The New Jersey Devils are in a bad spot. It’s been another disappointing season, with the playoffs essentially out of the question after three straight losses going into the Olympic break. If they won even their last two games, they’d be five points out of a playoff spot. Instead, they are 11 points out and in second-to-last place in the Eastern Conference.
It has many unfavorable storylines surrounding the team, including who should be sold off the roster, but the one that is most upsetting for Devils fans is the one surrounding Jack Hughes.
Hughes missed the last few games after a minor injury last month. There was some hope he would return prior to the Olympic break, but it didn’t work out that way. The Devils' place in the standings likely drove that decision, but the reports stating he’s going to be ready for the start of the Olympics have angered some. It has many talking that Hughes is not committed to the Devils, and some are even taking it a step further.
However, that’s not where the focus should be. Jack Hughes has always been a good soldier for the Devils. He’s been proud to be in New Jersey and represented the state well. He has a new partnership with RWJBarnabas Health, and he started the Pucks and Pages charity to help kids in New Jersey get into reading.
Also, the Devils have Jack Hughes signed for four more years, and his brother Luke Hughes signed for six more years.
The Devils do have a star who is much closer to leaving, but we don’t talk about it much. Nico Hischier has one year left on his contract after this one. The captain can sign an extension this offseason, and many believe it’s inevitable. That should be considered far from the truth.
Nico Hischier's contract status make him a much bigger worry for the New Jersey Devils than Jack Hughes
Hischier has taken a lot of this season incredibly hard. We can see it on his face that there’s a ton of frustration. Is it possible he might be looking at a way to avoid this frustration?
After all, Hischier has been with the Devils for nine seasons, and he’s seen the playoffs three times. He’s won one playoff series. While it was an epic series against the Rangers, he’s won three playoff games outside of that. Last season, the Devils had basically no shot against the Carolina Hurricanes last season with all their injuries.
Is it out of the question for Hischier to want to play out next season before making a decision on his contract?
We don’t even know who will be negotiating his contract. He might not even have a head coach by July 1st.
We talk about Hughes, but barring the extreme move of demanding a trade (which would be odd since his brother is here), Hischier is the one Devils fans should be worried about.