NEWARK, NJ — The New Jersey Devils have the look of a team ready to get back to where it once was, says Martin Brodeur.
“I just love the enthusiasm of this group … the big free agents who wanted to come here,” Brodeur told NHL.com. “That’s never happened, even when we were winning the Stanley Cups. People on the outside are seeing it now. The results aren’t there yet, and obviously this is a big year to find out where we’re going to go but I think we’re going to get back to where the Devils are supposed to be.
“That’s the attitude that everybody needs to have here.”
Brodeur played a huge role in the Devils’ success as their goalie on three Stanley Cup winning teams (1995, 2000, 2003). Now, in his role as executive vice president of hockey operations, he’s hoping to help the Devils be a consistent Stanley Cup Playoff team. New Jersey has not qualified for the playoffs since 2017-18 and has missed the postseason nine times in the past 10 seasons.
“I realize there’s some impatient fans … I’m impatient too,” said Tom Fitzgerald, who has been the Devils general manager since Jan. 12. 2020. “I want to get to the playoffs, want to get that experience to parlay into next year. I don’t know what that looks like, though. I don’t have a crystal ball. All I know is there were certain areas of the team we had to improve on.”
New Jersey was among the most aggressive teams this offseason, including signing forwards Ondrej Palatwho won two Stanley Cup titles with the Tampa Bay Lightning, to a five-year contract July 14.
The Devils acquired goalie Vitek Vanecek in a trade with the Washington Capitals on July 8 and veteran forward Erik Haula in a trade with the Boston Bruins on July 13, the same day they signed the veteran unrestricted free agent defenseman Brendan Smith to a two-year contract. Three days later, the Devils acquired the defenseman John Marino in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“I see what [Fitzgerald] is doing, what (managing partners) David Blitzer and Josh Harris are doing; we’re going in the right direction to have some success,” Brodeur said. “I know every time I started a season, there was one goal, and that was to win the Stanley Cup. To just make the playoffs wasn’t even a thought.”
Brodeur helped the Devils qualify for the playoffs in 17 of 21 seasons he played in New Jersey and at 691-357-49 with 105 ties, is the winningest goalie in NHL history.
“It’s tough because we gave so much to our fans for 20-something years in a row and now they’re coming in and it’s like bottom feeders, we’re getting first-overall picks, something we’ve never had,” Brodeur said. said. “I feel for the fans, and I feel for the players, too, because it’s such a great place to play. Our travel is great. The area is great, our fan base is great so when you’re not winning, it’s tough “
Those high draft picks, however, have netted the Devils some talented forwards, including center Jack Hughes, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, and forward Nico Hischier, their captain who was the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. Hischier was second on the Devils last season with 60 points (21 goals, 39 assists), and Hughes third with 56 (20 goals, 36 assists). Jesper Bratt led the Devils with 73 points (26 goals, 47 assists).
Goaltending was an issue the Devils needed to address after they used seven goalies last season, so they acquired Vanecek to compete with incumbent starter Mackenzie Blackwood.
“It’s a big year for [Blackwood],” Brodeur said. “I think the last few years we’ve tried to address, tried to help him out, groom him into being one of the top goalies in the League. He’s got a good swagger, a big confidence, in himself. Health wise, he feels really good. There’s a lot of people that see his talent, but again his play is going to dictate where his career is going to go, and this is a big year.”
Blackwood was limited to 25 games (24 starts) last season due to a recurring left heel injury and was 9-10-4 with a 3.39 goals-against average and .892 save percentage. The Devils allowed 302 goals, fourth most in the NHL.
“The biggest thing you can take from Marty is his mentality,” Blackwood said. “The game has changed a lot since he played but the thing that stays the same is the way you approach it, your mindset. I think he was good not only just playing, but mentally handling the job and playing all the time. He’s got a lot of knowledge and it’s good to take some stuff from him.”
Fitzgerald’s message to his team is simple as it prepares to open New Jersey’s 40th season at the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday (7 pm ET; ESPN+, HULU, SN NOW).
“The standard here is high,” he said. “The players, coaches, myself, will push each other every single day to be the best we can. We think we’ve got a good team. We believe we have great pieces for the long haul. Now’s our time. Why wait? Play the way we’re capable of playing, do what you’re supposed to do, support and trust one another, and let the process take care of the result.”
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