3 Devastating Decisions New Jersey Devils Must Avoid This Offseason
The New Jersey Devils are facing a very important offseason. There are huge decisions to make if Tom Fitzgerald is going to make this a long-term competitor. After finally hitting the right note to make this a playoff team, the Devils are now trying to do it again and again and again.
We’ve seen many teams get their first taste of playoff success and do everything the team can to make it turn into a dynasty overnight. If it backfires, it could send a team back into a precarious spot where a rebuild or at least a retool might be necessary. The risk of that is not worth the reward of possibly making the right move when the team is this close.
This isn’t to say the Devils shouldn’t make any moves. However, they need to make only the right moves. Fitzgerald is facing a huge offseason, where he can become a Devils legend or a goat, and not in the Martin Brodeur way. Here’s the main things Fitzgerald should avoid.
1. Overpaying for a Goalie
The Devils finally got average goaltending this season thanks to the quick moves of Vitek Vanecek. Yes, we said average goaltending. The Devils do not have an elite goaltender in Vancek. He’s perfectly fine to get a team over the hump and to the playoffs. Once the playoffs start, that’s an issue.
Vanecek is likely not going to be the goalie that wins a Stanley Cup for the Devils. There is too much playoff history there to think it’s going to drastically change. Akira Schmid is the Devils best bet. He’s done it in the regular season and he’s done it in the playoffs. Was his series against the Carolina Hurricanes good? No, but it wasn’t as bad as it looked. He has the chops to eventually become a really good starter in this league.
It’s that reason why the Devils shouldn’t overreact and go all in on a goalie this offseason. There are players who are available. Connor Hellebuyck would be great, but he is going to cost a fortune for just one year of services, then his contract is going to be a killer as it starts with his 30-year-old season. John Gibson is available, but nobody really knows if he’s that good anymore. Frederick Andersen, Jonas Korpisalo, and Tristan Jarry are all free agents. That’s intriguing, but long-term deals might kill the development for the younger goalies. If something makes sense to bring an upgrade to the Devils for the short term arises, then the Devils should jump on it. However, a long-term deal for a goalie below superstar level presents itself, the Devils should stand pat.
2. Trading Jesper Bratt and/or Timo Meier
The New Jersey Devils two most important decisions this offseason are Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier. We cannot say it enough. It will come up over and over again until they both sign. It will be hard to sign either of them, as negotiations will drag on. Meier has a crippling $10 million qualifying offer that is holding things up, and if Bratt was going to sign for a decent number, the deal would have been done by now.
Devils fans have been calling for Bratt’s head for weeks now. His playoff performance did not help. However, this team is much better with Bratt on the roster than anyone that could come in Bratt’s place. We’ve seen the price of admission for superstar wingers. Kevin Fiala, Johnny Gaudreau, and Tyler Toffoli are really good comparables to Bratt. Their contracts are all over the map. However, arbitration looms large. If the Devils get there, that means Bratt will walk for nothing at the end of next season.
Meanwhile, Meier can sign that $10 million QO and also walk for nothing. It is a terrible situation that Fitzgerald found himself. Still, trading one of both of these assets is not the answer. The state of the Devils wingers is rough. If Bratt and Meier both leave and a superstar does not replace them, the Devils will have Ondrej Palat and Dawson Mercer as its top signed wingers.
The Devils have a hard decision, but paying both players a little more than comfortable is better than trading either piece. The Devils window just started, and they have two pieces who can grow within that window. That is too hard to find to mess up over money and cap space.
3. Another Big Money Free Agent
The Devils have given out huge contracts for the past two seasons, trying to get the big first in free agency. Last season, they tried to get Johnny Gaudreau, but they settled for Ondrej Palat. The season before, they signed Dougie Hamilton for a $9 million AAV.
We touched on this in the goalie slide, but the Devils should not be giving out big-money contracts this season. For one, they really can’t afford another long-term deal when they sign Meier and Bratt. Plus, this is a bad free agent crop. Players like Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko are going to make money on name value alone. Also, the Devils would pay a “former Rangers” tax to take them across the Hudson River.
Then, there’s Michael Bunting, who might still get himself a very lucrative deal after a successful season in Toronto. Max Pacioretty, Ryan O’Reilly, and James van Riemsdyk all fit into what the Devils probably want, but they will ask for more than a one-year deal, which is what the Devils should provide.
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The Devils should be looking at high-upside free agents willing to take a one-year deal. Players like Gustav Nyquist, Sean Monahan, and other players either coming off injury or looking to refurbish their careers. However, even giving one of the players on the market term beyond two years is a major mistake that could cost them. Just look at the Barclay Goodrow contract in New York. The Devils must avoid that, especially with Palat’s contract sneaking into scary territory very quickly.