The way this season panned out after making the playoffs last year has raised some question about how far along the New Jersey Devils truly are in the rebuild. Most of these concerns ultimately point toward General Manager Ray Shero, who has orchestrated the rebuild over the last four seasons.
Yes, the Devils have an identifiable foundation in place and Shero has acquired or drafted some solid players, but the team still has ways to go.
Understandably so, some fans are already questioning whether or not Ray Shero is truly the right person to make the New Jersey Devils a winning organization again. Those who defend Shero point to his years in Pittsburgh and how they became the perennial powerhouse they are today under his watch.
While it’s justifiable to question Shero’s progress after New Jersey’s considerable step back this season, you can’t really compare his Pittsburgh years with his tenure in New Jersey because they are essentially two different situations. When Shero was hired by Pittsburgh after the 2005-06 season, the organization already had core players like Marc-Andre Fleury, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin and of course, Sidney Crosby, all of whom were drafted by Shero’s predecessor Craig Patrick.
All Shero had to do was continue building around the framework Craig Patrick already set in place. Yes, Shero made some decent signings and big trades to polish his teams off, but he was handed an all-star foundation on a silver platter. In New Jersey, on the other hand, Shero essentially had to start from scratch. He didn’t have the luxury of inheriting two franchise centers, an all-star defenseman and a genuine starting goaltender, which are more often than not, vital components for a championship team.
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It’s worth reminding the doubtful and disenchanted New Jersey Devils fans that Shero, for the most part, has done well for himself. He revitalized a once-bare prospect cupboard and brought in players capable of guiding this team back to playoff contention like Taylor Hall, Nico Hischier, Kyle Palmieri and Sami Vatanen. In addition, players like Damon Severson, who were with the organization before Shero arrived, have continued to grow and become integral parts of the team under his watch.
Having said that, Shero does deserve a large part of the blame for the way things went this year, for his frustratingly inactive offseason and taking for granted that certain players would continue to improve their play. Neither of these mistakes aren’t atypical for general managers of rebuilding teams to make and if anything, the ramifications help to more thoroughly identify the team’s most glaring needs to address this summer.
Simply put, what Shero is doing with the New Jersey Devils is a first for him in his career as a general manager. Like I said earlier, his years with Pittsburgh and New Jersey have been two different situations for him, during which he’s employed two totally different management strategies. Taking these factors into consideration, it’s understandable why we’re seeing these speedbumps and setbacks in New Jersey’s rebuild plan, along with the fact that there truly is no perfect formula for rebuilding a team.