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Devils Rumors

Arseni Gritsyuk To Remain In KHL

May 21, 2024 at 6:31 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 1 Comment

Over the past couple of days, one of the major news items was that forward Matvei Michkov is intent on terminating his contract with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL to begin his career with the Philadelphia Flyers organization. The same will not be true for Michkov’s teammate, Arseni Gritsyuk, who will remain with SKA St. Petersburg for the 2024-25 KHL season, instead of signing on with his draft team, the New Jersey Devils.

In an article published by James Nichols of NJ Hockey Now, the agent of Gritsyuk, Shumi Babev stated, “Gritsyuk will stay in SKA for sure. If nothing’s gonna be changed, [he] will join [New Jersey] in the next season”. Unlike Michkov, Gritsyuk’s contract is set to end after the 2024-25 season, indicating that he is resolute on honoring that agreement before taking his talents overseas.

Drafted in the fifth round of the 2019 NHL Draft at 129th overall by the Devils organization, Gritsyuk’s slow start to his professional career coupled with his desire to stay in his native Russia for the time being caused him to fall quite a bit down the draft board. Over the last two years in the KHL, Gritsyuk has played for both Avangard Omsk and SKA, scoring 34 goals and 78 points over his last 116 games.

This commitment made by Gritsyuk to St. Petersburg may represent a mutually beneficial option for both himself and New Jersey. Gritsyuk will be able to hone his talents in a comfortable environment, while the Devils can allow him to grow before rushing him too quickly to North America.

KHL| New Jersey Devils Arseni Gritsyuk

1 comment

Offseason Checklist: New Jersey Devils

May 19, 2024 at 4:16 pm CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment

The offseason has arrived for three-quarters of the NHL for teams that either missed the playoffs or were eliminated in the first round. Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at New Jersey.

Virtually nothing went right in 2023-24 for the Devils. After smashing down the doors of the rebuild and breaking out for 112 points last season, most expected the squad to stay in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference and potentially even contend for the Presidents’ Trophy.

Instead, an early season-ending injury to top defenseman Dougie Hamilton and sieve-like goaltending meant they never got very far away from the .500 mark, missing the playoffs entirely with just 81 points. With an unknown head coach stepping in next season to replace the fired Lindy Ruff and a goaltending rotation that’s guaranteed to look different, playoffs will be the expectation again in the Garden State.

Fill The Coaching Vacancy

The Devils’ mediocre showing cost Ruff his job before they were completely out of the playoff picture, as he was fired the week of the trade deadline after a 30-27-4 showing through 61 games. General manager Tom Fitzgerald’s deadline moves and interim promotion of Travis Green to head coach backfired, as the team limped to an 8-12-1 finish for their fifth sub-.500 season in the last six years.

At the time of writing, assistant coaches Sergei Brylin, Ryan McGill and Chris Taylor look to be back with the club next season. That just leaves their head coaching add, something that will likely be confirmed in a matter of days.

Recent reporting indicates ex-Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe and former Oilers bench boss Jay Woodcroft are the two most likely candidates, especially after Craig Berube replaced Keefe in Toronto on Friday and the Hurricanes locked in pending free agent Rod Brind’Amour to a five-year extension. Todd McLellan, who was fired midseason by the Kings, has also interviewed with New Jersey.

In fact, most expected the Devils to have made their move by now. Keefe and Woodcroft don’t appear to be the favorites for any other open jobs, though, so their sense of urgency has likely dwindled a tad.

Make The Goalie Splash

Fitzgerald’s goaltending upgrades at the trade deadline were underwhelming, adding journeyman Jake Allen and the inconsistent Kaapo Kähkönen while parting ways with Vítek Vaněček, who was serviceable in a tandem role last year but struggled with a .890 SV% in 32 appearances this season.

That wasn’t necessarily his intention, though. There was quite a lot of smoke around a move for Flames star Jacob Markström, and talks got so advanced he reportedly waived his no-move clause to accept the deal. It didn’t get across the finish line, but talks are expected to resume closer to the draft next month.

