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For the past couple of seasons, the New Jersey Devils have been the sexy pick to do a lot of damage in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
However, last season was a huge letdown for the Devils. Although they’re better this season, they still don’t look quite like the dominant group they appeared to be on paper.
Since Dec. 27, the Devils have a 6-8-3 record, and in their last 10 games, they’re 4-5-1.
It’s small wonder, then, that New Jersey has been linked to NHL players who surfaced in the rumor mill and trade speculation. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported the Devils tried to sign UFA right winger Brandon Saad before he signed with Vegas, and he believes New Jersey GM Tom Fitzgerald poked around on Avalanche center Casey Mittelstadt. There was also a previous report by Rick Dhaliwal of Donnie and Dhali that the Devils were interested in former Canucks center J.T. Miller, who’s now with the New York Rangers.
Related: NHL Rumor Roundup: The Latest On Sabres’ Dylan Cozens And Avalanche’s Casey Mittelstadt
All these players have one thing in common – they’re intriguing to the Devils because they need help with their offense that a depth addition wouldn’t fully address.
It sounds crazy, as New Jersey has a lot of offense-producing talent already on board. Still, recent statistics don’t lie – in 10 of their 12 most recent losses, the Devils have produced just two goals or fewer, and in five of those 11 losses, they’ve generated one goal or fewer.
Even in three of their six most recent wins, New Jersey got by with three goals. So it’s obvious that thriving in the offensive zone is difficult for the Devils at the moment.
When the Devils resurged in 2022-23, their 3.52 goals-for per game were tied for the fourth-most in the NHL. Last season, when they went 38-39-5, their 3.22 goals-for per game were ranked 12th.
Right now, they’re averaging 3.04 goals-for, which is ranked 13th. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt lead the way with 63 and 62 points, respectively, in 56 games, so they’re definitely not the problem.
Nico Hischier has 43 points in 51 games, which equates to 0.84 points per game. That’s below his scoring rate in the last two seasons, when he had 0.94 points per game in 2023-24 and 0.99 in 2022-23, but is still one of the better rates of his career.
But Timo Meier, who has 15 goals and 37 points in 55 games, has seen his shooting percentage drop, and his points-per-game average continues to fall since getting 76 points in 77 games for the San Jose Sharks in 2021-22. A similar downward trend applies to Dawson Mercer, who had 56 points in 82 games in 2022-23 (0.68 points per game) but is only averaging 0.43 points per game despite getting more ice time than his career-high campaign. Ondrej Palat’s 0.41 points per game is the lowest average of his 13-season NHL career.
Their new goalie duo of Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen is making up for a lot of their decreased scoring, which must be refreshing for a Devils squad that struggled mightily in net last year.
The Devils currently have only about $1.47 million in salary cap space, so Fitzgerald must be creative if and when he chooses to wade into the trade waters in search of help on offense. There’s no specific player they’re linked to right now, but with the NHL’s March 7 trade deadline just one month away, players could be popping up on the trade front that satisfies New Jersey’s needs.
“The way it is trending, it would be a surprise if he is not available when we return from the break.”
– #NJDevils HC Sheldon Keefe provides an update on Nico Hischier, who was placed on injured reserve this morning. https://t.co/mn0k671SPl
— Kristy Flannery (@InStilettos_NHL) February 6, 2025
The Devils still can do well this season, and this trade talk isn’t meant to downgrade what they’re capable of already. Their power-play success rate is at a second-best 27.9 percent Nico Hischier also hasn’t played since Jan. 25 as he recovers from an injury.
But they’re underachieving on offense, so an upgrade to make them more potent with the puck is definitely a possibility. They’re entering win-now mode, so it’s time to see whether they’ll make any moves to improve their chances of doing so.
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