The New Jersey Devils offense is in a bad way right now. They were blanked by John Gibson and the Anaheim Ducks earlier in the week, and then they didn’t have the best offensive effort against the Los Angeles Kings. Alex Holtz was added to the roster to try and get things going, but it did not work. The offense found a way to tie it in the third to steal a point, but defensive lapses ended things in overtime.
It’s clear the Devils are in bad shape while Hamilton and Hughes are both out. Hopefully, Hamilton returns sooner rather than later, but we know Hughes is out until at least the middle of December. It might be time for Tom Fitzgerald to make a move. There’s a good chance that one bad month takes a team out of the running in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils have 12 more games in the month of November. They probably have 16 games before they even sniff a Jack Hughes return.
If the Devils only win five or six of those 16 games, it might put them too far down in the standings. They are already tied with the Penguins for last in the Metro. They have scored the least amount of goals in the division. The team was on its way the first two games of the season, but losing Hughes put the forward lines in serious flux. Lindy Ruff hasn’t found a line combination he likes.
Adding some high-quality trade candidates could save this team from embarrassment. Some forwards are still available, and if the Devils are willing to make big moves, they can make these trades.