Fitzgerald, Devils Land Their Big Fish Defenseman
I’ll give Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald this: No one has been able to sell this franchise, a veritable third wheel in a crowded hockey landscape, to outsiders like he has.
Starting with defenseman Dougie Hamilton three years ago, Fitzgerald has been able to convince some really good players to come and stay in New Jersey despite just one playoff appearance in the last six seasons. That isn’t easy to do when so many veterans desire winning programs (the Devils’ three Stanley Cups in nine years was a generation ago), not to mention non-hockey matters like low state taxes.
More evidence that New Jersey has been revived as a prime hockey destination came when Fitzgerald secured the services of this offseason’s object of his desire, inking Carolina defenseman Brett Pesce to a 6-year deal at Monday’s open to NHL free agency for an AAV of $5.5 million. Pesce, 29, is renowned for his ability to break up opponents’ plays and transition the puck in the other direction, a sorely-needed skill for a Devils D corps that struggled with consistency in their own zone last season.
Pesce is pretty much a bigger and slightly better version of John Marino, whom the Devils traded to Utah on Saturday for two second-round picks. Pesce blocks more shots and is the superior penalty killer, though I would give Marino the edge in offensive creation.
It’s not great that Pesce will be in his mid-30s in the second half of the deal, but for New Jersey to shake off last season’s disaster, he’s the type of player they needed in this moment. He fits Fitzgerald’s model in that he’s 6-foot 3 and “hard to play against.”
Fitzgerald’s other free agent defenseman acquisition on Monday, Brenden Dillon, brings some of the same attributes, but isn’t as effective, in my opinion. Anything is a welcome upgrade over Brendan Smith, who signed with Dallas on Monday, but doling out 3 years at a $4 million AAV for a third-pair guy seems a bit excessive.
A 13-year pro, Dillon spent the last three seasons in Winnipeg after a relatively brief stint in Washington, where he was a gaffe machine in the games I watched against the local clubs. He has been durable, missing a total of ten games over the last eight seasons (plus the last two contests in the Jets’ first-round loss to Colorado due to a gash from a skate on his hand) and he set a career high with eight goals last season.
Fitzgerald has assembled a fairly balanced unit whereby new Head Coach Sheldon Keefe can choose to roll out pairings of Hamilton/Jonas Siegenthaler, Pesce/Luke Hughes, and Simon Nemec/Dillon that puts one offensive-minded defender with more of a stay-at-home type. And Fitzgerald might not be done tinkering, as his depth d-men (Nick DiSimone and Jonathan Kovacevic) are both righthanded.
Some fans might have had higher expectations for up-front additions for this Devils offseason. I was titillated by the prospect of dynamic Vegas winger Jonathan Marchessault, a 42-goal scorer last season, coming East. Alas, his $5.5 million per year price tag paid by Nashville was too rich for Fitzgerald, as New Jersey only has a little less than $6.8 million in salary cap room with Dawson Mercer and Nolan Foote still unsigned as restricted free agents.
The Devils did boost their bottom six by bringing back mucker Stefan Noesen on a 3 year, $2.75 million AAV deal. Noesen was an integral part of New Jersey’s run to the 2018 playoffs but was let go after a disappointing follow-up campaign. He bounced around before settling in Carolina in a bottom six role, scoring 27 goals over the last two seasons.
I don’t know where Keefe is going to play all these low-skilled forwards Fitzgerald has been accumulating—Noesen and Paul Cotter have joined Nathan Bastian, Curtis Lazar, and Kurtis MacDermid this offseason. You don’t want to have more than one Non-Production line in big games.
But to be clear, this is the team Fitzgerald envisioned since the Devils were eliminated in the 2023 Eastern Conference semifinals by Carolina—one with size and grit. He figured he has enough scoring among his top six with Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Nico Hischier, and Timo Meier. And now he has solidified the back end with Pesce eating the hard minutes in front of new goalie Jacob Markstrom, who willingly waived his no-trade clause so the Devils could acquire him from Calgary last month.
New Jersey as a hockey destination. That wasn’t the case before Hamilton signed. We’ll have to see if Fitzgerald’s plan works on the ice, but you have to marvel how well he has executed it.