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The New Jersey Devils were eliminated from the 2026 NHL postseason play. ​

Following their elimination, the team is now preparing for the 2026-27 season, and 20 players are free agents. ​

Ten players are unrestricted free agents (UFA): ​

Evgenii Dadonov

Zack MacEwen

Dennis Cholowski

Brian Halonen

Nate Legare

Ryan Schmelzer

Johnathan Gruden

Mike Hardman

Marc McLaughlin

Colton White

​Ten players are restricted free agents (RFA): ​

Arseny Gritsyuk

Paul Cotter

Simon Nemec

Xavier Parent

Dylan Wendt

Topias Vilen

Calen Addison

Nico Daws

Jakub Malek

Tyler Brennan ​

Meanwhile, the team’s newest general manager, Sunny Mehta, has his work cut out for him, as he took over this team on April 16th. ​

With the offseason underway, big decisions await Mehta as he shapes the team for next season.  ​

Recently, he spoke on The Sheet Hockey with Jeff Marek about the trade and protection clauses on the Devils’ roster.  

​“When I look at our cap situation, the no moves, everything pertaining to our asset base, I’m optimistic,” Mehta said. “I think we are going to have to be creative, find solutions to things in terms of improving the roster, but I’m excited for it, to be honest.”​

He also shared his vision for the Devils’ future in a motivating conversation with NJD.tv.

“I’m extremely optimistic about this team,” Mehta said. “We have a lot of talented players, and I really, truly believe that these talented players are about to hit an inflection point and get over that hurdle. It’s my job to make sure that this roster is consistently flush with the necessary amount of talent to be a championship team. And I intend to do that.” ​

The team ended their season on April 14th. 

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