The New Jersey Devils announced that they gave defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler a brand new contract. His deal is going to age like a fine wine.
The New Jersey Devils have been missing out on a lot of the big names they’ve been targeting this offseason. They didn’t get Johnny Gaudreau of Matthew Tkachuk. Kevin Fiala went to the Los Angeles Kings. They did sign Ondrej Palat long term, and they added John Marino in a trade, sending Ty Smith as the major piece the other way. They also signed Andrew Brunette to be the associate head coach, which might be Tom Fitzgerald’s best move this offseason.
However, the signing of Jonas Siegenthaler might be a close second. He signed to a phenomenal five-year deal paying him an average of $3.4 million per season.
Jonas Siegenthaler supremacy.
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) July 26, 2022
📰: https://t.co/lC0lgRhWNl pic.twitter.com/uAUw5D88RJ
Siegenthaler was one of the biggest and most pleasant surprises of last season. After the Devils traded a third-round pick to get him near the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline, a move that was somewhat questionable at the time, he turned into the Devils most reliable defenseman this season.
The Devils have made strides to improve the blueline in recent seasons. They signed Dougie Hamilton to a seven-year deal in free agency last season. They traded for Ryan Graves on top of Siegenthaler. Somehow, they’ve kept Damon Severson despite the bevy of rumors about his impending departure. Then, they drafted Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec with top-five picks in back-to-back NHL Drafts.
This move shows they believe the 25-year-old Siegenthaler is part of the solution on the Devils defense. It makes a lot of sense. While the position as a whole has looked to provide value with offense, Siegenthaler continues to play an old-school style that is still wildly effective in the NHL today.
Jonas Siegenthaler, signed to a 5x$3.4M extension by NJ, is a strong top four defensive defenceman. He put up excellent chance-suppression results in his first two seasons in a small role and then proved himself in a tough top four spot this year. #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/lItin7vsIO
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 26, 2022
Jonas Siegenthaler is a very good defensive defenseman who can absorb tough minutes. At $3.4 million, this comes in under market value #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/59sHTTz3jO
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) July 26, 2022
The Devils made the right move paying Siegenthaler now instead of waiting until next offseason. This locks down a defenseman who proved GM Tom Fitzgerald right. Players like that deserve to be rewarded. The Devils took the risk on the commitment, but players like this very rarely fall off the map.
Smith is an example of a defenseman who is volatile. His offensive ability usually gives him an out, but his value plummets as soon as the mistakes pile up. Siegenthaler doesn’t make many mistakes. In fact, his game is built on suppressing them. That’s why he will fit right into the future of this defense.