📈 after playoffs
Michael McLeod
Akira Schmid
John Marino
Luke Hughes
Damon Severson
Erik Haula
Miles Wood

📉 after playoffs
Jesper Bratt
Tomas Tatar
Jesper Boqvist
Yegor Sharangovich
Ryan Graves
Vitek Vanacek

If it were up to me...

Thanks, pack your stuff...
-- Graves
-- Tatar

Short-term (1-2 years) only...
-- Haula
-- Wood

Long-term...
-- Severson -- 5-6 years if he will forego full NTC
-- Meier -- max term to buy the AAV down

Qualify
-- Sharangovich

Undecided
-- Bratt

Hughes may be hurt (Staal stick to head does that)

I think Hamilton may be hurt too. Was avoiding contact last couple of games. Looked like he aged 10 years in series.

Trade Yegor for a Graves replacement (Marcus Pettersson?)
Sign Bratt for lower AAV (6.5?)
Depends on what Wood wants
Pack your bags Mackenzie

eh it’s been a great season back in the playoffs just happy to make round 2 Carolina was just the better team

McKeen's out with new prospect rankings...

Devils
2. Luke Hughes
7. Simon Nemec
10. Alexander Holtz
46. Arseni Gritsyuk
130. Reilly Walsh
165. Kevin Bahl
168. Seamus Casey
189. Josh Filmon
190. Nolan Foote
195. Topias Vilen

Former Devils
78. Shakir Mukhamadullin

Other top-10
1. Logan Cooley
3. Shane Wright
4. David Jiricek
5. Simon Edvinsson
6. Dylan Guenther
8. Brandt Clarke
9. Pavel Mintyukov

So now that we are out, who are devils fans pulling for?

I think I’d like to see Florida and Edmonton.

Seattle Vs Vegas conference finals would be really cool

And obviously Florida out the east

Expansion vs expansion....would be cool storyline.

Also probably good reason to alter rules for the next expansion draft.

hey guys

I just put up 2 new threads with polls, it would be really cool if you could check them out and vote. If they are successful i'll add more later

Alright, let’s hear it for…(checks notes)..Owen Fowler!

I watched the exit interviews with the players. They are all on NHL.com or on youtube. About 10 minutes each.


UFAs

Erik Haula: “I don’t want to play for any other team. This is my family.” and "This is where I want to be. It seems right. Its a great fit. Not gonna lie, when I got the call that I had been traded from Boston to here, I had mixed emotions. But when I got started, it felt right. I got a lot of respect for the guys in this room. All of them....You see what they have done this year, I want to be a part of that." and "I think we are only going to get better"..."I want to get better in off-season, I want to come back better." and "I'd like to get the deal done. It would be nice going into the summer knowing I will be here. Its a lot of fun being around this team. Its a close group. And that is something you want to be a part of " (Haula Exit Interview)

Ryan Graves: "I had a blast this year....we made huge steps with this group." and "expectations will grow, this team will be expected to finish where they did this year" and "I loved my time here. It was great. This team's going to be good. I mean, you never know what free agency is going to bring. There's a business side of things, and I understand that. So, we'll see." (Graves Exit Interview)

Damon Severson: "Great year...we took some great steps"..."We have exceeded expectations this year and now the expectations will be a lot higher and that is good. Its what we want. We want to be known as a good team, as not an easy night." and "UFA, I don't know what to tell you. Its really fresh....free agency is in July, I don't know if something will happen before then, but answer today for you. I have my exit meetings and I have agent in place to handle the contract stuff. " and "remaining here would be great. This is all I have known, so it's kind of a weird situation for me. I have mentioned to a few guys when they have asked me 'it is your first time as UFA', It's just a really weird time. That's the only way I can put it. When I pull up to the rink every day and drive the same route every day for so long, I guess you put into perspective after the fact, it just makes you appreciate it. You never know when the last time will be, so you just look forward to each day coming in and doing your job and go from there." and "Fitzy has got a lot of work to do, that's for sure with contracts, and that is just part of the business, but that is not for me to worry about, they have a big management staff to take care of that. I have a lot of good buddies on this team. A few of them are RFAs. Some have contracts, some don't. It's all part of the business, we are all excited to kind of see what happens whether we are all on the same team again or not." (Severson Exit Interview)

Miles Wood: "Of course I think about the future. I am not really sure about what my future holds. I have been here for my whole career. Seven years. I am not really sure I can really speak about it. Who knows what is going to happen" Wood Exit Interview

Tomas Tatar: did not give an exit interview. He cleaned out his stuff and left early.

RFAs

Meier: "There are going to be some conversations and set futures, so yeah, that's gonna be that" and "Yeah, great group of guys, great stuff, yeah, its a nice place"

Bratt: "I've been clear since Day One that I think this is a great place to play, a place I call home, and I'm so excited about what this team and franchise did, and it's a ride I want to be a part of," and “We’ll get it done. I’ll see you guys for the next couple of years to come.”

Blackwood: "I’ve been here for my entire NHL career so far. I love the team. I love all the guys so it’s be hard to leave that but at the end of the day, you want to go where the opportunity is. So it depends on a couple of things. Right?"

