5 Realistic Goals For New Jersey Devils This Season

Hit Hockey .500

The New Jersey Devils just missed hitting hockey .500 last season, finishing the season 28-29-12. It still wasn’t a good season, so maybe hockey .500 isn’t the best bar to chase, but this team has to start somewhere. There are going to be losing streaks, so the Devils have to put together wins around those streaks in order to put a winning culture in place.

The Devils need to show that something is working here. If they are one of the worst teams in the league yet again, then it’s another wasted year of Jack Hughes’ entry-level contract, another wasted year of this team’s youth in general, and a completely wasted year of Blackwood’s dominance.

For those who are unaware, hockey .500 is different from traditional .500. Basically, take out the overtime losses (since they basically equal half of a win since the team gets a point), and then get to .500 in all other games. Hockey .500 roughly comes out to one point per game.

The Devils can absolutely get a point per game. So far this season, they are above that mark. Obviously, they’ve done that without Hischier, Bratt, Vatanen, and now Blackwood. Eventually, they will all be back. The Devils have done well playing without stars in the past, outside the year they didn’t have Taylor Hall. Getting to .500 would mean the Devils are finally moving in a direction we can all accept. It shows that Tom Fitzgerald can make certain moves to improve the roster now instead of only looking at down the line. The most important of those decisions is the contract of Kyle Palmieri.