2023-24
Record: 38-39-5 81pts (7th in Metropolitan Division)
Playoffs: Did Not Qualify
Key Losses
Lindsey Ruff (Coach/Fired), John Marino, Kevin Bahl, Alexander Holtz, Brendan Smith, Tomas Nosek, Akira Schmid
Key Additions
Jacob Markstrom, Brett Pesce, Brendan Dillon, Stefan Noesen, Tomas Tatar, Paul Cotter, Sheldon Keefe (Head Coach)
2024-25 Preview
After missing the playoffs last year to injuries, inconsistent plays, and a lack of a capable starting goaltending tandem…the New Jersey Devils looks to make it back to the Stanley Cup playoffs with hopes of being a championship contender as they were 2022-23 season. GM Tom Fitzgerald sure was busy and active this offseason correcting a lot of the issues that plagued the Devils last season. Let’s take a quick look back at the off-season moves and what the current roster entails.
Off-season Moves
The biggest moved that kicked off the busy offseason (actually during the Stanley Cup playoffs) was acquiring goalie Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames. It’s no secret this move was going to happen as the Devils tried acquiring him at the trade deadline but couldn’t get the deal past the finish line until after the regular season. Markstrom will definitely be the number one guy in between the pipes with Jake Allen as his serviceable and capable backup.
On day one of free agency, the Devils went out and signed Brett Pesce away from the Carolina Hurricanes as well as Brendan Dillon of the Winnipeg Jets. These moves help on the backend as Pesce is an upgrade on Marino. While Dillon brings back that rugged and physical defenseman they lacked once Ryan Graves departed for the Pittsburgh Penguins. New Jersey also added familiar faces in Stefan Noesen and Tomas Tatar in free agency, while the Devils also acquired in a trade from the Vegas Golden Knights Paul Cotter for the middle and bottom six forwards group. They should add an edge, scoring depth, and tough to play against mentality for their line(s).
Returning Players
The Devils return with a solid and highly skilled core group of offensive players that features Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt, Dougie Hamilton, & Dawson Mercer. Hamilton was sorely missed as he was injured most of the year with a torn pectoral muscle. Him coming back healthy will be huge as he plays critical minutes on the top pair at 5on5, power play, & on the penalty kill. You could tell New Jersey’s PowerPlay took a dip without him firing pucks from the blue line. Health overall was a problem besides just Hamilton. Jack Hughes definitely missed some chunks of games as well. When healthy, these young skilled Devils can stack up against the NHL’s elite teams.
I look forward to continue to see growth in Jesper Brett’s game as he’s improved each year since he’s been in the league. He was definitely the MVP of the Devils last year for sure leading the team in scoring. As for the rest of the group, I’d like to see more from the following…Timo Meier & Ondrej Palat. Meier in particular needs to step up his game and produce like how he did in San Jose being a 40 goal scorer considering he’s being paid a kings ransom to score goals. More goals from Meier, the better for him and everyone. While I do value Ondrej Palat’s leadership and experience of winning when he was in Tampa, I’d like to see him chip in a little bit more offensively. The bottom six looks good
Projected Lines
Forwards
(LW) Tomas Tatar- (C) Nico Hischier-Jesper Bratt (RW)
(LW) Timo Meier- (C) Jack Hughes- Dawson Mercer (RW)
(LW) Ondrej Palat- (C) Erik Haula- Nolan Foote (RW)
(LW) Paul Cotter- (C) Curtis Lazar- Nathan Bastian (RW)
*Extras: Kurtis McDermaid, Max Willman
Defenseman
(D) Jonas Siegenthaler- (D) Dougie Hamilton
(D) Brendan Dillon – (D) Brett Pesce
(D) Jonathan Kovacevic- (D) Simon Nemec
*Extra: Nick DeSimone
Injured Reserve: Luke Hughes
Goalies
Jacob Markstrom
Jake Allen
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