The New Jersey Devils were one of the three teams to take their guaranteed spot in the playoffs. And honestly, the Devils were lucky to hold onto that spot. The Devils absolutely sputtered to the finish line this season. It was more than injuries. Even before Jack Hughes went down with his shoulder injury, the team was struggling to win. After a dominant December, it was a completely different team in 2025.
Only five teams had fewer points in 2025 than the Devils. They put 40 points on their record post New Year's Day. Only the Bruins, Predators, Sharks, Blackhawks, and Flyers had worse records than the Devils. They are all awful teams, at least this season.
The Devils were lucky to have an undermanned Columbus team, a Rangers team that basically quit, and a sputtering Islanders team as their main competition. The Devils basically sucked the least down the stretch, and they made the playoffs. However, in the playoffs, things didn't go well.
The Devils faced the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round, and they only managed one win. They needed a goal in double overtime from Simon Nemec just to get that win. The Hurricanes moved on and beat te bricks off the Washington Capitals, once again winning in five games.
Meanwhile, the Florida Panthers had to face a wagon in the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. This is a team with Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman, Brandon Hagel, Brayden Point, Jake Guentzel, and Andrei Vasilevskiy. Florda beat them in five games.
Then, the Panthers and Toronto Maple Leafs went toe-to-toe for an epic seven-game series. It was good for Sheldon Keefe's legacy that the Leafs lost, but it set the Hurricanes up for a rematch of their 2023 Eastern Conference Finals appearance. The Panthers swept them that season.
This season, history is about to repeat itself.
The Hurricanes are not only losing every game to the Panthers, but they aren't even close. They lost 5-2, 5-0, and 6-2 in the first three games of this series. It's not even a competition.
The Metropolitan Division looks pathetic at this point. The entire division. Nobody looks even remotely close to a Stanley Cup. Who could claim they are one or two pieces away? On talent level, some might argue the Devils, Hurricanes, Capitals, and Rangers should be there, but the results say different.
There's good news and bad news here. This gives the Devils a chance to take a dominant position in the division with the right moves, but that won't get them any closer to a Stanley Cup. This Eastern Conference Finals matchup will always be there. Whether it's the Panthers, the Lightning, the Maple Leafs, or a team looking to upswing like the Senators, Bruins, Red Wings, or Canadiens, the Devils cannot make it to the Final without beating one of them (barring a miracle that a Metro Wild Card team ever wins that side of the bracket).
The Hurricanes not showing up isn't surprising with how we saw the Metro play this season. Even understanding the Devils beat the Panthers multiple times during the regular season, it doesn't help them in the playoffs. This is a different beast, and these teams are missing something. Tom Fitzgerald is going to look for it this offseason, but everyone seems pretty far away.