Penguins vs. the Changing Metro: Uh Oh, the Devils are Back

The Metropolitan Division has long been the best or at least produced some of the best teams in the NHL. However, the salary cap and age are catching up with the lions of the Eastern Conference, and change is coming, and it might be coming in the form of the New Jersey Devils. As president of hockey operations/GM Kyle Dubas navigates the choppy waters ahead for his Pittsburgh Penguins roster, the immediate competition to keep a relevant team remains the Metro Division, and New Jersey just might be the new team to beat.

The Penguins don’t have to be great to make the 2024-25 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they just have to be better than a few teams in the Metro. Unfortunately for the Penguins, New Jersey is one of the teams they finished ahead of last season, but neither team is likely to repeat that.

Read More: This is the third of four articles in the PHN series of the Penguins compared to the Metro Division. The Washington Capitals took big swings to rebuild this summer, but the Carolina Hurricanes were crushed by free agency.

The Penguins’ likely step backward this offseason is offset by the possibility that it will become a step forward if they get the very best from trade acquisition Kevin Hayes and free agent signing Anthony Beauvillier or one of several prospects leaps forward.

However, while Carolina has taken a step backward, New Jersey may have replaced them as a top team in the division, or at least the team most capable of giving the New York Rangers a run for the top spot. Shrewd moves by general manager Tom Fitzgerald not only fortified his team’s lineup holes but filled them with some of the best options available.

Fitzgerald used fading prospect Alexander Holtz and young goalie Akira Schmid to acquire hard-nosed bottom-six forward Paul Cotter from the Vegas Golden Knights, but that was the least of the Devils’ big moves.

The big get was finally …. finally … getting goalie Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames. In one move, Fitzgerald plugged the hole of buckled steel in his team’s hull. Markstrom might be the second-best goalie in the division behind only Igor Shesterkin of the Rangers and will allow New Jersey to play their fast, aggressive game without being terrified of mistakes.

Last season, bad goaltending and injuries to top center Jack Hughes and top pair defenseman Dougie Hamilton bedeviled New Jersey. All three issues are no longer.

In addition to solving the goaltending issue, Fitzgerald added top-four defenseman Brett Pesce via free agency. Don’t underestimate what Pesce can do for the Devils’  blue line; he was a significant part of the successful Carolina defensive corps, and he played a fast game without abandoning the defensive zone.

Pesce might form one of the best pairs in the NHL if he plays with Luke Hughes.

Oh, and New Jersey has a new coach: Sheldon Keefe.

Keefe will turn loose the fast and talented New Jersey team in ways that the more buttoned-up Lindsey Ruff wouldn’t dare.

New Jersey also added potential scoring forward Tomas Tatar and gritty forward Stefan Noesen on low-risk deals. New Jersey further hardened its blue line with hard-defending LHD Brenden Dillon and solid depth defender Jonathan Kovacevic, who would be a top-six on many teams.

There is no longer a weakness on the New Jersey Devils roster.

The former swamp dwellers now shacked up in downtown Newark, finished behind the Penguins, and well out of the playoffs last season. This season, they are perfectly geared to roar past all Metro Division teams. The team finished second in the Metro division in 2022-23, and this season, a division title is quite possible, and a playoff run should be expected.

That’s how much the Devils have improved.

Oh, and if you mess with any of the skilled players, you might face enforcer Kurtis MacDermid. Fitzgerald gave the best fists in the NHL a three-year extension.

Possible Devils Lines

Timo Meier-Jack Hughes-Dawson Mercer

Ondrej Palat-Nico Hischier-Jesper Bratt

Tomas Tatar-Erik Haula-Stefan Noesen

Paul Cotter-Curtis Lazar-Nathan Bastian

Defense

Jonas Siegenthaler-Dougie Hamilton

Luke Hughes-Brett Pesce

Brendon Dillon-Simon Nemec/Jonathan Kovacevic

Goalies

Jacob Markstrom

Jake Allen

Projections: Look out for New Jersey. After leading the Toronto Maple Leafs, Keefe knows how to coach talent and play to their strengths. Fitzgerald did what Dubas never did for Keefe in Toronto, adding tough defensemen and top-shelf goaltending.

New Jersey will take Carolina’s spot in the top two of the Metro, leaving third place and the wild cards available.