5 Former New Jersey Devils Who Could Become Coaches

The New Jersey Devils decided to move on from Mark Recchi and Alain Nasreddine as Lindy Ruff’s assistant coaches. In the past, they’ve leaned on its history to bring in new coaches. Could they do that again?

Coaching will be one of the biggest decisions the New Jersey Devils still need to make this offseason. Lindy Ruff is still technically the head coach, but that could change at any moment. Or it might not. Either way, the Devils need at least two new coaches on the staff for next season. There are a lot of decent options across the hockey universe. Over the past few years, the Devils leaned on those with experience in other franchises. However, that’s what they did with Mark Recchi, and that clearly didn’t work out.

Under Lou Lamoriello, it seemed the New Jersey Devils would constantly go with familiar names to become coaches. The most famous example was when Lamoriello hired Scott Stevens to help him run the bench after the firing of Peter DeBoer. That was a strange situation, but it was the clearest example of Lamoriello’s reliance on hockey people he trusted.

Now, there is a brand new regime in place. Tom Fitzgerald and Ray Shero before him did not rely on the former Devils as Lou did. The ownership group did bring in Martin Brodeur to work in the front office, a move that made perfect sense at the time. When it comes to the coaching staff, leaning on the past isn’t exactly the number one priority when it comes to full-time positions. There are plenty of “guest appearances” from former Devils stars, but when it comes to hiring, the team still leans on personnel from outside the organization.

What former New Jersey Devils players could become current New Jersey Devils coaches?

That might change this offseason. There are some interesting names out there that could be looking to become a New Jersey Devils head coach sooner rather than later.

Sergei Brylin

Let’s start with the obvious. This one might be cheating since Sergei Brylin has been coaching within the New Jersey Devils organization for nine years now, but he’s never done it at the NHL level. He followed the Devils’ AHL affiliate from Albany to Binghamton and now to Utica. He’s seen the team play terribly, and now he’s back to a team that’s actually pretty good. He’s getting a lot out of the team’s AHL roster, and he’s hoping to help the team make a comeback against the Rochester Americans in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Brylin has been in the AHL long enough to prove himself as an assistant coach. It would make a lot of sense for him to get the call up to the main roster.

Brylin is one of the few players who was on the roster for all three Stanley Cup wins. He’s someone who scratched and clawed his way into the NHL. Those are the types of players who become great NHL coaches. He can show a struggling player how to turn it around. He can put a star player in their place if need be. He has three Stanley Cup rings, so he demands respect whenever it is deemed necessary.

Brylin would come in and bring calm to the coaching staff. He knows what it takes to build a winner. He’s someone who can push the Devils in the right direction, and he’s someone we know the front office respects. This isn’t the same front office that won those three Stanley Cup rings, but they respect the past enough to honor it in the right ways. Sarge deserves a shot in the NHL, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to move up.

Travis Zajac

Travis Zajac signed a one-day deal with the New Jersey Devils this past season so he could retire with the team whom he spent more than 1,000 games with. Zajac was the last of his era. It was the waining connection to a team that went to the 2012 Stanley Cup Final. Martin Brodeur is long gone. So are Zach Parise, Ilya Kovalchuk, David Clarkson, and Adam Henrique. Andy Greene was the last player from that era who lasted on the team, but he was traded to the New York Islanders the season before.

The Devils brought Zajac in to help coach practices this season. He helped the team out in training camp, and then he came back in January to do the same. He would help coach drills, and it almost felt like a tryout at the time. In reality, it might have been Zajac still lives in the area and Lindy Ruff has a good relationship with him, so he asked him to come in to change things up when the Devils were a little desperate. Either way, Zajac was getting to know the coaching ranks.

Zajac spent a few games under Lindy Ruff before he was traded to the Islanders. He learned what his coaching style is, and the Devils clearly felt he could come in and teach these guys after he retired. He was another player who changed roles as his career progressed, so he knows what it’s like to be a first-line center like Jack Hughes or a third liner like Jesper Boqvist. He knows how to excel on the first power play and the penalty kill. He would be a great asset to this team’s coaching staff.

Zajac could come in and make a huge difference almost immediately. Whether it’s Ruff returning for another year or a whole new coaching staff, Zajac is a perfect fit. He’s stayed in New Jersey, as many former Devils do. He can easily become a coach without making major changes to his lifestyle.

Scott Stevens

Yes, we’re going there again. The Devils should never give up on the idea that Scott Stevens will one day return to be one of their assistant coaches. He was the team’s assistant coach from 2012 to 2015 when he stepped down from the role. Then, he returned just a few months later when Lamoriello fired Peter DeBoer. He was considered a co-head coach with Adam Oates and Lou Lamoriello.

Stevens was not retained on the staff when the Devils hired John Hynes to be their head coach. Instead, Hynes went with his guy Alain Nasreddine. Nas was here for seven years with varied results before he was let go this past season. We won’t call this a total mistake after how Stevens’ situation worked out, but it seems Stevens was getting more out of his defenses.

Stevens eventually went to the Minnesota Wild as an assistant coach, and he was really good for that franchise. He was even getting some head coaching buzz, but then out of nowhere, he stepped down. He made the decision to spend more time with his family. Who knows if there is more to that story.

Either way, it seems like Stevens is content with his life. However, if he ever does want to return to the franchise that brought him his Stanley Cups and bring them to the next era, it would work out well.

Andy Greene

This one comes with a lot of considerations. Andy Greene hasn’t technically retired yet. He did take a “lap” with Zdeno Chara to end the season with the Islanders. He spent two seasons on Long Island after spending the rest of his career with the Devils. The Islanders are looking for a new assistant coach after firing Barry Trotz and hiring Lane Lambert to be the head coach. Maybe Greene makes the easy transition there.

However, Greene’s time in New Jersey was more important. He was a long-time captain here. He had that run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2012. He spent 14 seasons with the Devils after they gave him a chance as an undrafted free agent. Greene saw a transition in New Jersey, and he helped the team in its time of need.

Sure, Greene didn’t have the success as captain that Scott Stevens had, but he was good at the role he was asked to do. Even when he was getting older and his skill set wasn’t what it used to be, the Devils still put him on the top line playing more than 20 minutes per night.

Who knows if this will transition into a good coaching role, but we’ve seen captains make the transition in the past. They already have to take a pseudo coaching role when they are the captain. They are looked upon as the player to go to when a coach isn’t an option. Now, they are that option. Greene seems like he’d be a good coach based on what we know about his career.