2014-15 LEADING SCORERS
C Adam Henrique (16 G, 27 A, 43 P)
LW Mike Cammalleri (27 G, 15 A, 42 P)
LW Patrik Elias (13 G, 21 A, 34 P)
LAST SEASON
The New Jersey Devils had a rather uneventful, but a bad season this past year. After bringing in forwards Mike Cammalleri and Martin Havlat to boost their goal scoring touch, they were expected to have a decent campaign, but unfortunately expectations were not met. They ended up finishing 6th in the Metropolitan Division and 12th in the Eastern Conference with a record of 31-31-11.
There wasn't too much to say about the Devils last season. They brought in Scott Gomez and Jordin Tootoo during the season to provide veteran presence, and shortly after they fired head coach Peter DeBoer. When it became evident that they weren't going to make the playoffs, they traded the ageless wonder Jaromir Jagr to the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 2nd round pick and a 3rd round pick, and then dealt defenseman Marek Zidlicky to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a conditional 3rd round pick. It hadn't become known yet, but after this season, huge front office changes were coming.
OFFSEASON
IN
Sergey Kalinin
Vojtech Mozik
Kyle Palmieri
Blake Coleman
John Moore
Jim O'Brien
Marc-Andre Gragani
Yann Danis
OUT
Tim Sestito
Scott Clemmensen
Vladimir Zharkov
Darcy Zajac
Bryce Salvador
Dainius Zubrus
Michael Ryder
Cam Janssen
Corbin McPherson
Scott Gomez
Peter Harrold
Mark Fraser
Steve Bernier
Scott Timmins
Maxime Clermont
Joe Whitney
Martin Havlat
The Devils began the offseason with some big front office moves. This began with longtime GM Lou Lamoriello stepping down as GM and remaining as team president, while they hired former Penguins GM Ray Shero. They then hired John Hynes, former head coach for the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins as head coach. Heading into the 2015 NHL Draft, where they held the 6th overall pick, they selected highly touted Czech forward Pavel Zacha. In free agency, the Devils lost a lot of names, but they didn't neccesarily downgrade. They added Kyle Palmieri for some goal scoring support and brought in young defenseman John Moore as well, and meanwhile said goodbye to their captain Bryce Salvador along with longtime forward Dainius Zubrus.
NEXT SEASON PT 1. OFFENSE
The Devils' scoring will likely be lead by Adam Henrique, Mike Cammalleri, and Patrik Elias like usual, with secondary support coming in from Travis Zajac and Tuomo Ruutu. Expect rookie forwards Sergey Kalinin and Pavel Zacha to make pushes for the Devils' starting offense.
NEXT SEASON PT 2. DEFENSE
The Devils' defensive core will be quarterbacked by Andy Greene, with young Swedish defenseman Adam Larsson pitching in after being signed to a long term contract. Look for Jon Merrill and Eric Gelinas to step into bigger roles as well.
NEXT SEASON PT 3. GOALTENDING
The Devils will have Cory Schneider as their starting goalie this year, with Keith Kinkaid as their backup. Not much else needs to be said on the matter.
POSSIBLE 2015-16 OPENING NIGHT LINEUP
Mike Cammalleri - Adam Henrique - Patrik Elias
Tuomo Ruutu - Travis Zajac - Kyle Palmieri
Stephen Gionta - Pavel Zacha - Sergey Kalinin
Reid Boucher - Jacob Josefson - Jordin Tootoo
Andy Greene - Damon Severson
Adam Larsson - Eric Gelinas
Jon Merrill - John Moore
Cory Schneider
Keith Kinkaid
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