The New Jersey Devils let Tom Fitzgerald go this week after six years as GM and two years as President of Hockey Operations. Now, the Devils are looking at a few interesting names for GM, including Sunny Mehta and former captain Jamie Langenbrunner. Brendan Shanahan, who started and finished his playing career with the Devils, seems to be the frontrunner for the President role.
The Devils are making moves to fill these roles. They are one of three teams currently looking for a GM. The other two are the Toronto Maple Leafs and Nashville Predators.
Barry Trotz announced months ago that he was planning to step down at the end of this season. It gave top executives months to assess the position and see if it was for them.
Tom Fitzgerald has been tied to the Nashville Predators job
There have been rumors for months that Tom Fitzgerald was at least considering the job. The Devils' season was already going in the wrong direction, and it felt likely that, at the very least, the Devils’ ownership wouldn’t be devastated if Fitzgerald was ready to move on.
Many thought Fitzgerald would be fine with moving on because he had this Predators job in the bag. Who cares about leaving one job when there’s another on the horizon? Heck, with the no taxes in Tennessee compared to New Jersey taxes, he might be getting a raise.
Maybe we shouldn’t act as if this is a guarantee. Trotz did something crazy by asking for Carolina Hurricanes GM Eric Tlusky’s permission to speak with… him. They asked for an active GM to speak on their open position.
Some might say that’s just Trotz and the Predators playing games with the situation since Fitzgerald is locked in, but we think it’s another example of Trotz using Fitzgerald as bait.
The Predators used the Devils as bait on multiple occasions, including trade negotiations for Ryan O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Juuse Saros. None of those players became Devils. That’s because the Devils were the bait. Trotz even said as much when the Devils needed a goalie in 2024.
What’s to stop him from giving one last “got ya!” on his way out? Nothing, to be honest. David Poile is where Fitzgerald’s loyalty lies. Maybe he thought that would transfer to Barry Trotz, but it just didn’t. Fitzgerald is probably still the leader in the odds, but we wouldn’t be floored if anyone else took that position.