Thursday evening, it was announced by the New Jersey Devils that assistant coach Jeremy Colliton would be pursuing "other business opportunities," leaving them with another coaching vacancy as the new regime takes charge.
This comes less than a month after it was reported that Sheldon Keefe was remaining the head coach of the Devils entering 2026-27. In that same report, it was announced that goaltending coach Dave Rogalski would not be returning and that assistant coach Sergei Brylin would be moved to another, non-coaching position within the organization. It was presumed that Keefe's assistants, Colliton and Brad Shaw, would be staying put as well.
Colliton, 41, spent the last two seasons as an assistant to Keefe, where he oversaw the Devils' power play and forward corps. That unit finished 3rd in the NHL in 2024-25 and 13th in 2025-26. Prior to this, he was the head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks for four seasons, a position he earned from his time as the head coach of their AHL affiliate.
On the power play, the Devils had a near world-beating 2024-25 unit, one that generated underlying numbers strong enough to be in real consideration for the best power play unit of the modern era in terms of chance generation. This past season, they were likely snakebitten relative to their underlying metrics as well, given that New Jersey finished 3rd in the league in expected goals generated per hour (xGF/60), 3rd in shot attempts per hour (CF/60), and second in all of shots on goal per hour (SF/60), chances per hour (SCF/60), and high-danger chances per hour (HDCF/60).
Given that new Devils' GM Sunny Mehta has championed process-based analysis rather than overreaction to results, Colliton's departure comes as a bit of a surprise to be sure. Recent reports suggest that the "other business opportunities" are not NHL related, so it is crystal clear that this is a departure that the Devils' front office did not initiate.
Per the Devils, their search for a new power play and forward coach will start immediately. We can only assume that this position will be filled externally, given Utica's recent lack of success on the man advantage. Still, this is yet another hole the Devils need to solve entering next season.
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