Pucks and Pitchforks
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3 New Jersey Devils Players Who Won’t Be Back Next Season

By Vincent Parise

NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - DECEMBER 09: Tomas Tatar #90 of the New Jersey Devils skates in warm-ups prior to the game against the New York Islanders at the Prudential Center on December 09, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - DECEMBER 09: Tomas Tatar #90 of the New Jersey Devils skates in warm-ups prior to the game against the New York Islanders at the Prudential Center on December 09, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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This has been a tremendous season for the New Jersey Devils. People were expecting them to be better than they’ve been in recent memory, but nobody expected them to win 50 for only the second time in franchise history. There is a chance that they could break the franchise record for wins in a regular season this week as the regular season comes to a close. That would certainly be really cool to see.

A lot of players have had career years with New Jersey. Most of these players having their best season ever are in their early 20s, so we should expect them to only get better from here.

What about the veterans who are on expiring contracts? There is a chance that some of them will be brought back, but they certainly won’t all be back. It could go any way but these three are the most likely to be heading into their final two games with the New Jersey Devils:

1. Tomas Tatar

Tomas Tatar has been a great player for the New Jersey Devils this year.

The New Jersey Devils didn’t get the best version of Tomas Tatar in 2021-22 as the rest of the team wasn’t very good around him. However, he was amazing with a great team around him in 2022-23. You can absolutely say that he has been important to this team.

However, it is hard to justify bringing back a guy heading into his mid-30s with even more youth on the way as an organization. There is a real chance that these are his last games with the Devils.

Tatar has found chemistry with Nico Hischier on the top line. For that reason, you’d think that they consider bringing him back, but it doesn’t feel likely at this time.

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