When the New Jersey Devils acquired forward Timo Meier in 2023, they hoped to land a power forward who could reshape their top six and provide 40 goals a season. At the time, Meier looked like that player, and New Jersey gave up assets to the San Jose Sharks, believing he would become a core member and ride shotgun alongside Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier. In addition to trading away significant assets, the Devils committed financially to Meier long-term with an eight-year contract worth $70.4MM ($8.8MM annually). The results weren’t great to start. Meier had just 14 points in his first 21 games with the Devils and just four points (two goals and two assists) in 11 playoff games. Now, just three years into that contract, Meier has been less of a top-end power forward and more of a streaky depth scorer who struggles with turnovers.
New Jersey has been a major disappointment over the past two seasons. While Meier has been relatively consistent, he hasn’t lived up to the expectations when he was brought in and signed long-term. In the five years prior to the trade, Meier had topped 30 goals three times and had become a 65-75-point player. Since the trade, he’s been a 25-goal scorer and a 50-point player. These numbers, while respectable, aren’t what the Devils were hoping for when they made the moves.
The Devils obviously want to get back to the playoffs with their current roster, but many of their top-paid players have struggled to live up to their price tags. Meier is hardly alone in his struggles, but he just finished fourth in Devils scoring, despite being the highest-paid forward.
Now, you could point to some of the injuries and to the inconsistency hampering Meier’s production, but the cause is likely much deeper and involves both individual and team issues.
For Meier, he simply has not elevated his play since the trade to New Jersey and has not been as physically imposing as he was with the Sharks. Many predicted that Meier would become the Devils’ net-front presence and use his size to score many goals in front of the net, but Meier hasn’t become that player despite playing through his prime over the past few years.
Meier also hasn’t built chemistry with his teammates or settled into his role. Some of that can be blamed on his lack of momentum on his own, but there have also been lineup and coaching changes, along with other external factors that could be keeping Meier from getting comfortable with the Devils.
While Meier’s offensive numbers have been respectable, perhaps the most troubling aspect of his game is on the defensive side, where he lacks attention to detail in his own end and is often guilty of turning the puck over. These warts in his game would be forgivable if Meier were producing more offense, but unfortunately for New Jersey, that has not been the case.
Meier was brought in to help change the Devils’ trajectory, but, unfortunately for New Jersey, it appears the trajectory has gone the other way, which, given the talent on the roster, seems to be a shock to most people. It’s hard to label Meier a disaster, but when compared to the costs to acquire and retain him, there is little doubt that the Devils would love to have both the trade and the contract back as a do-over, and it’s likely a series of moves they wouldn’t repeat.
At this point, it’s unlikely that Meier takes the next steps that the Devils were hoping he would take when they acquired him. And with the failed trade, among other failed moves, New Jersey has brought in a new management group, and it should be interesting to see how they assess the fit with Meier and whether or not they see him as a long-term fixture. There could be an interesting dynamic with a new GM and management team: a possible trade, or they could see him in a different role with the Devils. Back with San Jose, Meier was often a focal point of the Sharks’ offense; however, in New Jersey, that is less often the case, as the Devils have better forward depth and more offensive players than the Sharks did 3-4 years ago.
There is also the possibility that Meier re-captures his offensive game this year after a tumultuous season off the ice last year. Meier took a personal leave of absence mid-season after posting 10 goals and 12 assists in his first 26 games (a 70-point pace). After returning from his leave, Meier tallied eight goals and three assists in 34 games, roughly a 26-point pace over a full season. Curiously, Meier’s shooting percentage dropped from 11.9% in those first 26 games to 5.9% in the 34 games following his return. There are many reasons that could happen (bad luck, for one), but it’s hard to imagine him shooting that poorly over another stretch of play.
With a new management group in place and five years left on his contract, it will take some time before Meier’s fate is ultimately decided. For now, given his contract status, it’s hard to imagine the Devils moving him to another team. But this summer could be one of urgency in New Jersey, with Hischier’s contract entering its final season and a lot of disappointment surrounding the team. What that means for Meier remains to be seen, but if he does become a trade chip, he would be a buy-low candidate who should generate some interest among teams looking for help in their top six.
Meier’s disappointment is all on the GM that got sucked into the flavor of the month club, Now the Devils have to live with it. GMs do this all the, And, Never take any responsibility, They pass it off as, He wasn’t a good fit, Or, There just wasn’t any chemistry. Just once, I love to hear a GM say, I screwed up!
GM Dumbass of Penguins did say he screwed up on Graves and on Jarry, respect to that!
