Now that the NHL Expansion Draft and NHL Entry Draft are over, it is time to turn our attention to the next part of the offseason. That being the opening of NHL Free Agency on Wendesday. The New Jersey Devils have quite a few holes in the team’s depth chart entering Wednesday’s window. The below is going to focus on some defensive options the team may want to inquire about.
Before jumping in, it is worth investigating what exactly the team needs defensively. As the current depth chart stands (see below), the Devils need one right-handed defenseman. Specifically, one of a top-four pedigree who would be instrumental in providing great depth to the group. This would slide P.K. Subban, who at this point of his career is more suited for a lesser role, down to the bottom-pairing.
| Left-Handed Defenseman | Right-Handed Defenseman |
| Ryan Graves | Damon Severson |
| Ty Smith | P.K. Subban |
| Jonas Seigenthaler / Will Butcher | TBD / Ty Smith |
Another option the Devils can pursue is obtaining a left-handed defenseman. In doing so, the team would have to move Ty Smith to his off-hand. He has played it in the past, specifically in the WHL with Spokane. This would give the Devils flexibility if they so choose.
The Targets:
Left-Handed Defenseman
Mike Reilly
Reilly was traded to the Boston Bruins during last season. The 28-year old left-handed defenseman is an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career. In total, Reilly played in 55 games and totaled 27 points (all assists) which was a career-high. Reilly registered a total of 98 shots which ranked inside the league’s top-50. He logged almost 20-minutes per night.
Reilly has been regarded as more of an offensive-defenseman throughout his career. However, that overlooks his solid defensive abilities. Over the past three seasons, Reilly’s defensive metrics are good enough to put him in the league’s 53rd percentile. Of course, the offensive praise is warranted as his offensive metrics rank in the league’s 78th percentile. He also has terrific numbers on the power play. For comparison’s sake, Reilly’s expected goals above replacement (xGAR) last season would rank second-best on the Devils’ last season. His number is only lower than Damon Severson’s mark.
Overall, Mike Reilly is a very solid, two-way, top-four defenseman. His terrific offensive abilities makes him a weapon on any team’s top power play unit. An area the New Jersey Devils desperately struggled. He is also no slouch in his own end, per the defensive rankings above. Put Reilly alongside a Damon Severson and you would have a terrific top-four pairing.
Ryan Murray
New Jersey Devils’ fans are well acquainted with defenseman Ryan Murray. Unfortunately, the true Ryan Murray is not what was being showcased on a nightly basis last season. As you can see via the Regularized Adjusted Plus-Minus (RAPM) chart below, Murray struggled last season. Specifically in the beginning part of the year. Fans did start to see what the true Murray is like toward the end of the year, but overall it was a struggle.
Ryan Murray at his best is a shot-suppresing, top-four defenseman. The above player card best describes what Murray is capable of doing. The sample size being the three years prior to last season. Last year was a sub-50 game sample size during a COVID shortened season. What do you trust more? Three years of data? Or 48-games of data? It should be expected that Ryan Murray progresses this season back to the form he has been in for the large part of his career.
General manager Tom Fitzgerald explained in an interview that he, “has had preliminary talks with Ryan Murray’s agent and plans to follow up again in the coming days to see if there’s a path to a new contract.” For context, Ryan Murray is being projected by Evolving-Hockey to receive a four-year deal in the realm of $4,200,000. This does seem like a high projection, a three-year deal in the area of $3,500,000 seems more realistic given last season.
Jake McCabe
Jake McCabe has been one of the few very bright spots on a terrible Buffalo Sabres team the past few seasons. McCabe was having a terrific season last year before he suffered a nasty knee injury on February 20th. At the time of the injury, he was expected to miss the next six-to-eight months. This brings him to a late-October return date at the latest, if that timeline holds true.
McCabe has put up terrific underlying numbers on a bad Sabres team. The 27-year old has elite defensive metrics. Over the past three seasons, he ranks in the league’s 94th percentile defensively. He also does a terrific job on the penalty kill and loves to throw his body around. McCabe has registered, or was on pace to register, 100 or more hits each full season played he has been in the league. He is your textbook defensive-defenseman who can eat tough minutes and serve a valuable role on the penalty kill.
