New Jersey Devils: How 2022 Offseason Moves Are Working Out So Far

Ondrej Palat and John Marino

For the first few weeks of the offseason, the Devils’ main target was Johnny Gaudreau. After he decided to go to Columbus to play with the Blue Jackets, Fitzgerlad got the next best player available in Ondrej Palat. The deal, while maybe a little overpaid, made sense for the team’s direction. By taking a core piece of the Lightning championship roster, you can get a veteran who can be very clutch in situations. However, he hasn’t done that much to impress yet. The biggest issue of Palat was the groin injury he suffered in late October that sidelined him for two months. Still, once he can find his place on a solid line in the lineup, he can probably be a key player for the next few months of the team.

Palat hasn’t been the only guy who has been having problems with injuries this year. The Devils acquired John Marino from the Penguins in the offseason via a trade that involved Ty Smith. Marino was a solid defensive piece for the team for the first two months of the season. He always was around making plays stopping chances from other teams from applying too much pressure. However, like Palat, he also suffered an injury. After a late December game against the Canes, Marino sustained an upper-body injury. Marino is currently sitting on the IR. Because of the injury, the Devils’ defensive core has become awful. The core has become so bad that the team suffers games. The most significant example was on January 26th in Nashville against the Predators. The Devils lost that game due to the terrible defense giving up constant odd-man rushes and breakaways. So, it’s clear the Devils need Marino back. Once he comes back, we can hope he plays as he did earlier in the season.