggled for a while before regaining his form toward the end of the regular season and into the playoffs. But even with that poor stretch beginning in March, Markstrom usually gave his team a chance to win. Hockey Reference has a goalie stat called Quality Starts. Sort of like the baseball equivalent of the stat, it measures how often a goalie puts up, well, a quality start, at least in the way Hockey Reference defines “quality”. According to the website, the league average goalie has a Quality Start rate of 53%. Markstrom came in at 59.2%, well above average. This was an improvement over his past two seasons in Calgary as well, so Markstrom took a step forward in this regard. He’s getting up there in years, but hopefully Markstrom has at least one more quality season to provide.

Jake Allen: …Everything

Much like Kovacevic, Allen just gave us a season in which he improved in just about every facet of his game. He was everything New Jersey could have asked for in a backup goalie, posting a .906 save percentage and recording four shutouts in 31 games played, a terrific rate. According to Natural Stat Trick, Allen’s 5.10 Goals Saved Above Expected was the 24th-highest in the league. Markstrom was the starter, but Allen was a terrific 1B for the Devils in 2024-25. Now that he’s signed long-term, hopefully we can look forward to more quality goalie play from Allen for years to come.

Your Take​

This was a fun exercise to do. As I mentioned in a couple sections up top, some of these players made it easy, and some made it difficult. But as you can see, we can find areas where hard work led to improvement for every player on the roster. Hopefully next year brings another wave of improvements for the Devils as well.

What do you make of these improvements? Did any of these surprise you? Can you think of other areas of improvement for any player? What do you want to see improved on the most from certain players? As always, thanks for reading!

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/d...devils-and-the-value-of-working-on-your-craft

 

[New Jersey Devils]

New Jersey Devils Prospect Update: Now or Never Edition

This week the prospect update looks at three players in the system who need to show something more this season.

Tyler Brennan​

Entering his third and final season on his ELC, goaltender Tyler Brennan has struggled to gain traction playing exclusively for the Adirondack Thunder since his signing despite a few emergency call-ups as a back up with no game action.

The struggles began almost immediately for Brennan in a injury-riddled first professional season that saw the netminder suit up for only 13 games. The 6’4” goaltender never fully regained his form last season, finishing the year 9-16-3 with a 3.48 GAA and .878 SV% in 29 appearances. Although earning more starts, platooning goaltender Jeremy Brodeur outshined Brennan in net with a 11-11-1 record, 2.89 GAA and .905 SV% earning him a one-way contract to Utica for this upcoming season.

The Utica net may be overcrowded this season with the arrival of Jakub Malek, depending on whether or not Nico Daws clears waivers. So, opportunities for Tyler Brennan may be few and far between. One thing is for certain. If the 21-year-old netminder wants to stay in the Devils system after his ELC expires, then he must first impress in net for the Thunder. This upcoming season will be a big test for him.

Josh Filmon​

Josh Filmon has been an intriguing prospect for so long, it is hard to remember the winger is only 21-years-old. Filmon rocketed up the depth chart after a 47 goal season for Swift Current in 2023-24. Concerns crept in soon after as Filmon followed up that magical year with a 27 goal effort for the same WHL team, though improved playmaking increased his assists from 28 to 40, making up some of the point deficit.

Last season Josh Filmon made the permanent leap to professional hockey and struggled for much of the season, earning a demotion to Adirondack after 12 pointless games. After some initial setbacks for the Thunder, Filmon found his game mid season, leading the team as the Thunder’s only 20 goal scorer. Coaches even praised Filmon’s growth throughout the year.

So, all is not lost for Josh Filmon. A bounce back is certainly likely, but how far Filmon rises may depend on how much muscle the young winger can pack onto his wiry frame. For this upcoming season, establishing himself as a Utica regular, who contributes offensively would be an important step in his development.

Samu Salminen​

Entering his senior year for the University of Denver, Samu Salminen’s future with the franchise will be decided one way or another by the end of next summer. After two 17 point seasons for the University of Connecticut, Salminen improved to 10 goals and 28 points after a transfer last year, playing mostly center. It was a big step.

The Devils could use more center prospects on the Comets and Salminen would seem to fit that bill, but has not signed yet. Wherever Salminen ends up after this upcoming season, this will be a pivotal year for the center hoping to earn an ELC. The prospect update wishes him the best of luck.

Your Take​

Post your comments below.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/p...y-devils-prospect-update-now-or-never-edition

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Can Brad Shaw Take the Devils To Another Level Defensively?