There is a much stronger argument that the devils have been a huge disappointment to Timo Meier. Never used on his strong wing. Never used in his prime PP1 spot. Never given a chance to be used to his potential like he was in SJ. This is 100% on successive coaches and the GM.
I looked at his stats… he was a 50-60 point a year player before he signed.. he’s a 50+ point player for the Devils (1 year was injury washed, but 2 of the last 3 years he’s been over 50 points)… what did they expect to happen.. he’d suddenly get 100% more productive? lol
correction on my last post.. he wasn’t injured he was traded so his stats looked like an injury season he had 66 points that year lol… including that level of play for the Devils when they traded for him…. I have no idea why this article was written.. the guy never fell off.. could he be overpaid? sure… but he’s been the same player he always was
His PTS/60 in NJ vs SJ also supports your point. Pretty similar production given the ice-time.
He’s also turning 30 years old this year. Players generally don’t get better as they age lol. I’m not sure why anyone would expect him to still be scoring 40 goals a season.
(shrugs) It isn’t that they didn’t know who they were getting. It’s that they ignored the parts they didn’t like. They said to themselves “Ooo, he’s hit 30 goals three times!” and ignored the three other years he had 22, 21 and 12 goals respectively. They traded for a streaky player and are now astonished that he’s streaky.
With that, his possession numbers are on par with the rest of his career, even though they’re giving him a good many fewer offensive zone starts (which might have something to do with his turnovers the last couple years). He had his two best ES CorsiFors the last two years. He’s surely overpaid, but.
Meier is an opposite of the Devils’ big 3 forwards – Hughes, Bratt and Hischier. Their game is built on speed and finesse, while Meier lives around the net collecting garbage goals. He has been a misfit from the very start.
It’s a similar situation with the Sherwood signing for San Jose. While their young core relies on speed and youth enthusiasm, Sherwood is an aging grinder.
The way Meier and Sherwood were brought in were identical. A trade with overpayment, then unproductive start followed by a generous extension. In both cases the GMs doubled down on their investment, despite early signs that it’d been a bad one.
The Devil’s S% was the 2nd lowest in the NHL. Only Calgary has been worse but they were one of the worst in creating scoring chances, meaning that their shots came from low-percentage territory. NJ were above average in creating scoring chances which makes their S% look especially troubling.
This has to be a deficiency of the training process, could be as simple as not enough time for shooting practice. I do not understand how their coach is still in place.
I don’t think Meier stands out, even a little bit, because the Devils don’t have enough quality forwards.
This rebuild stalked before it ever finished. Vanaceks career year fooled Fitzgerald into believing they were further along.
He will be a very good forward again. Just not on this team. Hope for both sides they find a good trade partner soon
Well, that would have to be at a lesser cap hit or an overpaid player in the return. Maybe a Huberdeau at $6M for Timo trade!😉
I remember when Meier was drafted and they speculated he might not be as good without Ehlers on his line.
So far, it’s been pretty true. I think this is one of those players that excels in a very specific role, and NJ has not optimized for that. They see him as a secondary piece to slot around their stars, and I think that’s handcuffing what he’s actually good at.
Ehlers?????
Yeah, he was drafted so high because he and Ehlers were absolutely stellar together in junior.
If there were any real GMs in NHL today, they’d start these “future stars” out on a short contract at a reasonable price and then let them prove they are capable of a later, longer contract. The contracts are out of control and the players are playing more than hockey with these teams. There’s also playing the pay me even if I phone it in game. Some of these guys are reminiscent of NBA players, “livin’ the dream”. Seems the only time 100% comes to the rink is in playoffs.
Not quite certain what you are babbling about but there are 32 real GMs in the NHL. The players, and their union, have some leverage so the GMs cannot just give a player term and dollars that would make you happy. You seem very new to this stuff.
Сontracts can’t be out of control under this CBA. They are strictly controlled by the cap.
They have been out of control before 2004-05, causing a lockout.
They DO start them out on short contracts at low prices: it’s called “entry level contract.”
There is a ton of blame to go around on the Devils. Timo is the least of their problems. Personally, I wish they hadn’t made that trade. But for a different reason. Solidifying the defense and goaltending has been the biggest things the devils have failed at. WAY too many passes and trying to make every single goal a work of art. Injuries. Probably the biggest. Strength and conditioning need to be brought in to question. Especially with the Hughes brothers. Wind blows the wrong way and they get hurt. Still young, but they’re both starting to look like more of a bust than the Timo trade.