Markström’s 23-23-2 record this season wasn’t particularly impressive, but he managed to churn out another above-average season despite missing significant chunks of the campaign with injuries. His 13.7 goals saved above expected were ninth league-wide, per MoneyPuck. He’s not a terribly long-term solution, though – he’s already 34 and has two seasons left at a $6MM cap hit before becoming a free agent again.

There will be other bonafide starters available for the right price. The Bruins may move on from 2023 Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark in order to re-sign the younger Jeremy Swayman, but he has a modified no-trade clause and has expressed his desire to stay in Beantown as he enters the final season of his contract. Predators starter Juuse Saros may also be on the block with one year left on his deal, with top prospect Yaroslav Askarov waiting in the wings.

Add/Replace Depth Scoring

New Jersey doesn’t have a lot of free-agent turnover. Among forwards who logged NHL time this year, only Tomas Nosek and Chris Tierney are slated to become UFAs on July 1. Kurtis MacDermid and Maxwell Willman were set to join them but have signed extensions in the past few days.

That leaves a clear picture of the Devils’ roster needs, which includes a hole in their top nine. Whether 2020 top-10 pick Alexander Holtz can take a step forward under a new head coach will be a hot topic, and energy winger Curtis Lazar is currently penciled in for a third-line role before taking injuries into account. 22-year-old Dawson Mercer is a sure bet to bounce back after being limited to 33 points in 82 games last year, but as it stands, there are just a few too many question marks across the board for a team with aspirations of a deep playoff run.

A big-ticket add isn’t a need – that money should and will be reserved for goaltending. But a consistent middle-six winger to bump Lazar to a fourth-line role and provide insurance if Holtz continues to struggle is a clear vacancy on their depth chart. Someone in the $3MM-$4MM range annually should do the trick. Anthony Duclair, Warren Foegele and Jack Roslovic are just a handful of names that could likely be had for that price on the open market.

Extend Hughes

2021 fourth-overall pick Luke Hughes earned a Calder Trophy nomination this year by stepping up in a big way to fill the offensive vacancy left by Hamilton’s pectoral injury, leading the Devils blue line with 47 points in 82 games. He’s also eligible to sign an extension beginning July 1 as he enters the final season of his entry-level pact.

The Devils didn’t opt to get his older brother Jack signed immediately after becoming eligible, but they did sign him just a few weeks into the 2021-22 campaign, the final season of his ELC. The eight-year, $64MM commitment seemed a tad rich at the time for a player who had struggled with injuries to begin his career and had yet to establish himself as a first-line caliber player, but he’s immediately made the deal look like a bargain with three straight seasons well over a point per game.

If Fitzgerald opts to take a similar path with Luke, expect a matching deal or something close to it. Evolving Hockey projects the defender’s extension to come in at eight years with a $7.979MM cap hit.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

New Jersey Devils| Offseason Checklist 2024| Pro Hockey Rumors Originals

1 comment

Todd McLellan Has Interviewed With Devils, Jets

May 17, 2024 at 11:40 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

In addition to previous connections with the Kraken and Maple Leafs, Todd McLellan has now also interviewed with the Devils and Jets for their head coaching vacancies, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic.

He’s not viewed as the clear front-runner for any of the four jobs he’s in consideration for, but interest is growing in his services as the number of league-wide openings dwindles. He’s viewed as the Maple Leafs’ backup option to Craig Berube (and potentially Rod Brind’Amour), while the Devils appear to be zeroing in on Sheldon Keefe as their preferred candidate. McLellan is the only external candidate firmly linked to Seattle’s vacancy thus far, and he’s the second to interview for the Winnipeg vacancy after Berube earlier this week.

The Sharks are the only other team with an opening (aside from McLellan’s former employer), but they don’t have any documented interest in bringing back McLellan for his second stint behind the bench. His first crack at being an NHL head coach was in San Jose, compiling an exceptional 311-163-66 (.637) regular season record but failing to advance to a Stanley Cup Final. The Sharks’ only Finals appearance in franchise history came the year after McLellan was let go.

