Sunny Mehta’s first offseason at the controls has already changed the look of the New Jersey Devils.
The general manager has been aggressive from the jump, starting with last month’s trade of Simon Nemec and Maxim Tsyplakov to the Calgary Flames. The Devils followed that up with a promising draft haul, then stayed active right before free agency and kept the momentum going once the market opened.
On Tuesday, New Jersey sent Jacob Markstrom and Angus Crookshank to the Florida Panthers and brought back Jesper Boqvist, Evan Rodrigues, and Ben Steeves. The same day, Arseny Gritsyuk signed a three-year extension with a $3.25 million cap hit. Then free agency arrived, and the Devils re-signed Nico Hischier and Nico Daws before adding Vladislav Kolyachonok and Riley Tufte.
A big part of Mehta’s work this summer has been aimed at the bottom six, where the Devils needed more reliable scoring support behind Hischier and Jack Hughes. That started with Paul Cotter not receiving a qualifying offer.
Cotter, who later signed a one-year deal with the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday, had scored 16 goals in 2024-25, but his role never expanded the way many expected. The source material says he struggled last season and became a liability in 5-on-5 situations, making the decision to let him go a practical one for both cap space and offensive balance.
The Markstrom deal pushed that reset even further. New Jersey cleared his $6 million cap hit while also adding two players who fit the depth-scoring brief.
Boqvist returns to the Devils after a previous stint with the club, and this time around his penalty-kill work and playoff background are part of the appeal. His cap hit sits at just $1.5 million.
Rodrigues brings a different kind of value. He can play center or wing, he’s good for 30-40 points, and he has one year left on his deal. The Devils also get a player with two Stanley Cup rings and 41 career playoff points, which gives the move a clear low-risk, high-upside feel.
Mehta has also leaned hard into young talent, both as currency and as a pipeline builder. The return for Nemec and Tsyplakov included conditional first-round picks in 2027 and 2028, prospect Etienne Morin, and the 35th overall pick in this year’s draft. New Jersey then moved that pick to the Chicago Blackhawks for 37th and 119th overall, which became Matias Vanhanen and Lavr Gashilov.
The draft itself reinforced the same theme. Chief Amateur Scout Mark Dennehy said the process was collaborative, with input from analytics, scouting, psychology, and strength and conditioning.
The Devils came away with seven picks: one goalie, one defenseman, and five forwards. The common thread was clear - competitiveness, grit, and two-way ability.
Rather than chase size or pure power, Mehta targeted prospects with high hockey IQ who could meet future needs.
That approach fits the track record, too. Mehta previously served as the Devils’ Director of Hockey Analytics during the 2016 Draft, when his projections had Jesper Bratt in the third overall slot, according to Peter Baugh of The Athletic in a story cited by the source article. His influence has already been tied to one of the franchise’s most important player evaluations, and that history helps explain why his current decisions are being treated as more than simple roster churn.
The financial picture has shifted as well. By moving on from Markstrom’s $12 million extension, the Devils created room to address other needs. After the first day of free agency, they had just under $8 million available to pursue a starting goaltender and finish the rest of their business, per PuckPedia.
With Hischier now locked in on a five-year extension, the core is in place. The rest of the offseason will determine how far this reshaping goes, but the direction is already obvious: Mehta is trying to build a faster, deeper, more adaptable Devils team, one move at a time.
In Other News...
Devils Suddenly Have A Familiar Free Agency Problem To Solve
As the Devils look for ways to add depth and better support a lineup that went through a difficult season, the non-tender market has become a sensible place to shop. New Jersey is casting a wide net on forwards who might be available on short-term, low-risk deals, the kind of moves that can help patch holes without blocking the clubs better long-term pieces.
Philipp Kurashev, Matias Maccelli and Philip Tomasino are all on the radar in one form or another, giving the Devils a mix of upside, skill and uncertainty to sort through. Kurashevs playmaking history makes him the most interesting fit on paper, Maccelli brings a more recent track record of offense, and Tomasino looks like the sort of depth swing that could still have value if the organization thinks there is another layer to unlock. [Read more 🡒]
Devils Free Agency Just Turned Into A Franchise Defining Day
Free agency opened with the kind of churn that can reshape a roster in a hurry, and the Devils were right in the middle of it. Arseny Gritsyuk is in the fold on a new deal, giving New Jersey another piece to evaluate as the summer gets rolling, while the rest of the league spent the first day of the market making moves that could ripple across the Eastern Conference.
For the Devils, the bigger question is how aggressively they want to lock in the core around Nico Hischier while the market keeps moving around them. There was also a separate wrinkle involving Zach Werenski, whose situation underscored how quickly a deal can get close before a no-move clause changes everything, and it is the kind of reminder that one day of free agency can still leave plenty of business unfinished. [Read more 🡒]
A Familiar Devils Winger Is Already Someone Elses Toughness Fix
The Canucks continued their offseason push to add grit and experience by signing left winger Paul Cotter to a one-year deal worth $2.15 million, a move aimed at giving their younger group more edge and forechecking bite. Cotter arrived after a season in New Jersey that included 15 points and 192 hits, the kind of production that often travels well for a player whose value is built as much on physical presence as on the scoresheet.
For the Devils, it is another reminder of how quickly a familiar toughness piece can become someone elses solution when the market opens. New Jersey has spent recent seasons looking for the right balance of skill and heaviness, and Cotters departure leaves one more vacancy in the bottom six mix as the team continues to sort out what it wants that role to look like going forward. [Read more 🡒]