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Jacob Markstrom, Linus Ullmark Are Devils’ Top Goalie Targets

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The Devils’ pursuit of a bonafide starting goaltender has been a dominant storyline for months and remains one of the few certainties of the summer. While there are more than a handful of qualified names on the trade block, the Flames’ Jacob Markström and the Bruins’ Linus Ullmark are the two likeliest names that New Jersey general manager Tom Fitzgerald would swing a deal for, sources told Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic on Tuesday.

Fitzgerald also confirmed to reporters yesterday that he would make the Devils’ 2024 first-round pick, 10th overall, available in trade talks. In what’s viewed as a deep class of high-end talent, that pick could very well be enough to pry Markström or Ullmark away from their respective teams, although a low-to-medium-value asset may also be required.

The other big fish on the goalie trade market, 2022 Vezina Trophy nominee Juuse Saros, doesn’t appear likely. He’s only been connected to the Devils sparingly in recent weeks and wasn’t mentioned at all as an option for New Jersey in LeBrun’s reporting yesterday.

Markström and Ullmark are the elder statesmen of the group, but as such, could cost less to acquire than the sub-30 Saros. Ullmark finds himself in the conversation after throwing up a .924 SV% average over three seasons with the Bruins, but he’s only started more than half his team’s games in a season once. That was Boston’s record-setting 2022-23 campaign when he won the Vezina Trophy after recording a 40-6-1 record, .938 SV% and 1.89 GAA.

Markström’s numbers have been more inconsistent over the past few seasons, but he has a much longer track record of being a true starter. The 34-year-old Swede has started more than half his team’s games in each of the last seven years and is two years removed from a league-leading nine shutouts that helped him earn his only career Vezina nomination in 2022.

He’s coming off a verifiably above-average season, too, posting a .905 SV% and stopping 13.7 goals above expected (MoneyPuck) despite a .500 record. The other advantage is his contract – he’s got two seasons left at a $6MM cap hit compared to Ullmark, who’s only signed through next season.

Markström isn’t the higher-ceiling option, but he may be the safer one. He carries a full no-move clause, but multiple reports indicated he waived it for a move to New Jersey before this season’s trade deadline that ultimately fell through. LeBrun confirmed that notion yesterday.

New Jersey Devils Willing To Trade First-Round Pick

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After hiring Sheldon Keefe to take over head coaching duties for the New Jersey Devils, the General Manager, Tom Fitzgerald is now moving on to the next item on his docket for the offseason. Earlier today, Josh Gold-Smith of TheScore reported that Fitzgerald is entertaining moving on from the team’s 10th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft to acquire a top-tier goaltender.

Speaking with Mike G. Morreale of the NHL on Monday, Fitzgerald was quoted, “If we feel it helps us now and in the foreseeable future, then, yes, I’m listening. I haven’t gotten anything yet, but the more I talk to teams, I say ’Listen, I’m open to moving No. 10, but it’s going to have to be something (significant)“. If the Devils do end up trading the 10th overall pick it should be a high enough return to acquire the likes of Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames, Juuse Saros from the Nashville Predators, or Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins, assuming the Devils can sign one of the latter two to an extension this summer.

Specifically in New Jersey, there is precedent from the organization in trading a top-10 pick for an established goaltender. After making it to the 2012 Stanley Cup Final, the Devils cratered in the 2012-13 lockout-shortened season, earning the ninth overall pick of the 2013 NHL Draft. To soften the blow of the eventual departure of franchise legend Martin Brodeur, New Jersey traded the ninth overall pick (which would be used to select Bo Horvat) to the Vancouver Canucks to acquire Cory Schneider.

Although the Devils only made the playoffs once during Schneider’s seven-year run in the Garden State, the team acquired a 26-year goaltender coming off a .927 save percentage over 30 games in the prior year for a top-10 selection. Factoring in trades for goaltenders over the last several years, the 10th overall pick should satisfy the desired return for all three goaltenders listed.

Afternoon Notes: Lisowsky, Islanders, Carle

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The Toronto Maple Leafs aren’t expected to sign 2022 seventh-round pick Brandon Lisowsky to his entry-level contract, shares Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun (Twitter link). Lisowsky is one of 47 prospects with rights set to expire this Saturday unless their NHL club signs them to an entry-level deal.

Lisowsky recently ended his OHL career, after spending the last four seasons with the Saskatoon Blades. He recorded 226 points across his 227 games with the club, ranking him sixth in team scoring since 2000. That includes the career-high 42 goals and 80 points he managed in 68 games this season. He was helped along a tremendous Saskatoon offense that also led undrafted free agent Trevor Wong to a 101-point season and Anaheim Ducks prospect Yegor Sidorov to an 88-point year in as many games. Lisowsky was also joined by fellow Maple Leafs prospect Fraser Minten, who managed 38 points in 36 games of his own.

Lisowsky joined Wong as the ace up Saskatoon’s sleeve all season long. Both players have blazing speed and an ability to make slick puck moves at top seed. But they each struggled with physicality throughout their juniors career, each standing at a lean 5-foot-9. That kept many scouts skeptical, even despite their highly creative and productive offense. The pair will now enter free agency together, looking to market teams on their ability to outpace competition.