McLellan, fired by the Kings midseason, led them to back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since a five-year run between 2010 and 2014 that resulted in two Stanley Cups. He had the Kings off to a torrid 13-3-3 start by American Thanksgiving, but a 10-12-7 stretch between then and the All-Star break convinced L.A. to pull the plug and replace him with interim head coach Jim Hiller.

In 1,144 career games coached with the Kings, Oilers and Sharks, McLellan has a 598-412-134 (.581) record, ranking 24th on the all-time wins list. Despite that, his playoff record is below .500 (42-46).

Along with Berube and McLellan, the Jets are also considering associate coach Scott Arniel for an internal promotion. He stepped behind the bench during the now-retired Rick Bowness’ two leaves of absence this season.

New Jersey Devils| Winnipeg Jets Todd McLellan

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Devils Re-Sign Kurtis MacDermid For Three Years

May 17, 2024 at 9:18 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 5 Comments

The Devils have filled their enforcer role for the foreseeable future, re-signing winger/defenseman Kurtis MacDermid to a three-year, $3.45MM contract on Friday. The deal carries a $1.15MM cap hit and is paid out entirely in base salary, earning him $1.25MM in 2024-25, $1.2MM in 2025-26 and $1MM in 2026-27.  PuckPedia adds that $250K next season and $200K from his 2025-26 salary will come in the form of signing bonuses.

New Jersey acquired MacDermid, 30, via trade from the Avalanche on March 1, sending Colorado the signing rights to center prospect Zakhar Bardakov and the Predators’ seventh-round pick, 215th overall, in this year’s draft. He played in 16 games for the Devils down the stretch, lining up at forward for all of them, contributing an assist while racking up 50 PIMs during his short stint in the Garden State.

He’ll now have the opportunity to add many more over the next three seasons. MacDermid first broke into the league with the Kings in 2017-18, over five years after they initially signed him as an undrafted free agent out of the Ontario Hockey League’s Owen Sound Attack.

He’s remained in the league as a seventh defenseman/13th forward ever since and hasn’t been assigned to the minors since the 2018-19 campaign. In 265 career games, the 6’5″ heavyweight has 11 goals, 31 points, a -24 rating and 368 PIMs with Colorado, Los Angeles and New Jersey.

MacDermid was also briefly a member of the Kraken, who selected him from the Kings in the 2021 expansion draft. He remained a member of the organization for all of six days before they flipped him to the Avs for a 2023 fourth-round pick (later flipped to the Sharks for Jaycob Megna, used to select defenseman Luca Cagnoni). He was on the roster for Colorado’s Stanley Cup win in 2022 but didn’t suit up in any playoff games after making a career-high 58 regular season appearances.

Today’s extension is the richest deal MacDermid has earned in his NHL career, beating out the two-year, $1.975MM extension he signed with the Avalanche in 2022. It’s his first three-year deal since his entry-level contract. He was set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

New Jersey Devils| Newsstand| Transactions Kurtis MacDermid

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Devils Re-Sign Brian Halonen, Samuel Laberge

May 16, 2024 at 9:28 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

The Devils re-signed depth winger Brian Halonen to a two-year, two-way deal on Thursday, per a team announcement. His extension will cost $775K against the cap when he’s on the NHL roster. New Jersey also inked forward Samuel Laberge to a one-year, two-way extension worth $775K in the NHL.

Halonen, 25, was set to be a restricted free agent this summer after completing his entry-level contract. His new deal carries no signing bonuses and will pay him $175K at the AHL level in 2024-25 and $275K in 2025-26, a raise over the $80K minors salary he earned on his rookie pact. The extension walks him to unrestricted free agency in 2026.

Laberge, meanwhile, turned 27 last month and would have become a UFA this summer if he didn’t re-sign in Jersey. He’ll net $120K at the AHL level next season with a $135K guarantee, per the team.

