Devils star Luke Hughes (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
With training camp just over two weeks away, New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald is still trying to lock up restricted free agent defenseman Luke Hughes.
In a recent one-on-one interview with RG, Fitzgerald gave an update on the contract negotiations with Hughes, and his agent, Pat Brisson, discussed navigating through the rising salary cap and approaching CBA extension, and what his team needs to do better this coming season.
Hughes And Devils Hoping To Avoid Another Mercer Situation
On the latest update with Luke Hughes’ contract talks:
“We’ll just continue to talk and present each other with ideas,” Fitzgerald replied.
“Eventually, this will get done. The 11th hour is training camp. Right? A lot of times, a lot of the stuff doesn’t get done until the 11th hour. We’re hoping we can get something done here in quick fashion, and both sides are working hard at it; that’s for sure.”
How much does Dawson Mercer’s contract holdout last year, and what happened with Jeremy Swayman and the Bruins, weigh on the mind of the Hughes camp and the team?
“It does weigh on us, and I’m sure Hughes and Pat [Brisson] (Hughes’ agent) too,” Fitzgerald acknowledged.
“At the end of the day, when really the only leverage the player has at this point in their career is holding out, that stinks. I don’t think anyone wins, quite honestly, when that happens. So Pat and I are trying hard to get this thing to come to some common ground.”
*It should be noted that after this was written, a report from NJ.com Devils beat reporter, Ryan Novozinsky stated that Hughes is looking for a five-year contract that would allow him to hit free agency in 2030, the same time his brother and teammate Jack does.
Navigating Through A Rising Salary Cap And The New CBA
How is the rising salary cap and new CBA extension affecting contract talks with Hughes and others going forward? Are you worried that some agents will force their clients to push for less term and more money so they don’t get locked in at a number now that could be a steal later?
“Well, yeah, I’m sure that’s the case, but as a team, you can’t ignore the present,” Fitzgerald pointed out. “The future is laid out for us via the league and what the cap is going to be. And again, you’re just trying to find common ground today that may work down the road for both parties, too, but you need to live in the present, and this is no different. They’re just looking out for Luke’s best interest, but the reality is you still have to stay in the present time and look at, in my opinion, the comps that are there.
Are fans and media forgetting that, regardless of the rising salary cap, most teams will have an internal cap?
“Absolutely,” Fitzgerald replied. “Not every team is built the same way. There’s only one Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers, and Toronto, and then everybody else tries to make money differently. Not every team has the same automatic revenue, and unless they can figure out creative ways to overcome that in other areas than just the game, they’re going to have internal caps.”
How much is this new landscape affecting the NHL trade market?
“I think the rising cap has affected the market because it has become more of a buyer’s market,” Fitzgerald pointed out. “The problem is that with more teams having the space, there are fewer sellers.”
Time For The Devils to go Inside
If and when Hughes signs, and you go into this season with your current blue line, what do you like about it?
“Well, I like the size. I like the hardness. I think we play the right way,” Fitzgerald said. “We box out in the corners. We’re harder at the net front, and we can move pucks up the ice. What can we improve on defensively? Can we close gaps earlier? Can we eliminate rush chances by closing the gap? Can we be tight in the offensive zone to create those gaps? More stingy, I guess, play more stingy and harder from a rush standpoint.”
How do you feel about the size and grit up front, and how can this forward group improve?
“When you talk about hardness and whatever, to me it’s simple. Do you get to the inside ice?” Fitzgerald asked. “That’s the hard ice. Can you get there? Do you want to get there where production happens? So I think we’ve grown a lot in that area. I mean, you look at Jesper Bratt himself, the amount of points he had and hits, I don’t know if they might’ve been one other guy who had those types of numbers and hits. So his game has grown, gets to the inside, he’s willing to finish his checks, create turnovers, and I think we’ve grown a lot in that area. I really do.
I think maturity comes along with that. The more you mature, the more you realize how this game is actually played in what is winning hockey versus kids’ hockey. It’s a man’s league and you’ve got to be manly to win, and you’ve got to get those areas of the ice that are hard. And with that being said, it is hard. They are hard areas, but this isn’t the 1980s and nineties anymore, or the seventies. It’s not that hard to do.
But I really like where our growth and our understanding of where the game is, where you win games from, and where you lose ’em from. It’s the same at both ends. Be harder at our net front, be harder at their net front.”