New Jersey Devils Confirm Lindy Ruff Returns As Head Coach

The New Jersey Devils have a lot to figure out this offseason. The Timo Meier and Jesper Bratt contract negotiations are tops among their issues, but one of the most important decisions Tom Fitzgerald must tackle was the fate of the team’s head coach. It’s not often that teams have to make decisions on coaches when they are actively nominated for the Jack Adams Award, but that is the situation the Devils find themselves with Lindy Ruff.

That’s because Fitzgerald let Ruff coach in the final year of his contract. This is what some call a “lame-duck” coach, but it’s hard to disagree with what Fitzgerald did. Ruff didn’t really do anything in his first two years to deserve an extension. At the same time, it definitely wasn’t his fault the Devils were near the end of the standings. They had seven goalies. None of them played well.

However, there was serious development in year two under Lindy Ruff’s system. Jack Hughes looked like a budding superstar. Nico Hischier‘s ceiling was growing. He looked like a legit two-way scorer for the first time in his career. Jesper Bratt led the team in points with 73. The defense finally looked like they could be something instead of one of the worst units in hockey.

So, the Devils signed on for one more season of development. It started off terribly, but it quickly turned around. Most of us have heard enough discourse on the “Fire Lindy-Sorry Lindy” dynamic. Every national broadcaster couldn’t get enough of it. It does show how quickly Ruff turned this team around.

After going 0-2-0 to start the year, Ruff led the Devils to a franchise-best 52 wins and 112 points. Only the Carolina Hurricanes and Boston Bruins had better records. He lost the Metropolitan Division by one point. It would be the first time the Devils ever won this division.

In the playoffs, the Devils beat the New York Rangers largely on the decision of Lindy Ruff. Sure, he made the wrong decisions in Games 1 and 2, but fixing those decisions couldn’t be easy. He put Akira Schmid in the starter’s net, took Miles Wood and Brendan Smith out of the lineup, and he made minor adjustments to the penalty kill.

The Devils ended up beating the Rangers in the first round. That sealed his fate if he wanted it. Fitzgerald was going to bring Ruff back for another run after he proved he could take this team to new heights. He could have decided to look at other opportunities, since his contract was technically up. Yet, it’s probably best for everyone to stick around.

During his final press conference, Fitzgerald made it clear who his coach was. As reported by Devils Senior Producer Sam Kasan, Ruff will absolutely be back behind the bench.

“He’s still the right coach for this group. He deserves that. We deserve him. He’s a great partner for me and those kids love him.”

The contract isn’t done yet. That will be something these two have to figure out. What really is hard for the two is probably the length of the contract. Coaching contracts are fully guaranteed. That means getting fired leaves one with a free salary unless they take another job. This is probably Ruff’s last job since he’s already 63 years old. He’s looking to solidify his legacy, but the Devils want to make sure they aren’t signing up for a lost cost.

Either way, Ruff proved he deserved another shot with this roster. This might mean the Devils lose Andrew Brunette to another opportunity. That’s fine. It’s part of doing business. With success comes losses. Players will sign bigger contracts elsewhere, and coaches will get opportunities to run their own staff. It is what it is, but Fitzgerald said he planned to meet with Brunette to see what’s next.