In inking both to extensions, general manager Tom Fitzgerald will squeeze some more value out of a pair of undrafted free agent signings. Halonen joined the team back in March 2022 after a standout senior season at Michigan Tech, taking home CCHA First All-Star Team honors while leading the Huskies in scoring with 21 goals and 44 points in 37 games.

The Minnesota native took a while to get going last season while on assignment to AHL Utica, struggling to get on the scoresheet much before a brief demotion to ECHL Adirondack in December. He played just one game with Adirondack, posting an assist, before being recalled back to Utica and finishing the season on a tear. He finished 2022-23 with 17 goals and 30 points in 57 games, ranking eighth on the Comets in scoring.

The gifted sniper was limited to 35 games with Utica this season due to injuries, but he more than earned his extension after potting 20 goals to finish second on the team despite playing in less than half of their 72-game schedule. With injuries plaguing the Devils in the latter half of the season, he received his first two NHL recalls down the stretch, making a lone appearance each time. He was used sparingly, though, averaging 8:17 across the pair of games while managing two shots on goal and two hits.

Laberge had been on minor-league contracts with Utica since the 2021-22 campaign but didn’t land an NHL contract until signing with the Devils a couple of months into this season. The 6’2″, 205-lb forward can play center and both wings and has been a solid bottom-six checking forward for the Comets over the past few seasons, totaling 19 goals and 48 points in 155 games with 199 PIMs and a +10 rating. The former captain of the QMJHL’s Rimouski Océanic is entering his eighth professional season.

Like Halonen, Laberge also made his NHL debut this season with a two-game trial. He recorded three hits in just 6:12 of total ice time across a pair of contests he played in November and December, shortly after landing a contract with New Jersey.

Both are likely destined to start 2024-25 in Utica. Halonen still has one season of professional service or 58 NHL games before he requires waivers, but Laberge will no longer be waiver-exempt and will need to hit the wire during the preseason to head to the minors. With the pair of signings, the Devils are now up to 33 out of the maximum 50 standard player contracts on the books next season.

New Jersey Devils| Transactions Brian Halonen| Samuel Laberge

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NHL-Affiliated Prospects Playing In 2024 Memorial Cup

May 16, 2024 at 9:02 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 8 Comments

The field for the 2024 Memorial Cup, the top club tournament in junior hockey, is set. The QMJHL’s Drummondville Voltigeurs, the OHL’s London Knights and the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors all swept their respective league championship series within the last two days to advance to the CHL championship tournament, joining the host Saginaw Spirit of the OHL.

This year marks the first Memorial Cup held in the United States since 1998, which was hosted by the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs. The Spirit will attempt to become the first U.S.-based team to win since the Chiefs in 2008, and they have a strong chance. They’re stronger than a typical host team, finishing second in the league in the regular season with a 50-16-2 record and trailing London by just two points. They were eliminated by London in six games in the Western Conference Final.

The Knights lead the way with 10 NHL-affiliated prospects on their roster, including two first-round picks in Flyers defenseman Oliver Bonk and Maple Leafs forward Easton Cowan. The latter was named the OHL playoffs MVP after leading the Knights in scoring with 10 goals, 24 assists and 34 points in just 18 games. He had 15 points in four games in their championship sweep over the Oshawa Generals.

If you’re looking for some non-Stanley Cup Playoff hockey to watch, check to see if your favorite NHL team has prospects suiting up in the tournament, which begins May 24:

Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL champion)

D Mikaël Diotte (Devils, free agent signing)
RW Ethan Gauthier (Lightning, 2023, 37th overall)
RW Alexis Gendron (Flyers, 2022, 220th overall)
D Vsevolod Komarov (Sabres, 2022, 134th overall)

NHL Utah 2022 first-round pick D Maveric Lamoureux is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery in March.

