It sounds like there will be no New Jersey Devils players in the 2022 Winter Olympics because it appears there will be no NHL players at the Olympics at all. So which players are still young enough to make a bid for the 2026 Olympics?
It sounds like the dream of getting the NHL players to the Winter Olympics in Beijing, China is over. Reports across the league say that the NHL and NHL Players’ Association agreed going to the Olympics is not the smart choice. On Tuesday night, eight of the ten games on the schedule had to be postponed, and the rest of the league, including the New Jersey Devils, is going on an early Christmas break to deal with a massive COVID situation that’s out of control.
It’s a sad end to the dream of having players like Jesper Bratt represent Sweden, Jack Hughes represent the U.S.A. and Dougie Hamilton represent Canada for the first time. Now, we can only see these types of performances at the World Championships since it’s very unlikely the Devils will have any shot of making the playoffs this year.
The Devils are the youngest team in the NHL, and they still have a stellar prospect group outside of the NHL that is going to grow over the next four years. There is no telling who will be on the Devils in 2026, but there are a lot of players who are good bets to still be here. Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, and Dougie Hamilton are all signed through the 2025-26 season. The rest of the team is likely still going to be under Devils control.
This is going to be an interesting few years for the Devils who hope the team can see growth from a multitude of players. Which players might grow into becoming Olympians when the NHL sends players to Italy in 2026?