Carolina Hurricanes Division Rivals: New Jersey Devils
By Zeke Lukow
Leading up to the season we are going to have a Metropolitan Division Season projection series. We will be starting with the last place team and finish with the Carolina Hurricanes. Today we will be covering the New Jersey Devils.
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Head Coach: John Hynes (1st year with the team)
2014-2015 Record: 32-36-14
2014-2015 Result: 7th in the Metro, 25th Overall (Missed the playoffs)
The 2014-2015 season was the first season in 22 years without Martin Brodeur between the pipes for the Devils, and it turned out to be an ugly one Newark. Since their appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2012, and have missed the playoffs ever since.
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The New Jersey Devils have an aging roster, every time that I hear that Scott Gomez and Patrick Elias are still in the league I am a little shocked. It was clear in 2015 that the Devils are in a rebuilding phase. At the trade deadline they shipped 2 of their only assets (Jaromir Jager and Marek Zidlicky) out for draft picks.
The new rebuild mentality coupled with a decline in performance after 2012 has brought on management change. Long term Executve and GM Lou Lamoreillo resigned, and head coach Peter DeBoer was fired mid season.
Key Additions: Kyle Palmieri (Trade), John Moore (Free Agency)
The Devils acquired right winger Kyle Palmieri from the Anaheim Ducks for a 2015 2nd round pick(from Fla) and a conditional 2016 3rd round pick. Palmeri is only 24 and he will only count for $1.4mil against the cap for the Devils
However, Palmieri’s best year he had 31 points (14g, 17a) in the 2013-2014 season with the Ducks. When looking at his corsi numbers he has slightly worse numbers than Carolina’s own Riley Nash. This should mean that Palmieri fits in the top 6 but in more of a second line role.
John Moore signed a 3 year deal with an AAV of $1.67 mil, making this a pretty low risk move for the Devils. At only 24 years old, Moore has a high potential to develop into a defensive anchor for the team. Though he didn’t have a lot of time on ice with the Rangers, Moore’s production and corsi numbers are on par with a top 4 defenseman.
Key Losses: Bryce Salvador (Retired)
Bryce Salvador recently announced his retirement from the NHL after missing most of the 2014-2015 season with a back injury . The loss of Salvador is big for the locker room as the Devils will be left without a captain. The lack of leadership will hurt the Devils more than losing his production.
Carolina Hurricanes
Depth Chart:
Adam Henrique – Travis Zajac – Kyle Palmieri
Patrick Elias – Michael Cammalleri – Stephen Gionta
Tuomo Ruutu – Jacob Josefson – Sergey Kalinin
Reid Boucher – Pavel Zacha – Jordin Tootoo
Andy Greene – Damon Severson
Adam Larsson – John Moore
Eric Gelinas – Jonathon Merrill
Cory Schneider
Keith Kinkaid
2015-2016 Season Outlook
The Devils finished the 2014-2015 season with 78 points, and it’s hard to say they’ve gotten better over the offseason. With a first year coach and GM, the Devils have an interesting year ahead of them. This season will set the tone for the next couple of years.
New Jersey has an experienced high roster turnover, with an under performing aging roster they had to make changes. However, despite acquiring more draft picks at the deadline, the Devils still have the last place ranked farm system. This will make their rebuild process longer, and they are less likely to experience success quickly.
Mandatory Credit: Jim O
These new and young players combined with a new system could make for a tough season. New Jersey has to lean on a lot of young players, and inexperienced talent. The New Jersey Devils have also hinted that they are not going to name a captain and instead have 3 alternate captains. The lack of a true leader could hinder prospect growth.
last year their production numbers were not great last year, none of these players had 50 points, and only one person with over 20 goals. In comparison Eric Staal out scored their leading scorer, Adam Henrique by 11 points.
The main issue facing the goaltending is depth. Cory Schneider has a slightly better year than our own Cam Ward, posting a GAA of 2.26, but Kinkaid only won 6 games in 19 played. The lack of a capable backup could lead to problems in 2015-2016.
The lack of overall depth combined with the new system will cause the Devils to come in last in the Metropolitan Division and miss the playoffs. This isn’t all bad, they will be in the Auston Matthews sweepstakes which could bring a top 6 forward immediately to the team.