London Knights (OHL champion)

C Denver Barkey (Flyers, 2023, 95th overall)
D Oliver Bonk (Flyers, 2023, 22nd overall)
C Easton Cowan (Maple Leafs, 2023, 28th overall)
D Jackson Edward (Bruins, 2022, 200th overall)
D Isaiah George (Islanders, 2022, 98th overall)
RW Kasper Halttunen (Sharks, 2023, 36th overall)
C Jacob Julien (Jets, 2023, 146th overall)
C Kaleb Lawrence (Kings, 2022, 215th overall)
C Max McCue (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Landon Sim (Blues, 2022, 184th overall)

Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL champion)

RW Jagger Firkus (Kraken, 2022, 35th overall)
D Denton Mateychuk (Blue Jackets, 2022, 12th overall)
D Kalem Parker (Wild, 2023, 181st overall)
D Vojtech Port (Ducks, 2023, 161st overall)
LW Martin Rysavy (Blue Jackets, 2021, 197th overall)
C Matthew Savoie (Sabres, 2022, 9th overall)
C Brayden Yager (Penguins, 2023, 14th overall)

Saginaw Spirit (host)

C Owen Beck (Canadiens, 2022, 33rd overall)
LW Josh Bloom (Canucks, acquired from Sabres in 2023 trade for Riley Stillman)
D Rodwin Dionicio (Ducks, 2023, 129th overall)
D Jorian Donovan (Senators, 2022, 136th overall)
C Hunter Haight (Wild, 2022, 47th overall)
C Ethan Hay (Lightning, 2023, 211th overall)
G Nolan Lalonde (Blue Jackets, free agent signing)
C Matyas Sapovaliv (Golden Knights, 2022, 48th overall)
C Joseph Willis (Predators, 2023, 111th overall)

Anaheim Ducks| Boston Bruins| Buffalo Sabres| CHL| Columbus Blue Jackets| London Knights| Los Angeles Kings| Minnesota Wild| Montreal Canadiens| Nashville Predators| New Jersey Devils| New York Islanders| OHL| Ottawa Senators| Philadelphia Flyers| Pittsburgh Penguins| Prospects| QMJHL| San Jose Sharks| Seattle Kraken| St. Louis Blues| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs| Utah Mammoth| Vancouver Canucks| Vegas Golden Knights| WHL| Winnipeg Jets Alexis Gendron| Brayden Yager| Denton Mateychuk| Denver Barkey| Easton Cowan| Isaiah George| Jackson Edward| Jagger Firkus| Jorian Donovan| Josh Bloom| Kasper Halttunen| Matthew Savoie| Matyas Sapovaliv| Maveric Lamoureux| Max McCue| Memorial Cup| Oliver Bonk| Owen Beck| Riley Stillman| Vsevolod Komarov

8 comments

Afternoon Notes: Devils Coaching, Drouin, Zadorov

May 13, 2024 at 2:06 pm CDT | by Gabriel Foley 2 Comments

The New Jersey Devils have seemingly found their favorites on the coaching market, with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reporting on the Jeff Marek Show that the team is currently favoring Sheldon Keefe and Jay Woodcroft (Twitter link). More specifically, Woodcroft was the favorite before Keefe’s firing. But the Devils were quick to interview Keefe when he became available, even going as far as requesting permission to interview him amidst his closing days in Toronto. The interview clearly went well, with Keefe now a favorite for what Elliotte Friedman described as the coaching role with the highest ceiling.

New Jersey would offer a similar backdrop for Keefe – boasting some of the strongest top-end forwards but struggling to find the same consistency in net. The Devils have the exciting advantage of a much, much deeper defense group than Toronto carried during Keefe’s tenure – with the core quartet of Dougie Hamilton, Simon Nemec, Luke Hughes, and Jonas Siegenthaler stronger than what most of the league offers. New Jersey’s season was marred by injuries, best exemplified by star centerman Jack Hughes missing 20 games and star defender Hamilton missing 62. The inconsistent lineup was too much for head coaches Lindy Ruff or Travis Green to handle, with the Devils ending the year with a 38-39-5 record.

