3 burning questions for New Jersey Devils entering 2026 offseason
With the New Jersey Devils entering the 2026 offseason with new general manager Sunny Mehta, here are three questions he has to answer.
The New Jersey Devils (42-37-3) tried to build off their Stanley Cup Playoff appearance in the 2024-25 season. With star talent such as Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt already on the roster, general manager Tom Fitzgerald didn’t do much besides signing Edmonton Oilers middle-six center Connor Brown. The hope was that with the continued emergence of young talent, the Devils could compete for the Metropolitan Division lead.
More: 3 burning questions for New York Rangers entering 2026 offseason Instead, the Devils failed to make the playoffs due to a stacked Eastern Conference, a mid-season injury to Jack Hughes, and regression from several key players. They became stuck in no-man’s land, resulting in the Devils firing Tom Fitzgerald. They’ve already hired a replacement in Florida Panthers executive Sunny Mehta, but he’ll have a pivotal offseason coming up to try to get the Devils back to playoff contention.
What’s Sheldon Keefe’s fate? New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe speaks to media at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images The Devils hired Sheldon Keefe in the 2024 offseason to improve their sluggish scoring outputs.
In the 2024-25 season, it worked. Nico Hischier scored a career-high 35 goals, and Jesper Bratt had a career-high 88 points. Unfortunately, with Jack Hughes suffering a season-ending injury on March 2, 2025, that dashed the Devils’ Stanley Cup ambitions.
Continue to the original source for the full article.