Will the New York Rangers be better than the Devils or Islanders in 2019-20?
New Jersey Devils
Make no bones about it, the New Jersey Devils are absolutely stacked and, although it pains me to say it, I think they will be the dominant force in the tri-state area in 2019-20. Although the Rangers are equipped to be more successful for longer term given their rich pipeline of high-end prospects, the Devils are absolutely built to win right now and they could be a contender this year.
After selecting generational talent Jack Hughes with the No.1 overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, Devils General Manager Ray Shero wasn’t satisfied and decided to further bolster his roster just a day later by going out and trading for Norris Trophy defenseman P.K. Subban from the Nashville Predators without giving up a ransom.
And, if that wasn’t enough, the Devils then signed power forward Wayne Simmonds to a one-year, $5 million contract on the opening day of free agency. Let’s not forget either that Taylor Hall, the winner of the Hart Trophy for the NHL’s MVP in 2017-18 after tallying 93 points (39 goals, 54 assists), will also be back fit and firing on all cylinders after missing a large chunk of last year due to a knee injury.
Not only that but Shero then went out and traded for Nikita Gusev for two low-end draft picks from the Vegas Golden Knights, wrapping a pretty bow around a home run of an off-season that was arguably the best had by any team in the NHL.
Although unproven in the NHL having not yet played a game, Gusev will go down as one of the best scorers in KHL history and he led that league in points last year with 82 (17 goals, 65 assists). He tallied 147 goals and 253 assists for 400 points in 458 games in the KHL, which equates to 0.873 points per game.
But what makes Gusev such an intriguing addition for the Devils is the fact that Gusev’s offensive production in North America could replicate around 80 percent of his production in Russia. So, in simple terms, that would translate to roughly 57 points (21 goals, 36 assists) in the NHL, giving the Devils yet another potent weapon on a stacked roster.
The New Jersey Devils are a team loaded on talent and their window to win is right now. The aggressive moves made by Shero this summer should be enough to convince Hall to sign a new long-term deal and they also have around $,8,711,667 left in cap space should they wish to further beef up this roster. Although, that could well be saved for a rainy day, meaning the Trade Deadline should they need to add another piece ahead of the postseason.
They have an abundance of talent, particularly in the offensive zone, and they will be a fun and dangerous team to watch this year.
It is of course far too early to predict line matchups, but the Devils could well have a lethal one-two punch down the middle with Hughes and Nico Hischier, while a potential top six unit of Hall, Hughes, Simmonds, Nikita Gusev, Hischier and Kyle Palmieri could prove to be explosive.
With all the moves made this off-season, the Devils have not only added depth but they now have multiple offensive weapons to play with and their forward unit in particular looks formidable.
The options are limitless for head coach John Hynes when it comes to constructing his forward lines, and one wild card could be putting Simmonds on the same line as Hughes, which would serve multi-purposes.
First, it would offer the 5’10” Hughes some much-needed protection during his rookie year, while playing alongside elite talent could spark a resurgence for Simmonds, who had a down year in 2018-19 with 30 points (17 goals, 13 assists). At 30, the right wing still has time to return to the peak of his powers and get back to being a 45-55 point a year scorer.
Their blueline is also improved and that needed to be the case given that there are question marks over the Devils’ goaltending, with Cory Schneider in particular needing a bounce-back year. As already mentioned though, GM Ray Shero still has funds to play with and he could choose to use them to shore up that backend.
Although the Rangers will be competitive in 2019-20, the Devils look, on paper at least, to have a roster that is ready to win now and, not only do I believe that New Jersey will be the top dog in the tri-state area, I also think that they will be one of the main contenders in the Metro Division.