But even after the slow season, the sky still seems to be the limit for the New Jersey Devils. A fully healthy season out of Jack Hughes, a full year of young defenders Hughes and Nemec, and a fruitful addition with the 2024 10th-overall pick should set the bar high for the skilled Devils lineup, giving them playoff aspirations under the right leader.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The Colorado Avalanche could be set to add a top-six winger back to the lineup, with head coach Jared Bednar dubbing Jonathan Drouin as a game-time decision, per Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). Drouin has so far missed every postseason game with a lower-body injury – but upgraded to a full-contact jersey, and top power-play unit reps, at the team’s Monday practice. Those are good signs of progress for Drouin, who recorded a career-high 56 points in 79 games this season. He’s seemingly found his footing in Colorado, and will now be set to add to his postseason career totals of 21 points in 33 games. His return should bump one of Joel Kiviranta or Brandon Duhaime out of the lineup, depending on if Colorado wants to prioritize skill or grit.
  • The NHL Department of Player Safety has fined Vancouver Canucks defenseman Nikita Zadorov for cross-checking Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid at the end of Game 3. Zadorov hit McDavid right into Carson Soucy, who landed a cross-check on McDavid’s face. Soucy will have a hearing sometime today for the incident. And while they’re certainly holding their breath in anticipation of a possible Soucy suspension, the Canucks are certainly relieved that Zadorov avoided harsher punishment. He has been one of Vancouver’s best defensemen this postseason, posting four goals and seven points through nine games, while averaging over 20 minutes of ice time each night. Zadorov has brought skill, finesse, and grit to the lineup – although maybe a bit too much of the latter, as he’s now facing DoPS punishment.

Coaches| Colorado Avalanche| Edmonton Oilers| Injury| NHL| New Jersey Devils| Sheldon Keefe| Vancouver Canucks Jonathan Drouin| Nikita Zadorov| Sheldon Keefe

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Todd McLellan Has Interviewed For Head Coach Vacancy

May 11, 2024 at 3:59 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

The Devils are hoping to have their coaching search wrapped up in the near future now that Travis Green is now in Ottawa.  Craig Berube and Jay Woodcroft have been linked to the position already but Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported in a recent NHL Network appearance (video link) that Todd McLellan has also interviewed for the position and could be in the mix for a second interview as well.  McLellan is one of the most experienced coaches available with 1,144 career regular season games under his belt, good for 24th all-time.  His teams have played to a .581 points percentage over that time but he was let go midseason by Los Angeles with the Kings underachieving at the time.

Carolina Hurricanes| New Jersey Devils| New York Rangers| Todd McLellan Filip Chytil| Nikita Quapp

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Poll: Who Will Be The Devils Next Head Coach?

May 10, 2024 at 6:40 pm CDT | by Gabriel Foley 8 Comments

The New Jersey Devils are once again searching for a new head coach, poised to hire their fifth bench manager in as many years after turning over both Lindy Ruff and Travis Green this season. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman described New Jersey’s vacancy as the role with the highest ceiling amidst a long list of teams searching for new hires – and it’s clear to see why. The Devils have one of the most exciting lineups in the league, with the one-two punch of Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier flanked by elite wingers and top defense prospects.

The next head coach will assume a young and talented lineup that should only get better this off-season, with the Devils boasting the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft following Monday’s draft lottery. The team is reportedly open to trading the pick in exchange for impactful lineup pieces, which could only strengthen their ability to make a strong run next season. That certainly seems to be the priority of general manager Tom Fitzgerald, who’s now faced with his toughest decision yet in who to name head coach.

