New Jersey Devils 5 biggest internal contract decisions this offseason
The New Jersey Devils have a boatload on their agenda this offseason, with head coach and goalie still at the top of the list. However, the Devils have plenty of internal decisions they still need to make.
It’s already been a busy offseason for the New Jersey Devils and they haven’t really done anything yet. While they find themselves steeped in the rumor mill of coaching search, both their 2023-24 head coaches have moved on to other head coaching jobs (Lindy Ruff to the Sabres and Travis Green to the Senators). Obviously, we expect the first major decision this offseason to be the next Devils head coach.
However, while Tom Fitzgerald is working out a contract for his bench boss, he also has to think about those internal contracts that he needs to set up for the future success of the Devils. This isn’t close to last season when Damon Severson, Ryan Graves, Miles Wood, Nathan Bastian, Erik Haula, Jesper Bratt, Timo Meier, Tomas Tatar, Yegor Sharangovich and more all needed new contracts. Fitzgerald only brought four of the above players back this season.
The Devils really felt the turnover this past season. Luckily, the Devils aren’t facing anything near that this season. The core is signed, sealed, and delivered for years to come. However, the Devils still have major decisions on how they will build around that core. What contract decisions are keeping Tom Fitzgerald up at night? Well… probably none of them, but they are still important.
5. Kaapo Kahkonen
The Devils pulled off a magic trick when they turned Vitek Vanecek and a seventh-round pick into Kaapo Kahkonen. It wasn’t that Kahkonen was a great player (but more on that in a second), but it got the Devils out of a $3+ million contract for this season. Kahkonen is a free agent this offseason, and it seems unlikely that he'll be re-signed.
However, should it be? The Devils do have Jake Allen signed for another season, but the numbers show that Kahkonen outplayed Allen. Five goalies played for the Devils this season. Kahkonen’s save percentage was 23 percentage points higher than anyone (.923 with the Devils against Allen’s .900).
It seems like an obvious move to let Kahkonen leave, but the Devils have had such issues in net, they should see if he’d accept a non-traditional as a third goalie. Even if the Devils slightly overspent on that role (maybe $1.5 million) and guaranteed he’d be on the NHL roster all season, it would be worth it. The Devils do need all the money they can get for a true starter, bottom-six help, and an extra defenseman, but signing Kahkonen to a contract shouldn’t impact that.
4. Bottom Six Contracts
The top six of the New Jersey Devils is pretty set in stone. Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Timo Meier, and Jesper Bratt are all signed for three more years minimum (and seven years for Bratt and Meier). The bottom six has Erik Haula and Ondrej Palat, who both often jump into the top six, and then it’s a lot of question marks.
Nathan Bastian is under contract, but he’s had serious issues staying healthy and staying consistent. Curtis Lazar has been a revelation after the Devils got him on a solid contract. He’s been everything they’ve hoped for. Someone who hasn’t been like that is Alex Holtz, who is struggling with everything in his game. However, he could make a move towards production (or the Devils could trade him).
Then, there are the interesting contracts. Nolan Foote was supposed to be a major part of the bottom six this season, but an injury held him to just four games. He needs a new contract this season, but his restricted free agent status has us believing he’ll be back. Some other young players like Brian Halonen and Graeme Clarke were given a cup of coffee in the league and could fight for a bottom-six spot.
The Devils signed veterans Tomas Nosek and Chris Tierney last offseason, but both were pushed into bigger roles than they should have been and both failed. The Devils did re-sign Max Willman and Shane Bowers recently, so that adds a little depth. We expect more signings from outside the locker room.
3. Nico Daws and Akira Schmid
This one likely surprises a lot of people. However, Tom Fitzgerald has a huge decision to make in net. Even beyond getting a long-time starter, many of the options are much older. Jacob Markstrom is 34 years old. Juuse Saros is going to turn 30 next season. Linus Ullmark is already 30 (turning 31 over the summer).
The Devils are expecting these players to have some runway, but they also have to be realistic about their window. It’s not going to last for as long as the Devils expected window (although Saros will come close). The Devils still need a future option, and 33-year-old Jake Allen isn’t it. That’s where Nico Daws and Akira Schmid, two players who have had their own good runs in the NHL, come into the equation.
Both Schmid and Daws need new contracts this offseason. Both were insanely inconsistent this season. Daws was coming off major hip surgery, but there were times he looked like a star. He helped the Devils win their Stadium Series tilt with the Philadelphia Flyers. Daws had 11 games with over a .900 save percentage and 10 games where he was well below it.
Schmid, of course, was the main cog that helped the Devils beat the New York Rangers in the first round last season. Schmid’s agent thought that series win would lead to a major pay raise, but that didn’t come. Now, Schmid’s future with the Devils is in doubt. Will the Devils re-sign both goalies despite already having Isaac Poulter signed as well?
2. Luke Hughes
Luke Hughes is coming off a decent rookie season. While he did finish third in the Calder Trophy race (yes, we’re realistic about this), he slightly disappointed in some aspects. Still, the Devils know exactly what they have in Hughes. He’s going to be a star, and we see it in the displays of insanity he showed at the IIHF World Championships tournament this week.
Luke Hughes doing Luke Hughes things at Worlds!
— Vinnie Parise (@VinnieParise) May 13, 2024
The #NJDevils have a star here! pic.twitter.com/q5qDLbOVRz
Hughes is signed to his entry-level contract next season, but the Devils have been trying to get themselves set up for the future. They jumped the gun with Jack Hughes, giving him an eight-year contract worth $8 million before they absolutely had to. We expect the same with the youngest Hughes brother.
If the Devils can get Hughes signed for a decent extension, then it could set the Devils up for the next five years or more. Luke Hughes hasn’t earned an $8 million extension, but maybe the Devils are going to try to predict future earnings?
While this isn’t a necessary situation, it’s something the Devils will discuss. Tom Fitzgerald will see if Hughes is ready to commit long-term. He might opt to sign a five-year contract so his contract coincides with his brother’s, but that might be something Fitzgerald avoids at all costs. That would walk Luke Hughes to unrestricted free agency without buying enough UFA years.
1. Dawson Mercer
This is the biggest internal contract decision of the season. While many Devils fans seem to be slightly out on Dawson Mercer when it comes to being a future cog in the contention window, Mercer is still a great player. He wasn’t what he was in 2022-23, but he hasn’t missed a game in three years in the NHL and he still contributed in many ways.
Mercer still scored 20 goals last season despite the Devils being in the tank. He also never found himself in the top six and spent 143 killing penalties (only Erik Haula had more time on the PK amongst forwards). He actually wasn’t half bad, giving up just 17 goals in that time (Haula gave up 20 in just a few minutes more).
The Devils thought the Mercer contract was going to be a hard one to swallow. If he grew from his 56-point 22-23 season, he might have asked for a big contract, but now he could come down as a bargain.
And the reason for that is it would be smart for the Devils to sign Mercer long-term. If they can get a valuable deal for Mercer for five years or more, this could severely help them with any possible cap issues in the future. The way teams like Vegas and Tampa continue to compete is because they find players like William Karlsson, Zach Whitecloud, Brandon Hagel, and Erik Cernak. They don’t always work, but Mercer has enough to earn a minimum five-year deal.
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