The Devils looked good for a long time this year. They came up short of the playoffs, but not by as much as would be expected, and for some time they actually held the second wild card. This team has the core to be a great team again, with goaltender Cory Schneider, defenseman Adam Larsson, and forwards Adam Henrique and Kyle Palmeiri. Going forward, the team will need to build around these four, and do it quickly.
This is also a team where the bad contracts are being expunged by free agency, and where the only long term mistake was Ilya Kovalchuk, a mistake they will be paying for until the early 20’s, but that was the current management or ownership group, and nothing that happened afterwards could have been predicted at the time.
So, how can the Devils improve?
1. Top 6 Wings
An investment in elite scorers on the wings could help the Devils improve fundamentally. This is a team currently built to help Cory Schneider and the rising Scott Wedgewood – even though his sample is tiny, his stats are amazing, plus he was called up before Blackwood – but all the defense in the world can’t help winning 2-1 or 1-0 games. They need a consistent offense, and with Patrick Elias leaving, and Devante Smith-Pelly being a journeyman winger, someone I would not trust on the first line but absolutely on the third, I would trust someone like Loui Eriksson or re-invest long term in Lee Stempniak. Stempniak played maybe his best hockey ever with New Jersey, and when you have someone like that, maybe getting them to continue on with your team is a wise move. He would have been Jersey’s leading scorer had he been there the entire year.
But the first line can’t be the only one receiving this investment. Investing in the entire top 6 is necessary, because the Devils could have plenty of depth, but they need the elites as well. Somebody young to help and to partner with Pavel Zacha could also have a profound effect upon the young center, and a long term wing could be a large factor in keeping Zacha happy and productive.
Kyle Palmieri is already an solid top 6 wing for the Devils, but they need others. Mike Cammalleri might not be reliable soon, and that adds an additional need here.
2. Defense
While I know wings needs to be the Devils priority, drafting a young defenseman to help out Larsson and the rest of the defense moving forward would be great, because while Cory Schneider is quietly one of the best goaltenders in the league, he should be given consistent and reliable help, and after the A’s in Larsson and Greene, everyone is young, developing, and not yet at a true NHL level.
Getting someone who just needs the leadership that Greene and Larsson can provide while getting adjusted would give the Devils additional depth at this position, and a top 3 d-men is necessary in the league nowadays. The Devils have their first two, they just need their third. And after that, their defense is good, with John Moore, Severson, Schlemko, and Jon Merrill. They need to play more disciplined defense, but a focus on that over the summer and heading into training camp would allow the Devils to play that sturdy, defensive minded scheme that the Predators, Blues, and (usually) Bruins thrive on.
3. Extensions
The Devils have some extensions to make if they want to thrive, including Smith-Pelly, Tyler Kennedy, and Palmieri. Palmieri we’ve addressed as necessary to the top 6. Smith-Pelly should be a great third or fourth liner, and would provide the Devils with production from a bottom 6 spot. Tyler Kennedy would continue to give the Devils terrific depth at center with Zajac, Henrique, and Zacha.
I believe a team’s priorities should be to their own players that they believe should come back (*cough* Shaw), and the Devils extending these three players would be a sign to Zacha and other young players that the Devils are loyal and will take care of them in the future.
4. Scott Wedgewood
Like I said, I believe this guy could be the guy to play with Cory Schneider and give the Devils the 1-2 punch that the Flyers, Lightning, and a few other teams have. His stats through his first four games were a 1.24 GAA and a .957 SV. Those are huge numbers, much better than Keith Kinkaid’s, and while Keith Kinkaid is probably necessary for the expansion draft so they can protect Wedgewood and Blackwood, that’s about it. Wedgewood should be a stellar backup (and starter if Schneider gets hurt) in this league, and extending him soon, and allowing him to play more games would give Schneider necessary rest, and would showcase how good the Devils are at goaltending scouting.
If you would like to see more articles like this, please check out our “Offseason” category of articles, and you can see all the teams we’ve done so far. We’ve still got a ways to go, so stick with us.