Just six games into the 2026-27 season, the New Jersey Devils already look like a team with a split personality. They’ve stacked up two overtime wins and a matinee victory, but they’ve also hit some rough patches on the way to a 3-3-0 start.
The encouraging part is that the ingredients are there: newcomers are settling in, the line combinations are producing some pop, the special teams have started to connect, and the top-six scoring has been trending upward. New Jersey even opened the scoring Tuesday night against the Detroit Red Wings.
The main challenge now is simple to say and hard to do - stay consistent.
One good sign for the Devils’ back end is the return of Johnathan Kovacevic. The club activated the veteran defenseman from injured reserve on Saturday, though he didn’t dress against the Vancouver Canucks.
Kovacevic had a minor procedure on his right knee in the offseason and was limited at training camp. It was also his second straight season missing the start, after he was sidelined early last year following an ACL tear in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Kovacevic finally made his season debut against the Red Wings earlier this week and logged 16:00 of ice time. He skated on the third pair with Declan Chisholm while Brenden Dillon sat as a healthy scratch. The pairing did its job, helping the Devils generate seven shot attempts and five scoring chances, including two high-danger looks.
His return gives New Jersey some flexibility on the blue line. The Pesce-Hughes pairing is staying intact, but the rest of the defense can be shuffled around.
Dillon and Kovacevic can alternate as the extra man, or the team could send Chisholm to the Utica Comets. Jonas Siegenthaler has been beside Dougie Hamilton, but the Siegenthaler-Kovacevic combination is still one worth revisiting.
Either way, the Devils are at least a step closer to having their defense group whole.
The early weeks of the season have also produced a string of milestones. Timo Meier played in his 700th NHL game on Oct. 3 against the New York Islanders. His 2026-27 start has been quiet, but he’s found chemistry on a line with Nico Hischier and Luke Evangelista, a trio the Devils are hoping can turn into a real scoring threat.
Jake Allen reached a major number one week later, appearing in his 500th game and becoming just the ninth active NHL goaltender to hit that mark. He backed it up against the Canucks with a sharp performance, turning aside 20 shots and posting a .952 save percentage in a 4-1 Devils win.
That same game brought another big moment: the captain scored his 200th NHL goal, and he did it on the power play twice. Hischier added another man-advantage goal Tuesday night and is now one away from breaking the tie for third-most goals in Devils franchise history.
There was more firsts mixed in too. Amadeus Lombardi picked up his first NHL point against Vancouver, assisting on Jesper Boqvist’s first-period goal that put New Jersey ahead 2-1. Then Jesper Bratt reached 350 career assists against the Red Wings, moving into fifth place in franchise history with 351 after passing Travis Zajac.
The numbers behind the Devils’ start tell a story that’s more promising than the record might suggest. Through six games, they’ve piled up 218 shots on goal, good for fourth in the league, and they also rank fourth with 69 high-danger shots on goal.
The chances are coming. The finishing has been the problem.
New Jersey is averaging 2.67 goals per game, which sits seventh-worst in the NHL. Defensively, the club is giving up 3.67 goals per game, a mark that is 18.8% higher than last season. The shot volume is there, but the payoff has been limited.
MoneyPuck also shows how aggressively the Devils are pressing. Jack Hughes and Meier both rank among the league’s top 10 in shot attempts per 60 minutes, with Hughes at 24.18 and Meier at 23.7. Still, only four Devils have posted at least three points so far: Hughes, Bratt, Hischier and Evangelista.
So the fix is straightforward in theory. New Jersey needs a stronger 5-on-5 game, more help from the depth scorers, and a greater commitment to getting pucks and bodies to the net.
If the Devils keep creating this many looks, the goals should follow. For now, the task is making sure the effort matches the chances every night, for all three periods.
In Other News...
Devils Rookie Is Forcing A Tough Call Before The Rangers Game
With a crucial meeting against the Rangers looming, Sheldon Keefe is already tinkering with his lineup as the Devils try to keep building on a recent win. Anthony Mantha has been moved, Arseny Gritsyuk has been bumped onto the top line, and the coaching staff is clearly looking for the right mix as New Jersey tries to sharpen up a team that has had to manage questions in goal and on defense.
Amadeus Lombardi has become part of that discussion for a less welcome reason, with his recent penalties putting him in danger of sitting out to avoid giving New York's power play any extra chances. For a rookie, it is the sort of early-season test that can tighten a coach's leash fast, and it leaves the Devils weighing upside against discipline in a game where every mistake feels magnified. [Read more 🡒]
Devils Send An Early Message With Tough Veteran Bench Call
Johnathan Kovacevics return to the lineup has already nudged the Devils into an early defensive decision, and it says something about where the team is headed under its new coaching staff. New Jersey is trying to play faster and more up-tempo this season, which means the blue line has to keep up with that pace as the group settles into a different kind of rhythm.
Brenden Dillon has been the odd man out in recent games, with the veteran currently viewed as the seventh defenseman on the roster. If the Devils stay healthy and the lineup holds, this arrangement appears likely to remain in place, a sign that the club is willing to prioritize speed and fit over veteran comfort as it reshapes its back end. [Read more 🡒]
Devils Need More From These Forwards Before This Becomes A Problem
The Devils are still sorting out a new-look roster after opening the season at 3-3, and the early scoring has followed a familiar script. Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt have done their part at the top of the lineup, but the next layer of forwards has yet to consistently pull its weight, leaving New Jersey a little too reliant on the usual names for offense.
Dawson Mercer, Amadeus Lombardi and Timo Meier are among the forwards the Devils need to see more from as the schedule settles in, because the gap behind the leading scorers is hard to ignore early. New Jersey does not need everything to click at once, but if that secondary production does not arrive soon, the lack of depth scoring could become a real issue for a team trying to establish itself in the opening weeks. [Read more 🡒]