Luckily, the coaching carousel is in full gear, and there is no shortage of strong options available to the Devils. They seem to be assessing every fit they can, even being linked to Sheldon Keefe, the NHL’s most recent free-agent coach after being fired by Toronto on Thursday. Keefe offers the coveted experience of coaching superstar talent before, coming off five years overseeing Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander. Finding a way to balance so much skill isn’t always easy, but Keefe made the most of it, with all three stars rivaling 100 points at some point over the last few seasons. Keefe would be greeted by a much stronger defense in New Jersey, giving him a well-rounded roster much more akin to his time with the Toronto Marlies rather than the Maple Leafs. But the Devils have Stanley Cup aspirations, and Keefe’s postseason track record is certainly flawed. That could be the deciding factor in a coaching market with Cup-winning talents available.

Craig Berube, who led the 2019 Cup-winning St. Louis Blues, is reportedly the most popular coach on the market, being linked to nearly every coaching job available, including New Jersey, Toronto, and Ottawa. The popularity could leave the choice up to Berube on where he wants to go next – and the coveted Devils seat could look enticing for a man who had to endure 1,054 career games as a player, and 182 as an NHL head coach, before finally lifting the Stanley Cup. Berube’s chemistry with St. Louis’ younger talent certainly came into question during his time in Missouri, especially near the end of his tenure, but his commandeering style could be exactly what the Devils need after a year of disarray.

Long-term Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan could also offer Cup-winning precedent, should he hit the open market. Sullivan still remains under contract with the Pittsburgh, but could soon be searching for a new home amidst a list of coaching changes in the Penguins organization. Sullivan kicked off his first years in Pittsburgh, and some of his first years as a head coach, with a bang when he won back-to-back Cups in 2016 and 2017. He led Pittsburgh to playoff berths in the subsequent five seasons, though postseason absences in the last two years has his job on the fritz. Sullivan has only served two seasons as a head coach outside of Pittsburgh, making his next steps a bit unprecedented. And while it’s hard to leave a lineup of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang behind, the trio of Hughes, Hischier, and Dougie Hamilton could be a fine replacement.

There are plenty of other options earning coaching interviews around the league, including Gerard Gallant, Todd McLellan, and Jay Woodcroft. But New Jersey will need to be diligent in making their decision. The shift from Ruff to Green showed just how impactful coaching was to this Devils lineup – made most evident by Timo Meier’s 24 points in 21 games under Green after scoring at a 0.62 points-per-game pace under Ruff. He was one of many Devils to find a new groove under Green, and will be among the most important players for a new coach to prioritize. There is plenty of potential throughout the Devils lineup, but after a year of injuries and inconsistency, they’re still searching for their groove. Finding a new head coach will set the bar for just how much a young, ambitious Devils lineup can achieve next year.

(poll link for app users)

NHL| New Jersey Devils Gerard Gallant| Lindy Ruff| Mike sullivan| Sheldon Keefe| Todd McLellan| Tom Fitzgerald| Travis Green

8 comments

Fitzgerald: Tenth Pick Could Be Trade Chip

May 9, 2024 at 9:00 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 15 Comments

At the beginning of the season, the Devils weren’t expected to be picking in the top ten but that’s where they find themselves after the lottery earlier this week.  Speaking after the lottery, GM Tom Fitzgerald indicated to reporters including team reporter Amanda Stein that it’s not a guarantee he’ll use the tenth pick next month, suggesting it’s an option to be moved if the right trade presents itself.  It’s not very often that top-ten picks are dealt but with New Jersey being a team in win-now mode, they could be inclined to try to use that selection for someone who is more established and can contribute right away.

Craig Berube| Jim Hiller| Los Angeles Kings| New Jersey Devils| Snapshots| Washington Capitals Ryan Leonard

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    Top Stories

    Devils’ Jesper Bratt Undergoes Surgery To Address Multi-Season Injury

    Ducks Name Joel Quenneville Head Coach

    Maple Leafs’ Anthony Stolarz Ruled Out For Game 2

    Utah Hockey Club Announces Mammoth As Team Name

    Blues’ Torey Krug Not Expected To Resume Playing Career

    Islanders Prefer Ken Holland For GM Vacancy

    Devils Sign Arseni Gritsyuk To Entry-Level Deal

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