The NHL season is currently on a ‘pause’ with no end in sight, but with 13 games still on the schedule, some New Jersey Devils are hoping they find a way to play those games.
This has been the most bizarre season in New Jersey Devils history, which has led to the season being one of, if not the worse one in franchise history. The expectations were high and the production was low. Everything looked like it was coming together, and the rebuild was supposed to be over, at least somewhat. If it wasn’t over, we were at least one season away from being playoff contenders.
Now, we’re staring another long rebuild right in the face. There are some pieces on this team, but a lot of them need to take another step or three in the right direction.
Quite a few of these players were starting to turn the corner after the start of the new year. We don’t know if it was because of a new coaching philosophy after John Hynes was fired, a fire put under them after Taylor Hall was traded, or maybe it was just settling in to New Jersey. Either way, they were looking forward to ending this terrible season on the right foot, so next season can start with some momentum.
We all know what happened next. The Coronavirus caused the NHL to suspend the season. Now, the entire season is up in the air, and we have no idea if we’ve seen the last games of this iteration of the New Jersey Devils. The owners would love to get these games in. For one, they’d have a fever pitch of Devils fans who are desperate for hockey. On top of that, they wouldn’t have to pay back all the down payments on suites and the tickets that are already paid for.
The owners aren’t the only ones who hope we can get some of this season back. Some very important players are in the same boat. These five likely hope the season starts sooner rather than later (once it becomes safe of course).