A Devil Of A Time

By Mike Rifkin

The New Jersey Devils entered the 2023-24 season with high expectations, after winning in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs over their cross river rival the New York Rangers. On Monday the team announced that Head Coach Lindy Ruff was relieved of his duties and will be replaced by Assistant Coach and former Canucks coach Travis Green. Ruff was hired by the Devils in 2020 and went 128-125-28. 

The Devils currently sit eight points out of a Wild Card spot and third place in the Metropolitan division. The main reason the Devils have struggled this year has been goaltending, a position most people expected them to upgrade last offseason. But with Connor Hellebuyck remaining in Winnipeg and John Gibson still in Anaheim, trading for a goalie was going to be difficult. The Devils have used the trio of Vitek Vanecek, Akira Schmid and Nico Daws in goal and it hasn’t worked out well. All three have a Goals Against Average over three and and save percentages under .900. General Manager Tom Fitzgerald said this morning that he was “in the goaltending market.” prior to Friday’s trade deadline. The Devils were reportedly close to a deal with the Calgary Flames for Goalie Jacob Markstrom, but Calgary declined later. After recent comments from Markstrom surrounding the situation, you wonder if the two teams decide to revisit the situation. 

Goaltending has been the main reason the Devils have struggled, but they’ve been hit with some major injuries as well. Defenseman Dougie Hamilton has been out since late November with a torn pectoral muscle. Center Jack Hughes missed 16 games with Upper Body injuries, and Defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler missed time with a broken foot. 

Lindy Ruff has the fourth most wins All-Time for a Head Coach. Is everything that happened this year his fault? No, but you cannot fire the players, But the fact that the Devils didn’t upgrade their goaltending when they knew that was their Achilles Heel doesn’t make sense to me. Lindy Ruff said after a 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on February 25th “You want to win, and we’ve dealt with a lot. Players want to win. I’m responsible for the wins and losses and who gets on the ice and who doesn’t get on the ice.” Now the Devils have 21 games left to make up the eight points but it’s not an easy schedule. The Devils have two games at Madison Square Garden to play the Rangers (who lead the Metro), two games with the New York Islanders, who are like the Devils competing for a WC spot, three games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and trips to Dallas and Vegas. As well as a game against the Carolina Hurricanes and a game in Philly on April 13th. Do the Devils have the talent to go on a run? Yes, but it’s not going to be easy especially if they don’t upgrade their goaltending by Friday. The Travis Green era began  on Tuesday with a 5-3 loss to the Florida Panthers.