The New Jersey Devils are a contender with flaws. They are living and dying with a good goaltending performance, a good defensive unit, and a superstar forward who seems to be putting the offense on his back. Does this sound familiar?
A lot of the 2024-25 New Jersey Devils have similar features to the 2017-18 Devils. Their defense is mostly fine, especially when Jonas Siegenthaler is there, and the goaltending has more than lived up to their function. Jack Hughes is carrying this team's offense. On Wednesday, he was once again the only Devils' player to score a goal. He's 11th in scoring this season. Nico Hischier is a much better partner now than he was for the 2017-18 Devils, but the team has a lot of similarities.
The one thing about the 2017-18 season the Devils want to avoid, besides the first-round exit, is the Michael Grabner trade. It was the one and only trade ever made between the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers. The Hudson River Rivals put their differences aside and sent Grabner to the Devils for a second-round pick and Yegor Rykov. Grabner wasn't always a big scorer, but he was enjoying it that season. That is, until he joined the Devils. He had two goals over his final 21 games.
There are a few players this season that could be a similar type of trap. The Devils cannot take those kinds of risks when the bottom six is already having enough trouble putting the puck in the net.
1. Rickard Rakell
Pittsburgh Penguins
We’ve already mentioned the issues that come with Rickard Rakell. For one, the Pittsburgh Penguins are going to ask for the moon in return for Rakell. He’s one of their best assets, but he’s having the best season of his career. He has 25 goals, so most expect him to easily pass 30 this season. Yet, he’s a primed candidate to fall off a map if he doesn’t go in another perfect situation. Right now, he’s playing with Sidney Crosby. Maybe it would work out just as well if they staple him to Jack Hughes, but after seeing how he played at the 4 Nations Face-Off, there have to be some serious concerns for the Devils.