New Jersey Devils: Predicting Tom Fitzgerald’s Goals For This Season
The New Jersey Devils come into this season with different goals for Tom Fitzgerald than they had in his first full season as GM. They spent to the moon this offseason, and they have a core of young players who should become stars. Going all in on Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Graves, Tomas Tatar, and Jonathan Bernier shows the Devils are expected to be much, much better.
So far, things haven’t exactly worked out as planned. Both Bernier and Mackenzie Blackwood are out with injuries. Jack Hughes is also down with a major shoulder injury. The team is having trouble starting games off, and the special teams still seem to be an issue. Still, their record stands at 3-2, and they showed fight in their loss to the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night.
What are Tom Fitzgerald’s goals for the New Jersey Devils this season?
Every year, general managers set personal and team goals before the season starts. The importance of those goals depends on the GM, the team, and the situation the team is facing. This Devils team isn’t facing a make-or-break season by any means, but they are facing more expectations than they are used to.
This Devils team isn’t expected to compete for a Stanley Cup like the Toronto Maple Leafs or Tampa Bay Lightning. It’s not even a requirement the team makes the playoffs with how good the Metropolitan Division is. However, it is expected to make strides, and there are a few other goals on the list Fitzgerald likely has on his list.
Tom Fitzgerald’s Goal: Make Jack Hughes A Superstar
This one probably works better before his shoulder injury, but it’s clear who stirs the drink in Newark. Jack Hughes is the best player on the Devils, and it’s becoming not close. Nico Hischier is a former number-one overall pick and the captain of the team, but the skill and ability of Hughes are untouchable. He is going to take the Devils to the ceiling if they are going to make it there.
Right not, Hughes is only considered “getting better” but there is no timetable for him to return to the ice. He avoided surgery, which is good, but he still separated his shoulder. It takes time to recover from that.
The injury really puts a damper on this season, at least the start. Hughes is facing his most important season as a hockey player. He’s in his contract year where he might learn how much money he is going to make for the next eight years of his life. He’s also in his third year in the NHL and he could establish himself as a superstar in the year where the NHL has the most eyes because it’s the first year of the league’s deal with ESPN and TNT. People are watching, and people who never watched hockey before are giving it a shot. They are choosing new favorite players, and Hughes has a chance to turn people into Devils fans.
Once Hughes comes back, the Devils and Fitzgerald need to put him in the best possible situation to succeed. Yegor Sharangovich has struggled without Hughes, and Janne Kuokkanen doesn’t look like a top-line forward without him. We know that Hughes can elevate players, but the Devils shouldn’t ask him to. They need to set the stage for him to become a superstar with the best possible linemates around him.
Tom Fitzgerald’s Goal: Make A Huge Trade
Tom Fitzgerald is more open about his goals and desires to make the team better than other GMs around the league, but he’s still never going to come out and just say “I want to make a trade.” That would take away a lot of his leverage in negotiations. Still, internally, Fitzgerald has to have the goal to make a big trade.
There are a lot of teams in desperation mode right now. The Toronto Maple Leafs, Lightning, Montreal Canadiens, Chicago Blackhawks, and Vegas Golden Knights are all facing disastrous starts. There’s a chance they all might be willing to overpay to find a solution the Devils can help them with, or they might be in a position where they want to unload a player who doesn’t seem to be working. Either way, the Devils can take advantage.
There are also the superstar names the Devils might have targeted before the season but just didn’t work out. The name that seems to make the most sense is Vladimir Tarasenko. He has six points in five games including three goals. Doesn’t seem like the shoulder is bothering him too much to start the year.
There are other trades Fitzgerald at least discussed prior to the season. How far they went is anyone’s guess, but he knows which teams were willing to deal which players and for generally what price. He knows which phone calls to make if he wants to get a deal done.
