The Devils have undergone quite a few changes in the off-season. In terms of departures, they lost Simon Nemec, Jacob Markstrom, and a couple of depth forwards. The far more interesting transactions are on the addition side of things -- the Devils have injected two top-six forwards in Anthony Mantha and Luke Evangelista, as well as bottom-nine forwards in Evan Rodrigues, Amadeus Lombardi, and Jesper Boqvist. On defense, they acquired Declan Chisholm, while they seem slated to run a three-goalie rotation that includes one of David Rittich or Remi Poirier.
All of these additions to the roster are undeniably good ones -- each and every player has legitimate upside and should provide the Devils with four lines and three pairs of strong playdrivers and possession-controllers.
That said, an adjustment period should be expected. Each of the four Devils' lines has a newcomer on it -- Mantha seems slated to play alongside Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt on the top line; Evangelista will be a staple on the second line with Nico Hischier and Timo Meier; Rodrigues is currently centering Dawson Mercer and Arseny Gritsyuk on the third line; and Lombardi is going to make his NHL debut on the fourth line with Cody Glass and Stefan Noesen.
With each line having a fresh face, there will be no three-player chemistry holdovers entering 2026-27; no full group with year-over-year experience together. As much as player duos like Jack and Bratt, Hischier and Meier, and Gritsyuk and Mercer have built chemistry over the seasons, adding a fresh, new player with a fresh, new playstyle and fresh, new habits is going to be a process.
In particular, Mantha's adjustment to playing with No. 63 and No. 86 should be one that requires patience. Keeping pace with those two, both physically and mentally, is an incredibly difficult task, and we saw glimpses of that adjustment in preseason. Mantha looked to be a step behind, to the point where Connor Brown offered him some sage advice.
The same goes for Evangelista on the second line, Rodrigues on the third line, and Lombardi and Boqvist on the fourth line. New teammates and new systems are difficult to adjust to, which means that the Devils forwards who are already familiar with each other and the coaching staff will need to nurse newcomers up to speed.
Even if the Devils get off to a good start, it's more likely than not that the best version of the lineup is still a number of weeks away.
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