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The New Jersey Devils were one of the great mystery teams in the NHL this season. They had a roster that included Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier as the centers on the top two lines, and they are both game-changing players.
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Those two are stars for New Jersey but they are not alone. The Devils have three other players in wings Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier along with defenseman Luke Hughes who are all under contract for multiple years.
Jack Hughes has a deal that will pay him an average of $8 million through the 2029-30 season. Bratt ($7.9 million) and Meier $8.8 million) are under contract through 2030-31, while Luke Hughes will be paid an average of $9 million through 2031-32. Hischier is the only member of that core who does not have a long-term deal. He will earn $7.25 million, but his contract concludes with the 2026-27 season.
Hischier needs to be extended but that core gives new Devils general manager Sunny Mehta a very comfortable position to take the team up a couple of notches. The Devils finished the season with a 40-34-3 record, but they appear to have a much brighter future than the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers, both of whom surprisingly earned playoff positions.
Mehta must do some fine tuning to make sure they make the playoffs next year and possibly challenge the Carolina Hurricanes for Metropolitan Division superiority and then go on to a successful run in next year’s Stanley Cup playoffs.
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Free agency and the NHL Draft will help the Devils get there, but they must also target two key players to pursue in the trade market.
Trading for Boeser would be a solid move for the Devils
Adding a winger who can put the puck in the net with some regularity would be an ideal move for the Devils. Mehta needs to be looking at Brock Boeser of the Vancouver Canucks. Boeser has been held to 25 and 22 goals each of the past two seasons, but he was playing for a team that had little around him and had no chance of making it to the playoffs.
The belief here is that if he was on a contending team, he would have an excellent chance of getting back to the 40-goal level he was at during the 2023-24 season. Boeser was an All-Star that season and he was an excellent power play weapon as he scored 16 goals with the man advantage.
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The 28-year-old Boeser should still have several excellent seasons in front of him. He has a very quick release that allows him to get the best of opposing goaltenders and he also has the size and strength to establish himself iin front of the net. He can go to the dirty areas, take the hit and either deliver a shot on goal or pass to an open teammate.
While most teams want to add a first- or second-line center, the Devils don’t need to do that since they Hischier and Hughes. As a result, they should make a serious trade offer for Boeser, one of the better wingers who could be available with the right trade offer.
Devils could use help on defense and Ristolainen would fill the bill
Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
The Devils do not have an overly impressive defensive crew. Luke Hughes has a chance to join his brothers and become a legitimate star, but he is not there yet. The defenseman’s season ended prematurely when he suffered a shoulder injury and he underwent surgery. He is expected to be ready for the start of training camp in September.
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Dougie Hamilton has not been a great fit for the Devils and he was involved in numerous trade rumors prior to the deadline during the season. He could be involved in any trade the Devils make in the offseason.
The defenseman they need to take a look at is Rasmus Ristolainen of the Philadelphia Flyers. Ristolainen is a powerful man at 6-4 and 208 pounds. He can use his size and strength to neutralize some of the best forwards in the league.
In addition to showing his toughness with his ability to punish players who skate into the high-danger areas, he can use his stick adeptly to block shots and passes. He can make an impression as a defensive stalwart.
The 13-year veteran is not an offensive threat as he scored 1 goal and added 13 assists last season. That should not be a problem for the Devils because they have enough offensive weapons to get the job done.
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Ristolainen played eight years with the Sabres and just completed his fifth season with the Flyers. He clearly knows the Eastern Conference opponents the Devils will face on a regular basis. He could add quite a bit to the all-around game the Devils must play if they are going to make the playoffs and have a chance to go deep into the postseason.