Tough Road Ahead

A new year is being rung in and it also signals another EHE season. The 2022-2023 season is the beginning of the 4th season for GM Knedel running the New Jersey Devils. The Devils have seen a steady improvement since Knedel was appointed GM. From a bottom of the league team to looking to compete for a playoff spot. The big hurdle in the upcoming season is going to be the competitive Metropolitan division. The Devils are predicted to finish in the bottom of the division while being a top 16 team in the EHE, shows how good the other 7 teams are.

Recapping the offseason the shocking move was made in the offseason that most people did not see coming. The headline move was the 2 part trade with Tampa Bay that saw franchise cornerstone Mat Barzal being traded for Brayden Point. GM Knedel felt the team needed a bit of a shake up and as good as Barzal is, the opportunity to get Brayden Point and Alex Pietrangelo was one that couldn’t be passed up. 

The UFA period was pretty quiet for the Devils. Not many big ticket contracts were needed to be given out this offseason. The 12 forward spots accounted for, with the Devils only needing to bring in 2 defenseman to complete the opening night roster. T.J. Brodie was the big name signing in the UFA period to play alongside Pietrangelo for the upcoming season. Marco Scandella was also brought in to complete the defense and be a solid shutdown defenseman.

Here is the predicted opening night lineup to face the Florida Panthers:

DeBrincat - Point - Terry

Verhaeghe - Couture - Strome

Olofsson - Dube - Mikheyev

Blackwell - Lizotte - Hornqvist

Brodie - Pietrangelo

Carlo - Bouchard

Fabbro - Scandella

Oettinger

Georgiev

Extras: Gregor, Lauzon

The 2022-2023 season is going to be a hard fought season where every point is going to matter in a close Metropolitan Division. New Jersey is trying to make their first playoffs appearance since the 2015-2016 season.

Credit to Doug for the amazing graphics. See them in his 2022-2023 EHE season previews.