Does the Devils lack leadership?

« We will have a much younger squad and fans should be ecstatic, it’s a young mans game and we are going in that direction. That’s more or less why we didn’t offer a new contract to Hornqvist and Staal. The departure of Ryan Getzlaf will be felt, he was our captain and true leader and an announcement should be made soon regarding the new Devils captain. »

                                                                                                                                                                       - MatsLP, NJ Devils GM

A younger squad… neat! But wait a minute..

Do that lack of experience will also mean a lack of leadership?

A research on twins done at the University of Minnesota concluded that 30% of leadership effectiveness is explained by heredity but the vast majority (the remaining 70%) is due to experience. So apparently you kinda need a few season down the drain to bolster your leadership. Aside Markstrom (31), there’s only Burns who is over 30 (36) so GM MatsLP has definitely limited options to name his new captain.

If GM MatsLP is looking for a bold but sound move, he may look for Aleksander Barkov. The Devils cornerstone is 25 and has already played full time in 7 RHL seasons. If Burns is the guy, we should expect at least an « A » for Sasha, same for Colton Parayko.

And what about the free agent market?

There are a few candidates on the FA market who would bring a lot of leadership to this young Devils squad. Sitting at 77,5M$, I’m not sure MatsLP will have enough room under the cap to fill that need via the FA market. Is Patrick Marleau the guy? Is he still relevant? Maybe Lucic? Or better, maybe he will be tempted to bring back home Carl Hagelin who used to be a fan favorite because of his hair flapping? That said, they already have Axel Jonsson-Fjallby to fill that void. I’m really not sure they will go that way.

Another thing to consider is that the lineup is almost all set. Adding a player would probably mean a demotion for Sam Steel which is not something we should wish. Sign are pointing that the promising young center should take a step in the upcoming season so please don’t do that Mats.

Does more cap space would help?

Euhh… Yes it always does. To make it happen, maybe MatsLP will be tempted to trade the recently signed UFA Jacob Markstrom (4 x 6M$). If I’d have to bet, I would say he will only do that halfway through the season, just to be sure that Alex Nedeljkovic is starter material. It’s been a few years since the Devils drafted Ned and the waiting game seemed to pay off. MatsLP recalled going to a Niagara Ice Dogs game in 2016: « I was named GM of the New Jersey Devils in march that year, the team missed the playoff again and I was looking for bright spots. I went to an Ice Dogs playoff game and Ned was solid. That night, I felt like he would be our guy one day and that day is closer than ever. »

OK, ok… so…Brent Burns will be the new captain, right?

I would bet on that. The rumour is that MatsLP is about to jump on a badass over equipped Wrangler Jeep and drive in direction of Burns Zoo in Texas to meet who seem to be the only logical replacement. Should be fun, it’s not everyday you get to see antelopes dancing around a viking.