The 2026-27 NHL season is here, with the puck dropping on opening night on Tuesday. The New Jersey Devils begin their season on Thursday night with a home game against the Philadelphia Flyers, and it will be a good test for the revamped team. 

The Devils enter this season with plenty of questions but also a fascination surrounding them. They are a new team with a new direction, led by a first-time general manager who has aggressively improved them: Sunny Mehta. Now, it’s about seeing whether his vision makes a difference. 

The first week of action will be a small sample size. A three-game sample in an 84-game marathon, much like a spoon of ice cream or a spray of fragrance that provides a preview of what's in store. It’s that first week of the season that fans will monitor and wonder what to make of this team, and there are a few things worth keeping tabs on. 

Expect a lot of sloppy hockey to begin this season. This isn’t exclusive to the Devils, since teams around the league are navigating a new reality. The preseason was shortened, the season starts earlier, and it’s an 84-game grind. All this will result in some messy hockey early on. 

It wouldn’t shock anyone if the Devils are one of those teams. They have multiple new players, some of whom are playing key roles in the top six. While it looks like they have stability for now, it will take head coach Sheldon Keefe time and tinkering to find the ideal lines and the optimal lineup for the rest of the season. 

That said, the Devils want to start the season off strong. A slow start will have them chasing in the standings and not playing their brand of hockey. Likewise, it puts pressure on the coaching staff and the front office to make changes to the coaching staff. Conversely, starting with a bang allows Mehta to think ahead about how good this team can be and what moves might put them over the hump. 

One week won’t provide a clear answer. However, the Devils host the Flyers and then head to Long Island to face the New York Islanders two days later. They get two divisional teams right off the opening puck drop and can measure themselves up against them. 

These are also two teams that the Devils will likely be in a fight with for playoff spots. The Flyers are eager to take another step with their young core, and after making the playoffs last season, they have higher expectations. The Islanders have some star power in their lineup, led by Matthew Schaefer, Ilya Sorokin, and Bo Horvat, so with the help of new head coach Pete DeBoer, they can take a big step forward as well. 

A lingering question ahead of the season was how the Devils will stack up against their division. How will they look against their rivals? The first week of action will be an indicator, at least in the first two games (the Utah Mammoth are the third team they play in that first week of action). 

The goaltending was already a question mark for the Devils. Would the position be a strength that turns them into a top-of-the-conference team or a weakness that derails the season? Moreover, with Jake Allen and Nico Daws, it was hard to know how the position would be handled and whether either could be the primary starter. 

Now, there’s a wrench thrown into the plans with the Rémi Poirier waiver claim addition. He’s a sneaky-good goaltender, someone with high upside but who took time to develop in the American Hockey League. Mehta claimed him, and the Devils have three goaltenders to manage.  

With three games in the first week, it will be fascinating to see how the trio is handled. Maybe Allen and Daws split the starts early on. It’s also possible all three goaltenders start a game in the first week. Either way, it will be interesting to see whether the trio works and gives the Devils an edge. 

The fans have been chomping at the bit to see whether the new faces will work with the already existing core. Will the new-look Devils be a better team? How will they look early on, and will there be growing pains? 

Luke Evangelista, who was acquired a month before the season, was great in the preseason, especially on the Nico Hischier and Timo Meier line. However, is he a star player for the Devils or just a depth piece? Is Anthony Mantha, who was signed this summer, still going to play at a high level in his 30s? What about Evan Rodrigues? Can Amadeus Lombardi find his ceiling with the Devils and become a regular on the NHL roster?

The Devils are inserting all of these players into the lineup, and it will be fascinating to see how it looks. In recent years, the Devils were exciting but had a familiar team that fell apart down the stretch. Now, there’s optimism with some fresh faces. 

In the past, at least in the Jack Hughes era, the Devils were known for their speed and skill. They could run up the score on anyone, thanks mostly to Hughes, Jesper Bratt, and a dynamic top six. 

That said, the Devils have shifted their identity a bit, or at least hoped to do so this offseason. They don’t want to be a team that only relies on its speed. Likewise, they don’t want to be a team that relies on Hughes. It’s why they added size to the lineup and players with different skill sets. 

It makes the first week of the season an intriguing one for the Devils. Are they still a fast team, or do they play with a checking mentality and an edge? Will they win with offense or be a surprisingly good team on the defensive end? 

What do you think the Devils will look like in the first week of action? Comment below!