------

Sounds to me like...
Graves - will very likely be elsewhere, especially as team is already saying Bahl is the in-house replacement for him. He talks about the team as if its a former team ("they")
Severson - 50/50. Think he wants to return...talks about team as his team ("we")
Haula - likely returns, obviously wants to
Tatar - already gone. Done. Out.
Wood - unclear. Doesn't sounds like he has done much about extension yet. My guess is that he gets to UFA, but still could re-sign here after July 1.

Meier - Hasn't drank the koolaid yet, is all business...hard to read. This is will be the one to watch over next month.
Bratt - definitely returning
Blackwood - probably gone

Here is my earlier summary from Tom Fitzgerald's exit media availability (ACGM post here)

Link to media avail

-- Coach: Lindy Ruff will return as coach
-- Burnette, MacKinnon: staff getting paoched is sign of where organization is.
-- On Free agents: won't evaluate on just playoffs...it will be "the body of work".
-- UFAs: Some of their UFAs have "priced themselves out" of Devils future.
-- Severson/Graves: Have earned their right to UFA.
-- Goaltending: was happy with goalies this year. The team plays better in front of Akira.
-- Haula: Said trade was right move. He was "right piece". Has started negotiations with him yet.
-- Luke Hughes: He will be big part of team next year.
-- Simon Nemec: Made "huge strides"
-- Topias Vilen ("The Villain Kid") has big future as well.
-- Foote: "An example of proper player development". Played some center. Has "big plans for him".
-- Bratt: Sounds close on Jesper Bratt extension...."framework of a deal"...but may not be max term.
-- Jesper knows what he wants. Ball is in his court.
-- Meier: Hasn't started on Meier deal...will be talking with Meier's agent.
-- On NJ...he wants people that want to be in NJ. Best advocates are the players themselves.
-- Timo knows Devils think its the best place for him.
-- Draft: Doesn't have a 1st round pick, but "may get one" (with smile)


My guess on what it all signals…
- Big RFAs coming back (doubt both on 8-year deals)
- Other RFAs tbd
- Graves and Severson likely gone
- Haula may return
- Will be some promotions next year
- Topias Vilen may get chance to make team next year
- He is a believer in Foote
- If Brunette goes, Holtz’s biggest advocate goes
- Could sell someone at draft for a pick.

Will be interesting off-season

Tatar not doing an exit interview is so confusing. He’s been in the league for almost 10 years. Surely he knows better

I would be down to keep Wood and Sevo on team friendly deals. Max 2M for Wood and 5.5 for Sevo

Maybe trade a 3rd and Yegor for a first? Not sure how else we can get back into the first without giving up too much

Haula too (unless we can find a younger, cheaper, better version of Haula)



1. If we sign Severson....trade Walsh+pick for 1st
2. If we add winger...trade Holtz for 1st

Those seem to be most plausible paths to a 1st.

(even if we added a pick in #33 to #45 range....will be plenty of good options around)

Arseni Gritsyuk signs SKA's offer-sheet, which will pay him nearly double what Avangard was offering. Two-year deal.
So now the earliest he can sign in NJ is 2025-26, unless he has an NHL clause that allow him to leave a year early.
He'll be teammates with Zakhar Bardakov (2021 NJD pick).
(would have been better to have signed him to 2-year NHL deal, then loan him back for a season...but SKA wouldn't have taken him)

I like getting an ELC stud when our core gets expensive

We could have had on 2-year deal now, only 1-year deals later. But, yes, if he arrives fully primed and ready-to-go, that would be huge.

Rough guess at likelihood of who is returning...(probabilities that they sign and play for NJD/Utica vs all other outcomes)

RFA
RFAs locks to be re-signed (90-100% chance)
Kevin Bahl (99%)
Michael Mcleod (95%)
Nathan Bastian (90%)
Jesper Bratt (90%)

RFAs likely to be re-signed (70-90% chance)
Timo Meier (80%)
Jesper Boqvist (75%)
Yegor Sharangovich (75%)
Reilly Walsh (70%)

RFAs on the bubble (30-70% chance)
Zackary Hayes (40%)
Jérémy Groleau (35%)

RFAs unlikely to be resigned (10-30% chance)
Mackenzie Blackwood (25%)
Zacharie Émond (15%)
Aarne Talvitie (15%)

RFAs locks not to be resigned (0-10% chance)
Timur Ibragimov (5%)

UFA
UFAs locks to be re-signed (90-100% chance)
none

UFAs likely to be re-signed (70-90% chance)
Erik Haula (80%)

UFAs on the bubble (30-70% chance)
Damon Severson (45%)
Miles Wood (35%)
Ryan Graves (33%)
Mason Geertsen (30%)
Jayce Hawryluk (25%)

UFAs unlikely to be resigned (10-30% chance)
Tomas Tatar (20%)
Brian Pinho (20%)

UFAs locks not to be resigned (0-10% chance)
Jonathan Bernier (1%)

5% huh
Next time dont guess