New Jersey Devils: 5 Under the Radar Free Agent Options

James van Riemsdyk

Yeah, yeah, another New Jersey native getting tied to the New Jersey Devils despite never rooting for the team a day in their life. It’s a tale as old as time. New Jersey seems like this little world with a ton of hockey talent, and every time that talent makes the jump to the NHL, they eventually have ties to the Devils. It happened to John Carlson, Kevin Shattenkirk, Johnny Gaudreau, Bobby Ryan, Connor Clifton, and the latest is Ross Colton. It happens. However, James van Riemsdyk actually makes sense from a price point and roster construction.

The 34-year-old Middletown native has seen his numbers diminish every year he was with the Philadelphia Flyers, the team he actually rooted for as a kid. He got to live out his dream of playing for the orange and black, but it ended about as terribly as possible. He was part of a reported trade at the deadline, but that was not true. The organization came out and said there was no market for him.

Now, van Riemsdyk likely wants things as simple as possible. To the Devils credit, they’ve treated players mostly well. There have been some contentious contract situations, but they tend to always end on a positive note. JVR can play for a Stanley Cup contender without moving his stuff. He and his family could still live in Philly and play for the Devils. There’s a good chance he’s better than his numbers show, and a 20-goal player is in there somewhere. At this point of his career, he provides secondary scoring and power-play opportunities (he’s one year removed from a nine PP goal campaign).

On top of all that, JVR won’t cost a ton. Does anyone expect him to command more than $2.5 million per season? If the Devils offer him a two-year deal, they might get that number down to $2 million. His lack of market value at the deadline shows the league cooled on his value. Now, the Devils could swoop in and steal him.