New Jersey Devils Can Focus On Simon Nemec and Luke Hughes Next Season

With free agent frenzy quickly approaching, the New Jersey Devils may look to do some cost-cutting measures on defense. There are several reasons why spending less on the blue line makes sense. John Marino and Dougie Hamilton proved to be the offensive and defensive stalwarts on the right-handed side. Marino has been the two-way phenom that has proven to be key since joining the Devils. (Still can’t believe they got him for Ty Smith and a 2023 3rd-round pick.)

There are options in house that won’t cost much to replace some of the other players who are unrestricted free agents. It starts with the superstar prospects.

Simon Nemec, RHD

Having a young phenom out of Slovakia in Simon Nemec is probably gonna be the most key piece on the right-hand side. He has the offensive abilities to become a fan favorite. Nemec also brings a physical presence and is a key power-play defenseman. He has improved his defensive side over the past three seasons. Playing with the Slovak national teams definitely helped. His improvements in Utica have been a key to him being the successor in New Jersey.

Simon Nemec will likely play with either Kevin Bahl or Jonas Siegenthaler, as they take on a more defensive role. Having Nemec playing with one of those two big defensemen would help increase offensive zone manipulation keeping the puck in longer to help get shots off more into traffic. If all fails to not keep the puck in on the offensive zone, a player of Nemec’s skating speed and agility can drawback swiftly to prevent a lot of breakaways.

Luke Hughes, LHD

After seeing Ryan Graves show kinks in his armor this postseason, he lost more of his defensive luster. Those rebounds, lost defensive assignments, and not cleaning out his own end was brutal to watch in big opportunities. On the flip side, seeing Luke Hughes showing his speed, poise, stamina, and his ability to win puck battles was amazing.

Hughes may not be a physical guy like Kevin Bahl. However, he has some size to his frame. Add that to his endurance, speed, agility, smarts, and wits to get loose in all zones, and this is as close to a total package as a 19-year-old gets. He did have a few misreads vs. the Carolina Hurricanes, but he did have two assists in the Devils’ lone win against the Canes. Hughes has shown he can handle his own after making the D-1 NCAA route to NHL rather smoothly.

There will be growing pains in the next season for the young studs. The Devils are likely replacing Graves and Damon Severson with two rookies. Plus, the Devils power play could see a nice jump with these young men looking to make their mark and being hard to defend. Speaking of defending, Luke Hughes like his eldest brother Quinn Hughes has the ability to thwart opponents from gaining a full-on breakaway and bailing out his fellow netminder with his given talent that is so Scott Niedermayer-like.

Hot Take & Perspective

Tom Fitzgerald doesn’t need to make a big NHL free agent signing on the blueline to allow the current young defensemen like Bahl, Luke Hughes, and Simon Nemec to take over the reins. The Devils GM has enough on his plate, looking to extend Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt. A cheap signing like Garnet Hathaway could be a nice low-key physical playoff veteran move to make.

If the Devils don’t get a Hathaway or Tyler Bertuzzi, they end up making a low-key trade in Ross Colton to help bolster their bottom six unit with more playoff experience, adding a New Jersey native to the roster. If Andrew Brunette does become the new head coach, look for certain players from his time with the Florida Panthers and the Minnesota Wild to possibly join the New Jersey Devils roster as well.