Opinion: The New Jersey Devils Have The Rangers And Hurricanes Beat On Paper
Jack Hughes and Chris Kreider
Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images
The NHL’s Metropolitan Division will be tough again this season, but three teams – the Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers – shape up as the best Metro teams on paper.
The Rangers captured the Presidents' Trophy as the NHL's top team in the regular season, while the Hurricanes remained a Stanley Cup contender. The Devils, meanwhile, had a setback last season after making the playoffs in 2022-23, but they're looking refreshed ahead of a new campaign.
However, among those three teams, which ones stand out as the very best when it comes to (a) who has the best core talent, (b) who has the best depth and (c) who had the best off-season?
Let’s examine the three areas below and rank the franchises accordingly:
Which Team Has The Best Core Talent?
1. New Jersey
2. NY Rangers
3. Carolina
Breakdown: Let’s be clear – all three teams have a core many opponents would love to have. But we’re giving the nod to the Devils because theirs is good now and will be even better in the future.
Their core – forwards Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt and defensemen Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec – are the youngest of the bunch and have great futures ahead of them.
The Rangers came in a close second in this category, with Artemi Panarin, Chris Kreider, Alexis Lafreniere, Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin all elite players, even if they are older than the other two clubs.
Carolina has a solid group of core players, with forwards Seth Jarvis, Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho and Martin Necas and D-man Jaccob Slavin giving them a leg up on other teams.
But the Devils have the best overall collection of youngsters, and that puts them at the top of this category for the long term.
Which Team Has The Best Depth?
1. New Jersey
2. NY Rangers
3. Carolina
Breakdown: Again, the Devils stand out as the best in this category, with three terrific forward lines, three excellent defense pairings and a new tandem starring Jacob Markstrom.
The Rangers also have two above-average forward lines, a well-balanced top-four group of defensemen and a strong tandem in net with Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick. However, with Quick turning 39 years old in January and New Jersey's Jake Allen no longer needing to be a starter, New Jersey could have the edge in the backup comparison.
The Hurricanes, which once had arguably the best defense corps in the league, are now third in the rankings here, with two Grade-A forward lines but a drop-off for a suddenly older collection of defensemen and the least consistent goaltending of the three teams.
New Jersey GM Tom Fitzgerald has assembled an imposing team on all fronts, especially up front and on ‘D.’ Adding Markstrom gives the Devils the all-around depth that puts them ahead of the Blueshirts and Hurricanes.
Again, there is a lot to like with all three of these teams, but the Devils will be the sexy pick to perform well and go on a deep playoff run for good reason – their pros are many, and their cons are few.
Last season was obviously a massive letdown, but this New Jersey team has what it takes to do major damage in the regular season and playoffs.
Which Team Had The Best Off-season?
1. New Jersey
2. Carolina
3. NY Rangers
Breakdown: If you haven’t noticed thus far, this writer is especially high on the Devils right now.
New Jersey added Markstrom as their new top netminder, and Fitzgerald also brought in worker bee forwards Stefan Noesen and Paul Cotter, as well as defensemen Brenden Dillon and Brett Pesce.
They moved John Marino and Alexander Holtz, among others, but Fitzgerald addressed all three major positions and fit upgrades under the salary cap ceiling. That’s an all-encompassing win for the Devils, who have arguably the best-balanced lineup in the league.
The Hurricanes finish second in this category. Even though they lost Pesce, effective D-man Brady Skjei and mid-season acquisition Jake Guentzel, the Canes did what they could to replace them. They added Jack Roslovic and William Carrier up front and veteran blueliners Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker to maintain an above-average defense corps.
The Rangers' additions on offense, Sam Carrick and Reilly Smith, don’t move the needle as much as Carolina and New Jersey’s additions.
The Blueshirts will still be dangerous this coming year, but the Devils and Hurricanes should be just as good, if not better. And the playoffs, of course, will be the ultimate test of who had the best off-season.
New Jersey stands out as the winner on paper in all three categories, so don’t be shocked if and when the Devils go on a longer post-season run next spring. They’ve got it all, and Carolina and the Blueshirts will have to do their darndest to outdo them.
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