The biggest media market in sports has three hockey teams and no playoff games in 2026

The New Jersey Devils joined the NHL in 1982, moving from Colorado to enter a market that already had two teams competing for fans. However, New Jersey was a rapidly growing market. In 1970, New Jersey’s population was 7.1 million people. It grew by close to 10 percent by the time the Devils entered the NHL, adding another 300,000 people, but the trend suggested rapid growth in the future. 

There was some consternation between the three teams with the Devils entering, and they even had to make some payments for the move to be accepted by rival ownership. However, now they are a mainstay in New Jersey. 

The Devils’ tenure in New Jersey started in the same place in the standings as it did in Colorado and Kansas City. They missed the playoffs in their first six seasons. They didn’t make the playoffs until 1988, when they got into the postseason thanks to John MacLean’s game-winning goal in the final game of the season. They then made an improbable run to the Eastern Conference Finals. 

That season, the Islanders won the Patrick Division with just 88 points. All those years the Devils missed the playoffs, the Islanders made the postseason. The Devils entered the league at the end of the Islanders' dynasty, but they still had a playoff team built for years to come. The Islanders wouldn’t miss the playoffs until 1989. The Devils also missed the postseason that year. The Rangers barely squeaked into the postseason with 82 points before they were swept by the Penguins. 

That was the closest all three teams came to missing the playoffs in the same season. In 2018, the Devils made the final Wild Card spot to face off with the high-powered Tampa Bay Lightning on the backs of Taylor Hall’s Hart Trophy season. Meanwhile, the Rangers and Islanders went home early. That’s another close call, as the Florida Panthers were rolling and almost knocked the Devils out.

The New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, and New York Rangers were elimianted from playoff contention for the first time ever

However, this impressive streak of New York area hockey in the postseason is officially over. The Devils were eliminated from the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs last week. The Rangers have been eliminated for a little while, and the New York Islanders blew a big lead to see their playoff hopes dashed despite hiring former Devils head coach Peter DeBoer in a frantic attempt to save the season. 

Missing out on the biggest media market in the country is a huge miss for the NHL. They already mistreated the rivalries this season, putting every edition of the Hudson River Rivalry in the month of March. 

The Devils are the biggest disappointment of the three. They were supposed to be one of two teams that was a lock to be in the postseason. The Rangers were chosen by many to make the playoffs, but they were hardly a lock. The Islanders were supposed to be in a rebuilding year after getting the first-overall pick. Their collapse is disappointing, but the Devils are the biggest flop. 

Hopefully, it takes another 43 years before we see this happen again, and hopefully, we’re done with seasons of no playoff hockey in New Jersey.