Nico Hischier didn’t leave the Devils guessing.
With the final season of his seven-year, $50.75MM extension looming, the New Jersey captain could have taken his time, weighed the market and pushed the decision deeper into the year. Instead, on the first day he was eligible, Hischier locked in a five-year, $58.5MM extension to stay right where he is.
In a new interview with Chris Johnston of The Athletic, Hischier made it plain that New Jersey was always the destination. Johnston quoted him as saying, “ For me it was clear: My goal is to give something back to New Jersey.
They gave me a chance to play in the NHL. They picked me.
”
That loyalty comes after a stretch of uneven results for the Devils. Hischier has developed into one of the league’s stronger two-way centers, but the team around him has not always kept pace with the rest of the Eastern Conference.
New Jersey reached the playoffs in 2023 and made it to Round Two before being knocked out by the Carolina Hurricanes. The next season was a major setback, as injuries played a big part in a 31-point drop in the standings and the Devils missed the postseason altogether.
They got back in 2025, only to be eliminated by the Hurricanes again, this time in Round One. Then came another missed playoff berth this past season.
That run of inconsistency helped lead to change in the spring. On April 16th, the Devils hired Sunny Mehta as the team’s next General Manager, replacing Tom Fitzgerald. Hischier had to sort through what that meant for the direction of the franchise before committing long term.
By his account, the answers were good enough.
Johnston also quoted Hischier saying, “ We had some changes, and we wanted to know what the plan is. Obviously, there were talks.
We discussed some things. And we came to the end, and I want to be part of the plan.
I want to be part of this. Obviously, we weren’t really happy with how things have turned out the last few years, but we’ve shown that we can be a team that can be dangerous too.
We just have to bring it every night. ”
Now the Devils move forward with their captain firmly in place. Hischier has been one of the club’s steadiest pieces over the past five years, posting 142 goals and 342 points in 379 games with a +30 rating while averaging 19:52 of ice time per game. For a team that has spent too much time dealing with uncertainty, that kind of consistency matters.
In Other News...
Devils Already Face A Big Question With Their New Winger
Luke Evangelista is already giving the Devils something to think about well before his first season in New Jersey even gets going. The winger arrived from Nashville with a fresh start and a contract situation that immediately puts him on a different timeline than the rest of the roster, since he is heading into the final year of his deal. For now, Evangelista says he is not worried about extension talks, which is a reasonable place for a new player to be in, but it also means the Devils are set to spend the season watching both his fit and his future.
For a team trying to settle into its next phase, that kind of uncertainty can matter just as much as production. New Jersey did not bring in Evangelista for a long-term mystery, but his situation adds another layer to a summer already full of league-wide movement chatter, including renewed discussion about whether Sidney Crosby even leaves Pittsburgh at all. The Devils cannot control those bigger narratives, yet they do have to manage the one in front of them, and what happens with Evangelista over the coming year could decide whether this trade looks like a short-term boost or the start of something bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Fans Have Every Reason To Watch This Hellebuyck Sweepstake
As training camp approaches, the Devils are carrying a roster that already looks crowded in a few important places, especially up front and in goal. That makes any significant move harder to pull off, but it also leaves New Jersey in position to monitor the market closely if the right opportunity appears. Connor Hellebuyck has already made his desire for a trade public, and the Devils are widely viewed as one of the teams best positioned to chase him if Winnipeg decides to engage seriously.
The issue, of course, is cost. Any deal for a goalie of Hellebuycks stature would require a substantial package, and that is where the Devils would have to decide how aggressive they want to be while trying to keep their current depth intact. Luke Evangelista, recently acquired by New Jersey, has already sounded eager to help push the club toward the playoffs, which only adds to the sense that this is a team trying to win now while still leaving room for a major swing if the market breaks its way. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres May Have One Path Left To Contender Status
Goaltending chatter around the Devils has become part of the offseason conversation again, and Connor Hellebuycks name is sitting near the center of it. New Jersey already knows the shape of the problem: a team with enough talent to think bigger, but with no margin for error in net if it wants to close the gap on the Easts best clubs.
The Winnipeg Jets goalie has been floated as a possible fix for several teams, and the Devils are one of the more logical fits because of where they are in their timeline. The question is whether New Jersey decides to make a real push for a proven answer, or whether it keeps looking for a less dramatic path while Buffalo and Carolina are also weighing their own needs in goal. [Read more 🡒]