Mason Geertsen
The New Jersey Devils claimed Mason Geertsen off waivers right before the season started from the New York Rangers, and he spent the entire season on the NHL roster. He did his job, which is to hit people and fight and all that. He didn’t do much else. He got into 25 games this season, and he had zero points. No matter what he provides to this team in terms of toughness, a team can’t afford to have a player with zero points on the roster.
Geertsen made his NHL debut with the Devils this season. The former fourth-round pick spent seven years in the minor leagues before he was given his shot on an NHL roster. He had a few good chances at the end of the season, but never scoring is always going to stand out.
The Devils fanbase would revolt if they brought back Geertsen. He seems like a great locker room guy, and we don’t want to say anything bad about him because he appears to be a legit good dude, but like Kurtis Gabriel before him, Geertsen is going to be a one-hit wonder on the roster. In fact, it’s likely this will be the most time he spends on an NHL roster for the rest of his career.
Geertsen is going to keep playing hockey until he runs out of leagues to play in. He’s fought his way up from the ECHL to the NHL. He was able to make his entire upside on his contract, taking home $725,000 before taxes. It takes some people 14 years to make that kind of money. He made life-changing money, and he was able to live out a dream. We’re happy for him, but it’s not enough to warrant another year in New Jersey.