Other notes from around the league:

  • The New York Islanders have hired Sergei Naumovs as the goalie coach for the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders. Previous Bridgeport goalie coach Chris Terreri has joined the NHL staff as ‘Director of Goaltending Development and Scouting’, while Piero Greco will remain the NHL goalie coach, shares Andrew Gross of The Athletic (Twitter link). This shakeup in the Islanders goaltending room follows Mitch Korn’s – the team’s previous ’Director of Goaltending’ – departure for the Nashville Predators. Naumovs has served as the goalie coach of the KHL’s CSKA Moscow since 2018, coaching Ilya Sorokin before his move to the NHL. He most recently coached Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Ivan Fedotov, who posted a .914 save percentage in 44 KHL games last season. He’ll rejoin his previous star goalie in the Islanders organization – likely overseeing Henrik Tikkanen as Bridgeport’s starter next season.
  • Acclaimed Denver University head coach David Carle shared with Meghan Angley of The DNVR that he did formally talk to one NHL team about a coaching role, though it wasn’t the New Jersey Devils (Twitter link). Carle took over Denver’s head coaching role in 2018 and has since crafted a collegiate legend, winning the league championship in two of the last three seasons, while posting a combined 94-28-4 record over that span. Carle most notably crafted a dominant defense, featuring Colorado Avalanche prospect Sean Behrens, Detroit Red Wings prospect Shai Buium, and top 2024 NHL Draft defender Zeev Buium. He’s been speculated for many NHL coaching roles, including interest from the Devils. But Carle is set on returning to Denver next season, where he’ll look to make another strong push, following multiple notable transfers this off-season.

Devils Interviewed David Carle, Jay Pandolfo For Coaching Vacancy

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Before the New Jersey Devils officially hired Sheldon Keefe as their next head coach, the organization looked into some rookie options. Earlier today, Greg Wyshynski of ESPN reported that New Jersey had also interviewed David Carle of the University of Denver and Jay Pandolfo of Boston University.

Given this report, it is more than likely the Devils were looking for coaches who have excelled with young talents, no matter the amount of previous NHL coaching experience. Both coaches have collegiate and international experience leading some of the best programs in the United States.

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Devils Interviewed Ryan Warsofsky For Head Coach Role Before Hiring Sheldon Keefe

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  • Before they hired Sheldon Keefe as their new head coach, the Devils interviewed Sharks assistant coach Ryan Warsofsky for the role, relays NJ Advance Media’s Ryan Novozinsky. Warsofsky has now interviewed for a pair of head coaching vacancies this offseason, also receiving an interview from San Jose.  Warsofsky has only been an NHL assistant for the last two seasons but does have head coaching experience with ECHL South Carolina and AHL Chicago.

Sheldon Keefe's Extension In Toronto Voided As Part Of Devils Hiring

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  • With Sheldon Keefe signing a four-year deal to become the next head coach of the Devils, his previous two-year extension with the Maple Leafs is no longer intact, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reports. As part of Toronto granting permission for him to speak with New Jersey, the Devils canceled his extension and are paying him more money annually on his new deal than he would’ve made on his extension with the Leafs. Thus, Toronto no longer owes Keefe the balance of his extension.

Devils Name Sheldon Keefe Head Coach

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May 23: The Devils officially named Keefe as their next head coach on Thursday. General manager Tom Fitzgerald issued the following statement:

This was an invigorating process for me, having met with many qualified candidates and hearing how attractive this position was to them. Sheldon jumped to the top of my list when he became available, and I was thrilled when he agreed to be a part of what we are building here. He is an excellent communicator, believes in collaboration, and will take what he has learned previously to make this team a Stanley Cup contender. The organization is incredibly excited to welcome Sheldon, his wife, Jackie, and his two boys, Landon and Wyatt to New Jersey.

May 22: In a report from ’Rear Admiral’ of the popular hockey podcast, Spittin Chiclets, and later confirmed by TSN’s Darren Dreger, the New Jersey Devils are set on making Sheldon Keefe their next head coach. Dreger later reported that it would be a four-year deal for Keefe in New Jersey, including the two years remaining on his old contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

For the entirety of his coaching career at the professional level, Keefe as only known life inside the Maple Leafs organization. After a successful stint with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League, Keefe was named head coach of Toronto’s AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, at the start of the 2015-16 AHL season. In four and a half years, Keefe coached the Marlies to a 200-89-22-9 record over 320 games, including the team’s only Calder Cup Championship in 2018.

After former head coach Mike Babcock was unceremoniously let go by Toronto partway through the 2019-20 NHL season, Keefe was given the job, keeping his position until only a few weeks ago. In 349 games spent behind the bench for the Maple Leafs, Keefe coached the team to a 212-97-40 record, including a North Division title in his first full year.

Unfortunately, just like the 21 head coaches preceding Keefe in Toronto, he could not coach the team to the Stanley Cup Finals during his tenure, even while boasting one of the best lineups on paper. In 37 postseason games while coaching the Maple Leafs, Keefe could only accrue a .432 win percentage, making it beyond the first round once in five years.

Now moving to New Jersey, Keefe will once again have star-studded talent at his disposal. After an exciting 2022-23 regular season for the franchise, the Devils had a dramatic 31-point drop, finishing well below expectations.

Because of this, the General Manager of the Devils, Tom Fitzgerald, decided to relieve Lindy Ruff of his head coaching duties after 61 games of the 2023-24 season. With interim head coach Travis Green not faring any better in the last 21 games, New Jersey’s front office pursued a bigger fish.

Heading into the 2024-25 NHL season, the Devils already look to be one of the non-playoff teams from this season to make it into next year’s postseason. Possessing top young talent such as Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Luke Hughes, and Simon Nemec, New Jersey also holds top veteran talent such as Timo Meier and Dougie Hamilton. If the Devils can procure a top goaltender this offseason, Keefe should find quite a bit of success with this organization.

Arseni Gritsyuk To Remain In KHL

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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.

Offseason Checklist: New Jersey Devils

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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.

Todd McLellan Has Interviewed With Devils, Jets

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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.

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