The New Jersey Devils are looking at a very important offseason. It may be the most important offseason since 2019, and we all know how that turned out. The Devils have to see how things are moving around the league. Team USA’s biggest players are reportedly considering asking for trades. The Devils’ salary cap situation is one of the worst in the league. They have seven NHL defensemen, including one who needs a new contract, and the defense isn’t great. It can be, but it’s not yet.
And with all that, it’s still two contracts we’re all paying attention to: Nico Hischier and Arseny Gritsyuk.
Hischier is in the final year of his contract, meaning he can sign an extension on July 1st. Thanks to the new collective bargaining agreement, this is the one and only time he can sign an eight-year extension. By September 15th, that option is immediately off the table. Then, he’s only eligible for a seven-year contract with the Devils or a team he’s traded to.
If Hischier takes this all the way to free agency, then he’s only eligible for a six-year contract. That gives new Devils GM Sunny Mehta a leg up in negotiations.
On the other hand, the Gritsyuk negotiations are completely different. Because he was drafted in 2019, he was only eligible for a one-year entry-level contract. So, he is a free agent this offseason. However, he’s just a restricted free agent, so the Devils hold his rights unless a team sends him an offer sheet.
Both contracts are on the top of minds for Devils fans, so it was top of mind during Wednesday’s town hall the Devils held. Pucks and Pitchforks had members in the audience to hear Mehta speak. And his update on Hischier and Gritsyuk will be encouraging.
Mehta said he is “encouraged” by both contract negotiations. Hischier’s name has been in rumors for weeks, and the situation has gotten worse since Dylan Larkin demanded a trade from the Detroit Red Wings. People are looking at the market and trying to make a trade rumor out of thin air.
With Mehta sharing encouragement for the two negotiations, it shows that his priorities are in the right place. We don’t think he would just say that to appease the fans. Trust is important at this point. If he talks about the negotiations in a positive light, then trades his team’s captain, it’s a terrible look.
One name he didn’t mention did stand out. Mehta didn’t mention Simon Nemec, who is also a restricted free agent. We won’t overreact to that, but it was noticed.
