5 New Jersey Devils storylines to watch heading into training camp
The New Jersey Devils come into this season with major aspirations. Training camp is the time to get ready for the long year ahead. Here are five storylines to keep an eye on as we welcome Devils hockey back into our lives.
While the rookies report to camp this week (Wednesday, September 11th to be exact) The main guys will be in New Jersey a week later. We are finally back. We are back to watching this team prepare for what hopes to be a long and very rewarding season ahead. There are a lot of new faces both behind the bench and on the ice for this team. All of that makes for some really interesting storylines to keep track of as we begin the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
1. How does Keefe's system mesh with the team?
General Manager Tom Fitzgerald got the offseason off and running by hiring Sheldon Keefe to replace now Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff. The former Toronto Maple Leafs bench boss comes to New Jersey with a chip on his shoulder. He has plenty of regular-season success with his top guys putting up gaudy numbers. However, he failed at delivering a Stanley Cup to Toronto and only made it out of the first round of the playoffs once. There are certainly questions whether or not Keefe has learned from his mistakes and will correct them with the Devils.
The biggest thing I'm looking at with Keefe is how his system and coaching philosophy do with his new team. From a forward perspective, I'm fairly confident that Keefe will continue his success with the top guys here as he did with Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, and John Tavares. The bigger question will be with defense and goaltending. With regards to the back end, this will no doubt be the most talented defensive core Keefe has had at his disposal. The same can be said for goaltending as well given the new acquisition Jacob Markström arrival.
Can Keefe devise a system that will allow the Devils' defensemen to be more responsible in their own end? Will he use Markström a lot or go more of a balanced tandem with Jake Allen? Those are the two big questions I have for the new Devils' headman.
2. How will Jacob Markstrom look in the preseason?
Speaking of Markström, let's talk about the new main guy between the pipes. Fitzgerald proclaimed that he would go, "big game hunting", this offseason he got his game when he acquired the 34-year-old from the Calgary Flames for Kevin Bahl and a 2025 first-round pick. Markström, along with Allen give the Devils a tandem that, if all goes well, could be a major catalyst towards a Stanley Cup championship run. There's no question that Markström will be the number one guy in the net for the Devils when the season gets going. What I'm curious about is to see what he looks like in the preseason.
Granted, he won't play in every game, but he is certainly expected to get some minutes in 2-3 of the seven games that the Devils will play before their October 4th season opener. I want to see what the netminder looks like in his playing time and how he adapts to the team in front of him. It won't tell you that much, but it should give everyone a little bit of an idea as to how Markström plays and how he can affect the outcome of a game.
3. Where will Brett Pesce and Brenden Dillion Fit on the D pairings?
The Devils ended up signing two of the biggest names in the defensive free-agent market to help bolster a defense that struggled mightily last year. Both Brett Pesce and Brenden Dillion bring playoff experience, physicality, and a defensive-minded approach. Each of them will fit in well with guys like Dougie Hamilton, Jonas Siegenthaler, Luke Hughes, and Šimon Nemec. As mentioned before, Keefe will have a lot of talent on the backend, which leads to the question of where we will see both Pesce and Dillion line up.
One of them, Pesce, is a right-handed defenseman. The other, Dillion, is a left-handed defenseman. The top pairing will most likely be Hamilton, who's returning from a season-ending torn pectoral muscle injury, and Siegenthaler. Pesce projects to be paired with Hughes to have a more offense/defense balance. As for Dillion, I expect him to be with Nemec and make that a defense-heavy pairing. It'll be fun to see how they mesh with the young guys want how it all comes together.
4. Who earns that 7th D spot?
Continuing with defense, another storyline is who ends up earning the seventh spot on defense. There are two guys, in my opinion, that will look to vie for that role. The first is Santeri Hatakka. Hatakka was part of the big package that was highlighted by the Devils acquiring Timo Meier in March of 2023. The young defenseman has had some experience playing in the NHL from the previous year and looked very comfortable in his short time. He's caught the eyes of the Devils' brass and certainly will be given a good shot to make the team out of camp.
The next guy is newly acquired, Johnathan Kovacevic who comes in with a big frame (6'5", 223 lbs) and is not afraid to rough it up. He, just like Hatakka, is more of a defensive-minded player who is very responsible on his end. He also is still young at 27 years old, so he still has time to grow. Blocking shots will be something big that Kovacevic needs to provide.
5. Who fits in the Top 6 wing spot?
The top six is mostly set up, but there's still at least one spot that isn't guaranteed, and one of the winger positions. The Devils acquired Tyler Toffoli a year ago and he was as advertised. However, he was dealt at the deadline due to both the Devils and Toffoli being unable to reach an extension. They replace Toffoli by bringing back an old friend Tomas Tatar on a one-year deal. However, Tatar will have some competition with Ondrej Palat for that winger spot.
For Tatar, in 2022-23, he alongside Nico Hischier and Dawson Mercer was one of the most impressive lines in all of hockey as the trio finished with a 64.5% expected goals-for percentage at five-on-five, which was second-best in the league that year. Tatar can provide scoring while also being somewhat responsible in the defensive zone. Having him under contract for that low of a deal could be a major steal for the team.
As for Palat, he comes into his third season with question marks. The game may have been slowly passing him by as he has struggled to stay healthy at times as well as not producing at the level that has been expected of him since he arrived. Not to mention, the contract itself (three years left at $6 million AAV) has not looked good at all. While he does have the game-winning goal in Game 7 of the first-round series vs the Rangers, that was two years ago and the only big thing Palat has done so far in New Jersey. This is a big year for #18 and he, like so many other guys on the team, has a lot to prove.
This is just the beginning of what very well could be a very exciting year for the New Jersey Devils. Training camp is a week away and it won't be long before we see the boys in red and black again on the ice.
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