Tom Fitzgerald Goal: Find A Rhythm In Net
.900 .857 .887 .882 .903 .891
Those are the save percentages of New Jersey Devils goalies not named Mackenzie Blackwood over the past three seasons. That represents Scott Wedgewood, Aaron Dell, Cory Schneider (twice), Louie Domingue, and Keith Kinkaid. That’s a pathetic stretch of goaltending from a team that has a history of dominance at the position.
Obviously, the injuries to Cory Schneider really derailed his career, and it was upsetting to watch it happen. None of it is his fault, it’s really his hip’s fault. However, it was clear it wasn’t going to get better, so one of Fitzgerald’s first moves after getting the full-time GM job was to cut Schneider loose and buy out the remainder of his contract. There were two years left at $6 million. While the Devils could have afforded to just eat the deal, it made more sense for all parties to just move on.
Fitzgerald tried to fix the situation right away by signing Corey Crawford. He never played a game with the Devils despite signing a two-year deal. He retired during training camp. So, let’s try this again. The Devils signed Jonathan Bernier to a two-year deal this offseason.
Right now, the Devils starting goalies are Nico Daws and Scott Wedgewood. That’s not ideal since Blackwood and Bernier are hurt, but hopefully, they both come back soon. Then, the Devils can get into a rhythm in net, and this duo can steal a few games.
Tom Fitzgerald Goal: Figure Out Lindy Ruff’s Long-Term Future
Lindy Ruff has been fine as the New Jersey Devils head coach. He got a lot out of some of his players last season, seemed to put together an offense to allow former busts Michael McLeod and Pavel Zacha to thrive, and he has the team looking less like a laughing stock (Tuesday’s first period notwithstanding). Ruff was a fine hire despite the backlash the Devils felt when they announced it.
Let’s start with this, short of a ten-game losing streak or something unimaginable, the Devils aren’t getting rid of Lindy Ruff this season. He hasn’t done anything that would force Fitzgerald’s hand like that. Everyone seems to like having him on the bench. That being said, Ruff does have something to prove this year.
Last season went off the rails. It wasn’t Ruff’s fault. He was coaching while he was at high risk for a deadly disease that was spreading across the world and across his locker room. He gets a mulligan for the standings of last season. This season, Ruff needs to show progress on the roster. The penalty kill can’t be historically bad. The power play needs to show serious improvement. Players need to grow exponentially, and Ruff needs to show he can find the right partnerships.
Ruff had weird starts to both seasons. He likes to put lines in a blender similar to what John Hynes did, which frustrated Devils fans because of the lack of chemistry. To Ruff’s credit, he seems to go back original lines to build that chemistry eventually.
Fitzgerald wants this Devils team to eventually become a Stanley Cup contender. That’s why you spend $9 million on Dougie Hamilton. If Ruff isn’t the guy who can win the Cup, Fitzgerald needs to figure out how long he wants Ruff as the head of the team.
Tom Fitzgerald Goal: Become A Playoff Contender All Season
The Devils have said this all offseason and during parts of the first five games. They want to compete for a playoff spot. Team leaders fall short of saying they expect to make the playoffs, but they hope to at least be in the mix during the last month of the season.
This might not sound like a lofty goal, but in the Metropolitan Division this season, things can go off the rails quickly. The Devils are hoping to avoid disaster. With the Columbus Blue Jackets starting the season hot, there is no bad team in the Metro as it currently stands. Every team has a winning record, and the Devils are actually in seventh place.
It’s way too early to actually look at the standings. January is probably the first time to see where the team is. That is unless things fall apart and they start to see themselves fall further and further out of the standings.
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The Devils need to show fight every night this season. Despite going down 4-0 on Tuesday, the Devils regrouped and took advantage of the Flames sitting back and letting them come back. It didn’t lead to any points in the standings, but at least they didn’t get the doors blown off. These types of performances can help the Devils learn and grow and get points in the future. This is how teams who are at the bottom of the standings learn how to become playoff contenders.