{"id":555942,"date":"2026-04-19T11:02:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T11:02:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555942\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T11:02:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T11:02:51","slug":"the-new-jersey-devils-are-making-a-smart-bet-on-sunny-mehta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555942\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Jersey Devils are making a smart bet on Sunny Mehta"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The New Jersey Devils started their pivotal off-season with a bang, hiring Sunny Mehta as the team\u2019s new General Manager.<\/p>\n

There was a competitive market for Mehta \u2013 the resource-heavy Toronto Maple Leafs were rumored to be highly interested \u2013 but he opted to rejoin his hometown team.<\/p>\n

Whether or not the Devils opt to fill any high-level front office positions, Mehta will serve as the lead decision-maker. It\u2019s his team.<\/p>\n

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Elliotte Friedman@FriedgeHNIC<\/p>\n

Mehta will be the hockey operations decision maker for the Devils. No immediate decisions on head coach Sheldon Keefe or any other staff. He will take time to evaluate. Media conference for introduction on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

11:28 PM \u00b7 Apr 16, 2026 \u00b7 172K Views<\/p>\n

47 Replies \u00b7 149 Reposts \u00b7 1.39K Likes<\/p>\n

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To say the Devils are in good hands would be an understatement.<\/p>\n

Mehta spent the past six years with the powerhouse Florida Panthers. He served as a VP of Hockey Strategy from 2020-23 before being promoted to assistant GM for the last three years.<\/p>\n

The Panthers qualified for the playoffs in five of six seasons, with this injury-plagued year being the only outlier.<\/p>\n

Florida won at least one playoff round in four of their five playoff appearances and made it to the Finals three times.<\/p>\n

The Panthers are one of the most well-run organizations in the sport so there\u2019s plenty of people who deserve credit for the past handful of years.<\/p>\n

Mehta is definitely one of them. Bill Zito did not make a move without running it by Mehta for his thoughts<\/a>. <\/p>\n

We don\u2019t need anyone else to tell you about Mehta\u2019s importance and skillset. Zito will do it himself (via NHL.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just liked him genuinely, as a person,\u201d Zito said. \u201cAnd then professionally, I think there\u2019s a lot of bright people, but he has an uncanny ability to digest incredible amounts of information rapidly regurgitate them, simplify them, and then project them back out to whoever his audience is. That\u2019s a remarkable skill there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s probably many people who can see things the way he sees them or calculate the way he calculates, but probably not interact with others, and then subsequently, develop those ideas and refine them. I think one of his greatest strengths.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some will rain on the Mehta parade, arguing it doesn\u2019t take a genius or model to know Aleksander Barkov or Matthew Tkachuk are great players you want at the top of your depth chart. And that\u2019s true.<\/p>\n

Where Mehta\u2019s progressive and data-driven approach can be especially helpful is finding buy-low opportunities on players or inefficiencies in the draft.<\/p>\n