Now, there is some risk associated with possibly signing McCabe. As mentioned, he is working back from a serious knee injury that saw him tear both his ACL and MCL. He will also most likely not be fully ready for the beginning of the season. However, this brings a likely opportunity of getting McCabe at a discounted, “prove it” deal. Getting a possible top-four caliber, stout defensive-defenseman at a discount? Sign me up.
Other Options: Jon Merrill, Derek Forbort, Patrick Nemeth, Slater Koekkoek
Right-Handed Defenseman
Dougie Hamilton
Dougie Hamilton has established himself as a top-three to five defenseman in the NHL. He is elite in nearly every aspect of the game. His total xGAR of 52.3 over the past three seasons is the highest mark in the NHL. To demonstrate how great that number is, the below chart organizes five other top defenseman by xGAR.
| Defenseman | xGAR |
| Dougie Hamilton | 52.3 |
| Charlie McAvoy | 39.8 |
| Alex Pietrangelo | 39.1 |
| John Carlson | 37.5 |
| Victor Hedman | 34.6 |
| Roman Josi | 28.5 |
Hamilton’s traditional statistics also back up the above. He plays nearly 23 minutes a night against the other team’s top talent. He generates a ton of individual shots – leading NHL defenseman this past season, and blocks typically upwards of 60 shots a season. Point-prdocution wise, Hamilton was on pace for a career-high last season. Over an 82-game pace, he would’ve notched 60-plus points. He does it all.
The most exciting part is the New Jersey Devils have been reported by numerous different outlets that they are one of the top suitors for Hamilton. It seems increasingly likely, it will come down to either New Jersey, or Hamilton’s most recent team, the Carolina Hurricanes. What’s the edge the Devils have in this battle? Simple, the money. New Jersey has the third-most cap space in the NHL and will most likely out-bid Carolina. It will most likely come down to how much Hamilton values money or familiarity.
What can a possible Hamilton contract look like? Well, the report is an average annual value between eight and nine million. That would be a terrific price for a top-defenseman. For context, Cale Makar just signed a deal that will pay him $9,000,000 per season, Alex Pietrengelo is making $8,800,000 per season, and Roman Josi, Drew Doughty, and Erik Karlsson all make in excess of the outlined price range.
David Savard
David Savard was traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Tampa Bay Lightning during last season. The 30-year-old, right-handed defenseman is an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career. Savard’s traditional statistics are not going to jump off the page. But, that makes sense because he is a defensive-first defenseman.
He is good for 120-plus hits per season and 100-plus blocked shots per season. He ranks in the league’s 95th percentile defensively over the past three seasons. His defensive-specific GAR is always near the league’s best. Savard also does pretty good work on the penalty kill.
Savard is a textbook defensive-defenseman with penalty kill expertise. He will bring you nothing offensively but has the capabilities to be put on the ice in the closing minutes of games and grind it away. The only issue with Savard is he may be in for a pretty large payday. He is 30-years old, so a term north of four-years would get a bit dicey. However, if New Jersey were able to land Savard at a solid price, he would provide something the team has not had in years. A defensive stalwart to play tough minutes and serve a valuable role on the penalty kill.
Worth noting, the interest from the Devils seems to be there. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported New Jersey having interest in the grizzled defenseman. So, we shall see if that comes to fruition.
Other Options: Mark Pysyk, Jani Hakanpaa, Tucker Poolman
What Should The New Jersey Devils Do?
The New Jersey Devils have $32,000,000 in cap space, the third-most cap space in the NHL. The team is also in need of a top-four defenseman with the ability to give the team quality, tough minutes. Dougie Hamilton, as it seems to be the case, should rightfully be the Devils’ number one priority. Signing Hamilton would transform the defensive core for years to come, and help the Devils further along the team’s continuous rebuilding process.
If Hamilton were to opt to go back to Carolina, there are still several other great options. David Savard may be pricey, but would bring great defensive stability. Mike Reilly is an underrated complete defenseman who would be a cheaper top-four option. Jake McCabe, albeit a tad risky, is your textbook low-risk, high-reward signing. There are also several different other depth options that would improve the Devils’ defensive core.
At the end of the day, it will be interesting how general manager Tom Fitzgerald approaches addressing his defensive core via free agency. He already made a splash via trade, is an even bigger splash via free agency on the horizon?