Earlier this offseason, the New Jersey Devils announced the hiring of Brad Shaw as an assistant coach, taking over defensive responsibilities from Ryan McGill.

It’s an interesting hire for a variety of reasons, but perhaps one of the biggest reasons is that the 2024-25 Devils already made big strides defensively as a team without Shaw. In the first year of the Sheldon Keefe era, the Devils went from allowing 281 goals as a team in 2023-24 to 220 last season, shaving 61 goals off of that total. That mark was good for 5th best in the league last season. The Devils also took a leap with their penalty kill going from the 10th ranked unit to the 2nd ranked unit. In short, defense was one of the strengths of last year’s team.

Part of the credit for that turnaround can simply go to having better goaltending than the year before, as Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen combined for 21.8 goals saved above expected. Part of the credit also goes towards having a better blueline overall than the previous season. I think it would also be appropriate to credit the players for buying into Sheldon Keefe’s system right off the bat in Year 1 and playing a more defensively responsible brand of hockey than what we saw under the previous regime. But I can also understand Tom Fitzgerald and Sheldon Keefe taking a step back after last season and while being pleased with said improvements, wanting to see if they could take this to another level.

It’s not a coincidence that the perennial playoff teams in this league are the ones that consistently keep the puck out of their own net. Now, there are different ways to achieve the same goal. Winnipeg is a team that employs the best goaltender on the planet, at least until the playoff games start. Teams like Vegas, Florida, and Tampa Bay have built perennial playoff teams off of a foundation of strong defensive play. A team like Carolina might not have the best goaltending but they make up for it with their forecheck and their dedication to playing their system. The Devils might have made the playoffs in two of the last three seasons, but they’re still in the process of building the framework of having that level of consistency year in and year out.

Enter Brad Shaw and in terms of assistant coaches, he has one of the more impressive resumes out there. A John Tortorella disciple, Shaw has built a reputation for turning promising young defensemen into great players and making notoriously criticized defensemen like Rasmus Ristolainen passable. From Alex Pietrangelo and Colton Parayko in St. Louis, to Zach Werenski and Seth Jones in Columbus, to Quinn Hughes for a year in Vancouver and to Travis Sanheim in Philadelphia, Shaw has had a direct hand in helping these players develop and reach their potential.

It’s fortunate timing that Shaw was available after the Flyers passed him over for their head coaching vacancy, going with a more experienced head coach in Rick Tocchet. I say fortunate because the Devils currently have two former high lottery picks on their NHL blueline in Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec. They’ll likely have another lottery pick joining them in the next year or so if and when Anton Silayev comes over from the KHL. Add in an interesting mix with two defensive defensemen who already have good reputations in that aspect of their game in Brett Pesce and Jonas Siegenthaler, another young defenseman trying to establish himself as an NHL regular in Seamus Casey, and experienced veterans like Dougie Hamilton, Brenden Dillon, and Johnathan Kovacevic, and it’ll be interesting to see what Shaw can do with this group as a collective whole.

Critics might be quick to point to the Flyers and their lack of ability to keep the puck out of the net the last few years despite Tortorella and Shaw’s tutelage. But I think its important to remember that this is a Flyers team that has been very open about the fact they’ve been in a rebuild the last few years. They’re a team that has worked in a variety of younger players as they’ve turned over their roster, to varying results. This is also a Flyers team that hasn’t had any quality goaltending the last few years aside from what Carter Hart provided when he was in Philadelphia, and he is no longer on the team. I won’t go as far as to say recent results don’t matter, just maybe take them with a grain of salt. And even then, the Flyers went from surrendering 294 goals the year before Shaw arrived to 276, 231, and 283 the three years he was there. The one year the Flyers managed to keep the puck out of the net was the year they managed to stick around in the playoff race for the majority of the 2023-24 season until they fell out of the race in the final weeks of the season. While Tortorella deserves credit for squeezing every point he can out of a flawed Flyers roster that, frankly, might have 1/3 of the talent the Devils have had, it should be mentioned that Shaw had a hand in that ‘success’, for lack of a better term, as well.

Still, there’s more to being good defensively than having good individual players. Florida is an example of a team that plays great team defense, regardless of personnel on the ice. But that does get lost in the shuffle a little bit because being good defensively doesn’t quite pop visually like Florida’s overwhelming physicality and forecheck might.

I’m not going to pretend to be an expert in X’s and O’s and what Shaw will specifically bring to the table in terms of positioning, stick work, shutting down passing lanes, and using the body to make plays defensively. But I do think there’s a difference between being a good defensive team and being a championship-caliber defensive team, and while the Devils made improvements, they’re not quite on that Panthers level of playing elite-level team defense. I think that’s that next step that Fitzgerald and Keefe are trying to get out of this group and part of the reason why they made the change from McGill to Shaw.

