New Jersey Devils Should Look No Further Than Pittsburgh

The New Jersey Devils are currently working on becoming a team that has long-term success. The Pittsburgh Penguins have been a model of consistency as they bring their team to the Prudential Center.

The New Jersey Devils have been down for most of the past few seasons. One team that cannot say the same is the Pittsburgh Penguins. You can make the argument that the Penguins were the most consistently good team in the National Hockey League during the 2010s. They come to Newark Tuesday night likely going to the playoffs again.

When you think of the Pittsburgh Penguins, you think of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. The Penguins know how to develop their really high draft picks and surround them with great players so everyone can maximize their talents.  This is something that the New Jersey Devils need to figure out how to do with their guys.

The Penguins won the lottery in 2005 so the can draft Sidney Crosby one year after selecting Evgeni Malkin with the second-overall pick. The Devils obviously drafted Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes with the first-overall pick in 2017 and 2019 respectively, so they are working on becoming stars as well.  They may never get to the all-time great level that Crosby and Malkin are, but it’s way too early to say they can’t. The thing that is most important for guys like that is to keep developing their game.

The key isn’t just to the stars playing well either. You need to surround your stars with good NHL talent so they can all get the most out of each other. The Devils already have a few of those types of players but they need more. They need to keep developing the ones they already have while making sure that they are smart in this upcoming draft.

This game against the Devils is important for Pittsburgh. They are in a three-way duel with the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals for the top of the Metropolitan Division and home ice in the first round. The Devils are going to be looking to try to play spoiler here.