The New Jersey Devils were the most disappointing team in the NHL last season. Talk about the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, or Seattle Kraken all you want. The Devils were the only team many had in Stanley Cup contention that failed to make the playoffs entirely.
Blame it on injuries. Blame it on goaltending. It could be the defense, Lindy Ruff, or even the failure of Timo Meier to get going until the last quarter of the season. There were a laundry list of reasons for the Devils failure last season. Still, it was one season. It will be a blip on the radar if the team can win a Stanley Cup in the near future.
That’s a tall task, but this team is built to make it happen. Comparing this roster to the roster last season, there are so few flaws. And it all starts with the most important position in hockey.
The New Jersey Devils are Stanley Cup contenders. Here's why.
1. They fixed their biggest flaw
Number one on the list is the obvious choice. Goaltending is what most would say sunk the season. Akira Schmid and Vitek Vanecek were not the answer when the Devils failed to get a solution like Connor Hellebuyck. The Devils were hoping the playoff woes for Vanecek were a small problem for an overall solution. It wasn’t. They hoped Akira Schmid could handle the load. He couldn’t.
Then, the Devils tried to trade for literally every available goalie all season. They couldn’t. It sounds like they could have traded for Jacob Markstrom, Jake Allen, and Linus Ullmark at different points in the season. All three fell apart for one reason or another (although Allen was eventually traded to the Devils when it was way too late).
Now, the Devils have Markstrom and Allen. They are a veteran duo who can both get wins for the Devils every night. Nico Daws is no longer coming off hip surgery, and this team can’t blame the man in net for its woes anymore.