Last year’s Devils showed flashes of brilliant defensive play. They had a stretch last December where they were dominant defensively and picked up wins over the Kings, Rangers, Blackhawks, and Penguins. They were still good defensively even when everything else regressed after the Christmas break, but I’d be hard pressed to say the Devils reached the levels of what they showed during that pre-Christmas stretch. I think if one were to ask Keefe, he’d want to see more consistency in that area.

But like I just said, there’s a difference between that and being smothering defensively in the most important games. There’s a difference between that and being relentless to win those 50/50 puck battles. There’s a difference between that and outskating the other team to spots on the ice.

Shaw’s defenses in St. Louis were excellent, but the Blues also didn’t breakthrough and win a championship until after he left to join Tortorella in Columbus. I don’t know how much I should blame Shaw, an assistant coach, for St. Louis’s inability to break through against the Blackhawks and Kings in the early 2010s when those teams were winning championships, but its not like Shaw has had zero success either. The Blues did win some playoff series under his watch. Shaw was a part of Columbus pulling off one of the greatest upsets in playoff history with a first round sweep of the Lightning in 2019. The Blue Jackets did beat the Toronto Maple Leafs in the bubble. I know its easy to dunk on the Maple Leafs for losing a series, given their track record, but it did happen.

Let’s not get things twisted. Shaw’s top priority should be to find a way to help Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec gain additional levels to their game, given their importance to the franchise long-term. But at some point, the Devils are going to get into a best-of-seven playoff series and they’re going to have to raise their game defensively to keep the opposition off of the scoreboard and give the Devils a chance to win. Time will tell whether or not Shaw will be able to get the team, collectively, to achieve that. Given his history elsewhere and his ability to work with all sorts of defensemen with varying skill sets, I think an argument could be made that he was the most important addition the Devils made this offseason.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/2...-take-the-devils-to-another-level-defensively

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Could There be Some Shuffling of the New Jersey Devils Defense Pairs?

Improvement is the name of the game for the New Jersey Devils in 2025-26. For a team that has its window of competitiveness open, finishing third in the Metropolitan Division, seventh in the Eastern Conference and 16th in the league (with a Western Conference team that missed the playoffs ahead of them in points) is a failure of a season. Fading out in five games in the first round only adds to the narrative that 2024-25 was unsuccessful. While the forward group has been adjusted and augmented (with some work to still to be done in training camp), the defense remains pretty much untouched.

Sure, maybe there’s argument to be had among fans as to whether Simon Nemec or Seamus Casey should be playing in the last every night spot with Johnny Kovacevic likely to start the season on injured reserve. There could even be some discussion as to who should be the seventh defender. For the most part however, once the team gets Luke Hughes re-signed to a new deal, the Devils defense of 2025-26 won’t be radically different from the defense of 2024-25. But could the team change up how they deploy the players involved?

Since both Hughes and Brett Pesce returned to action from injury in October of last year, the team’s pairings have been mostly consistent aside from when half of them went down injured in the latter parts of the campaign. Typically Hughes and Pesce were together, as were Dougie Hamilton and Brenden Dillon while Jonas Siegenthaler and Kovacevic also spent a large chunk of minutes together. Hughes and Pesce were the clear cut first pair by season’s end, with each logging over a minute more per game than any other defender. While most would probably see Hamilton and Dillon as the second pair based on Dougie’s past role, they were really more of the third, as Dillon, even with penalty kill time, averaged a full minute less ice per game than Siegs, Dougie and Kovacevic.

The defense wasn’t a problem per se, but maybe a shuffle could maximize their usage and help to propel the team even further. I’m not a big proponent of plus/minus, as it only paints part of a picture rather than a full one, but Hughes and Pesce were the two regulars (Nemec and Brian Dumoulin are not counted as regulars, as both appeared in less than 30 games) who were minuses overall for the regular season. While the players who are frequently on the ice (especially in late game/empty net situations) are more likely to see goals against them, you really want your first pair to be pushing play nightly rather than breaking even, which is essentially what Hughes/Pesce did. So what can be done to get said maximizing?

Well, without Kovacevic, it’s not easy to say. If we were to go off of last season, we’d probably be looking at Hughes/Pesce, Dillon/Hamilton and Siegenthaler/Nemec to start things off. Bumping Dougie back up top to play with Luke would lead to an offensive focused top pair, but I’m not sure everyone is ready for the defensive adventures that could result from it. Additionally, I think that Dillon/Pesce wouldn’t be a great solution either, as they could probably move the puck in the right direction, but offense could become a struggle. Pesce isn’t bad offensively, but it’ not what he’s known for and anytime Dillon puts up points, it’s just an added bonus at this stage.

