The Devils’ move for Connor Hellebuyck was supposed to solve the biggest problem in the room, and it did that. But it also cleaned up a different mess: the forward logjam.
That part matters because New Jersey has been busy under Sunny Mehta, who has wasted no time after taking over as GM. Tom Fitzgerald had a reputation for swinging at deals, but the one that kept slipping away after 2023 never came.
The Devils even tried to land Hellebuyck once before, only for him to stay with the Winnipeg Jets. The source material even suggests that if Fitzgerald had pushed harder for the future Hart Trophy winner back then, he might still be in charge now.
He isn’t, and now Mehta is running the team he grew up rooting for. He has already shown he understands what the Devils need, including the Amadeus Lombardi move. A player who couldn’t crack the Detroit Red Wings has become a meaningful piece for New Jersey, and that helped set the stage for another move.
That said, the bigger reason the Hellebuyck deal got done was timing. His suspension was ending, the Jets knew they needed to act, and Jets GM Kevin Chevaldayoff said Mehta entered the talks very late. Still, the deal came together.
The roster piece that really changes now is Lombardi. With Dawson Mercer going to the Jets, the Devils open a spot for him, and the expectation is that the rookie won’t be leaving the lineup again.
New Jersey won the two games he missed, but the fourth line wasn’t the same with Connor Brown. Brown has not been bad, and nothing here is knocking him, but Lombardi simply meshed better with Cody Glass and Jesper Boqvist.
He pushes play forward, which lets Glass and Boqvist operate in the ways that suit them best. Brown, meanwhile, may be a better fit with Evan Rodrigues and Anthony Mantha.
That’s the kind of lineup wrinkle good teams spend all season trying to solve. Talent matters, sure, but fit can matter just as much. The Devils look better built now than they did a day ago, and keeping Lombardi in the lineup every night only helps.
Even after the deal, New Jersey still has depth. Stefan Noesen and Lenni Hameenaho are both in the AHL with serious NHL experience, while Shane Lachance, Matias Melovsky, and Marc McLaughlin are all solid pieces with the Utica Comets.
So yes, the trade was made to settle the goaltending situation once and for all. But it also lets the Devils handle a crowded forward group without forcing a tough call on Mercer’s Ironman streak.
In Other News...
Devils Got Their Franchise Goalie But One Concern Still Lingers
Connor Hellebuyck gives the Devils the kind of franchise goaltending they have been chasing, but the arrival comes with an obvious asterisk. He missed all of training camp and has not played since the end of last season, which means New Jersey is bringing in a netminder with elite pedigree but very little recent ramp-up before the games start counting.
The concern is not hard to understand after watching how another top goalie, Jeremy Swayman, looked after missing camp because of a contract dispute. Even with his talent, Hellebuyck is expected to need time to catch up to game speed once he gets back in the crease, and the Devils will have to balance the upside of the move with whatever early growing pains come with it. [Read more 🡒]
Zach Hyman Sparked An Oilers Debate Fans Wont Ignore
Zach Hyman became the center of an instant fan debate after drawing a penalty against the Carolina Hurricanes and appearing to wink afterward, a small moment that quickly took on a life of its own. In a sport where every whistle gets replayed and dissected, even a fleeting reaction can be enough to set off arguments about whether a player sold the call or simply enjoyed the result.
For Devils fans watching from the outside, it is the kind of flashpoint that still matters because it speaks to how thin the line can be between gamesmanship and embellishment. The conversation around Hyman's sequence is unlikely to fade quickly, and it fits neatly into the broader way supporters tend to parse officiating, effort and intent whenever a call swings a game. [Read more 🡒]
Nico Hischier Is Giving Devils Fans A Huge New Reason To Dream
Nico Hischiers start to the season has given Devils fans a different kind of lift, one built on more than just leadership and two-way reliability. He has been finishing at a better clip than he ever has before, and his work in the circle has kept him among the leagues best in faceoff wins while strengthening a New Jersey power play that already leans on him in key moments.
For a player whose value has long gone beyond the box score, the scoring bump is the part that changes the conversation. Hischier is putting himself on a path that could push him past his previous personal goal totals, and for a Devils team looking for another gear, that kind of development from its captain is the sort of thing that can reshape expectations fast. [Read more 🡒]