In spite of the New Jersey Devils' struggles this season, fans have been absolutely delighted to see their stars on the ice during the Winter Olympics.
Jack Hughes, Nico Hischer, Timo Meier, and Simon Nemec have all been impactful for their respective teams in the men's hockey tournament. Hughes' role on Team USA is growing thanks to his contributions to the third and fourth lines, Nemec is getting top-line minutes with Team Slovakia, and Meier has been Team Switzerland's offensive engine with seven points and three goals in four games. As for Hischer, he broke out in a major way on Tuesday morning with a goal and two assists, sending the Swiss to the quarterfinals as they beat Team Italy 3-0.
#NJDevils Nico Hischier’s first ever Olympic goal: pic.twitter.com/5SXsOZ597l
— Daniel Amoia (@daniel_amoia) February 17, 2026
Later in the day, Jesper Bratt and Jacob Markstrom will play in a do-or-die matchup against Latvia, giving them a chance to shine. In Markstrom's case, most signs point to him starting in net for this elimination game.
With so many of the Devils' key players not only playing but also directly contributing to their Olympic squads, it's fair to ask why this hasn't translated into their play in Newark. New Jersey has cratered to the bottom of the Eastern Conference heading into the break, being 20 points behind the first-place Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division and swept by the New York Islanders in their season series.
The Winter Olympics show that the Devils' core is not the problem
Because of how disappointing the 2025-26 season has been, some fans are questioning whether the Devils' nucleus of the Hughes brothers, Hischer, Meier, Nemec, and Jesper Bratt should continue to be built around. But if the Winter Olympics are any indication (outside of Bratt, who hasn't done much as of now), talent is not the issue.
It must be reiterated that New Jersey's woes are the byproduct of a suboptimal coaching system and atrocious roster management. Regarding Sheldon Keefe, he is not a bad head coach; rather, his system is a poor fit for the team. The Devils thrive when they're zipping down the ice and creating chaos with their speed, and Keefe's system fails to take advantage of that. As such, a head coaching change is needed, and the ideal candidate is a coach who allows the Devils to play to their strengths.
As for roster management, Tom Fitzgerald has created a mess by consistently giving out no-trade and no-movement clauses that limit the team's trade flexibility and cap space. Many of the players Fitzgerald has given those contracts to (save for Jack Hughes) are not pulling their weight relative to what they are being paid, and the movement clauses make it very difficult to get a meaningful return in a trade if they do agree to waive. Both Fitzgerald's mistakes and Keefe's clashing style have hurt the locker room as well.
Simply put, the Devils need new off-ice leadership as soon as possible. Even if the Olympics last less than a month, what fans have seen is that the players in New Jersey are good enough to form a winning team. Jack Hughes should remain the Devils' building block, as should Hischer and Meier. What they need is a GM that brings in the right supporting pieces and a coach that lets them play to their potential.