If the Devils wanted to try something new, (and don’t want to just rearrange pairings as I suggested previously) I could see this being an attempted rollout:

Siegenthaler – Hamilton

Hughes – Pesce

Dillon – Nemec

While this leaves one pair intact, it bumps them down in terms of responsibility, and could free them up for some more advantageous matchups. Hamilton is no stranger to big minutes, and Siegs was such an integral piece on the back last season that he wound up playing big minutes right away coming back from an injury even though part of it was out of necessity. Dougie isn’t completely inept in his own end (despite how some see it) and with Jonas as the solidifying force, this could be a change that keeps the Devils moving forward and scoring more. Dillon has lost a step from his prime, but in a reduced role with Nemec, it could be beneficial for both. Nemec needs a more defensive focused partner right now even if the goal/hope is he grows into a strong two way defender. If Dillon falls off more, the team might have to swing a trade or hope that one of the three young lefty prospects (Topias Vilen, Jeremy Hanzel or Ethan Edwards) are ready enough that they can step in with Dillon getting demoted to press box/fill in duty. Before anyone asks, no Nemec/Casey should not be an option.

The Devils will be doing all they can this season to try and replicate the regular season of 2022-23 rather than 2023-24 or 2024-25 with the goal being to go further in the playoffs than they have in over a decade. While the forward depth will be responsible for putting in more points than last year, the defense also bears some responsibility to supplement the stars. I do believe the Devils have a group that can accomplish this. But it all will depend on how they are paired and how they are used throughout the season.

What are your thoughts on the Devils defense situation; do you believe they need to shuffle up who is on which pair? Are you more of the mindset that adjusting the order as I discussed roughly two months ago is the better solution? Do you think we see a young defender make the roster as a regular over a player like Dillon? Or do you think Sheldon Keefe stays status quo with his defense minus Kovacevic? Leave any and all comments down below and thanks as always for reading!

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/2...ffling-of-the-new-jersey-devils-defense-pairs

 

[New Jersey Devils]

Devils in the Details – 9/4/25: CBA Nuggets Edition

Here are your links for today:

Devils Links​

What’s going on with the Luke Hughes deal? “A trade must happen. However, over the last calendar month, and then some, there has yet to be a transaction of significance across the entire NHL. Suffice to say, this will get done. It’s a matter of when, not if. There are just a few dominos that are going to have to fall first. Whereas the holdup on an agreement appears to be term, it’s more likely that Hughes and Brisson are trying to maximize the payout on a three or eight-year contract.” [New Jersey Hockey Now]

It’s starting to get real:

#NJDevils Arseni Gritsyuk just met with fellow Russian Evgenii Dadonov for the first time.

(: Gritsyuk / Telegram) pic.twitter.com/63tanpbCbK

— Daniel Amoia (@daniel_amoia) September 3, 2025

An interview with Nico Hischier (and summary of said interview) on the recent European player media tour: [r/Devils]

Hockey Links​

Some interesting CBA nuggets:

Sources: The #NHL and #NHLPA have agreed to a rolling implementation schedule for CBA changes.

Among them: the new playoff salary cap system will come into effect *this season* for the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) September 2, 2025

Players will have until Sept. 15, 2026 to sign deals with current structure (term, signing bonus, variability). All deals signed after Sept. 16, 2026 will be subject to new CBA.

Also: Changes to player dress code and players' ability to endorse wine/spirits begins immediately.

— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) September 2, 2025

Quinn Hughes: “One thing I’m really good at — or have gotten good at — is I’m very present. I can’t even sign for another year, so there’s nothing I can do. As far as the noise (about his future), I can handle the noise. That’s why I’m the captain of the team, because I can handle these things and I can play at an elite level and it doesn’t matter what’s going on around me.” [Sportsnet]

Oilers GM Stan Bowman on Connor McDavid negotiations: “You have to approach Connor differently than anyone else because he is different than anyone else. He’s the best player in the world and, as a result, has earned the right to handle this the way he feels right to handle it.” [The Athletic ($)]

A ranking of the top 50 forwards in the NHL: [Daily Faceoff]

Feel free to discuss these and any other hockey-related stories in the comments below.

Source: https://www.allaboutthejersey.com/d...ils-in-the-details-9-4-25-cba-nuggets-edition