A deep dive into the Devils' salary cap situation

Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2022-23 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

New Jersey Devils

Current cap hit: $82,426,625 (under the $82.5M Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Alexander Holtz (three years, $894K)
F Dawson Mercer (two years, $894K)
D Simon Nemec (three years, $950K)

Potential bonuses
Holtz: $850K
Mercer: $400K
Nemec: $3.25M
Total: $4.475M

Mercer’s rookie season was a strong one as he finished fourth in freshman scoring with 42 points while grabbing hold of a spot in their top six. Assuming he stays there and boosts his production, he could be a candidate to skip a bridge deal and do a long-term pact as they’ve done with some of their other core pieces. Holtz may be up and down at times this season for cap purposes but when he’s in the NHL, he should be in the top six, allowing for some point production. If he winds up being up for the bulk of the season, he could hit several of his ‘A’ bonuses which is noteworthy with how tight the Devils are to the cap ceiling.

Nemec is another player that could be up and down at times this season. The second-overall pick from July is eligible to go to the AHL since he wasn’t drafted out of the CHL and shuffling him back and forth would allow them to manage his minutes in New Jersey and then get him to play bigger roles in the minors. If he surprises in training camp and lands a top-four spot, however, then he’ll have a good chance at reaching some of his ‘A’ bonuses as well.

Signed through 2022-23, Non-Entry-Level

F Nathan Bastian ($825K, RFA)
G Jonathan Bernier ($4.125M, UFA)
G Mackenzie Blackwood ($2.8M, RFA)
F Jesper Boqvist ($874K, RFA)
F Jesper Bratt ($5.45M, RFA)
D Ryan Graves ($3.167M, UFA)
F Erik Haula ($2.375M, UFA)
F Andreas Johnsson ($3.4M, UFA)
F Michael McLeod ($950K, RFA)
D Damon Severson ($4.167M, UFA)
F Yegor Sharangovich ($2M, RFA)
F Tomas Tatar ($4.5M, UFA)
F Miles Wood ($3.2M, UFA)

Let’s start with the pending UFA forwards. Tatar continues to be a strong possession player but his production has dropped the last couple of seasons. He’s a placeholder for someone like Holtz and while waiting out the market worked relatively well for him last summer, he’ll be hard-pressed to get this on his next contract. Johnsson had a much better showing last season compared to his first year in New Jersey and considering he’ll be 28 in free agency, he could get a contract that’s somewhat close to this rate assuming he produces at a similar rate next season.

Wood played just three games last season as he worked his way back from hip surgery so this deal was largely based on his past production. If healthy, he’s an effective middle-six winger that can contribute in a few different ways. But if the injury woes persist or he struggles, he’s a candidate for a one-year deal closer to the $2M range. Haula came over in a trade from Boston for Pavel Zacha and is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. He won’t get as much top-six time with the Devils but even if his production goes closer to the 30-point mark (compared to 44 in 2021-22), he should be able to get at least a small raise on this contract.

Bratt has been through a couple of long negotiations already and the one-year settlement they reached last month only kicked the can down the road. This is clearly a prove-it contract after leading the team in scoring last season. A repeat performance could push him towards the $7.5M range on a long-term agreement when he’ll have the hammer next summer in his final season of RFA eligibility. Sharangovich didn’t improve much on his per-game rates as a rookie but he has certainly shown that he’s a top-six winger for the Devils. His qualifying offer is $2.2M and right now, his next deal could be in the $3.5M range if he plays at a similar level next season.

McLeod’s offensive production hasn’t come around compared to his days in junior but he has been a strong middleman on the fourth line the last couple of seasons. With Zacha gone, he could get more of an offensive chance although Haula will cut into those chances as well. He should land a bit more than his $1M qualifying offer next summer and a one-year deal might be an option if he has a similar offensive showing this season. Boqvist is now waiver-eligible so he shouldn’t see any time with Utica this season. He took his qualifying offer this summer and will have arbitration eligibility next offseason where, if he can produce at a similar rate as he did in 2021-22, he could push for something in the $1.75M range. Bastian returned after being claimed back on waivers from Seattle and provided decent production from the fourth line. His qualifier is just under $920K but with teams trying to stay cheap on their depth players, he might have a hard time getting much more than that unless he can crack the double-digit mark in goals again.

Onto the defensemen. Severson has been on a team-friendly deal for a while now and with his jump in production last season, his contract looks even better for the Devils now. He’ll be 29 when his next contract kicks in and has logged top-pairing minutes for the last few seasons. He could find himself with a long-term deal worth more than $6M per year at this time in 2023. Graves has become a quality option on the second pairing over the past four seasons and he’ll only be 28 next summer. He won’t produce enough to command the type of money that Severson will but he could push his way into the $4.5M range a year from now.

Bernier was signed to platoon with Blackwood but hip troubles ended his season early and will delay the start of this one. Between that and the fact he’ll be 35 next summer, he’ll be looking at a one-year deal if he’s able to play at all and it should be considerably cheaper than this one. Blackwood is coming off a tough year and his numbers have dipped in each of the last three seasons. His qualifying offer is $3.36M next summer and if he’s once again on the weak side of the platoon, he could be a non-tender candidate. On the flip side, he’s still young enough to potentially establish himself as at least a medium-term solution beyond 2022-23.

Signed Through 2023-24

D Brendan Smith ($1.1M, UFA)

Smith has been a serviceable and versatile veteran at the end of the roster for the last few seasons with an ability to play up front when needed as well. He’s likely to have a depth role with New Jersey which will likely have him in line for a similar contract a couple of years from now.

Signed Through 2024-25

G Vitek Vanecek ($3.4M, UFA)

With Blackwood’s struggles and Bernier’s injury concerns, GM Tom Fitzgerald elected to bring in another goaltender and quickly inked Vanecek to this three-year deal. He has been part of the platoon in Washington for the past two seasons, posting a .908 SV% each time. He’s probably still going to be a platoon option with Blackwood but he gives New Jersey some medium-term depth with the other two on expiring contracts with prospects like Nico Daws and Akira Schmid needing more AHL time.

Signed Through 2025-26 or longer

D Dougie Hamilton ($9M through 2027-28)
F Nico Hischier ($7.25M through 2026-27)
F Jack Hughes ($8M through 2029-30)
D John Marino ($4.4M through 2026-27)
F Ondrej Palat ($6M through 2026-27)
D Jonas Siegenthaler ($1.125M in 2022-23, $3.4M from 2023-24 through 2027-28)

Despite a couple of quiet seasons to start his career, the Devils didn’t hesitate to extend Hughes to a max-term deal. That decision looks pretty good already after he put up 56 points in 49 games last season, establishing himself as a true No. 1 center. Assuming he can continue at that level, this could become a team-friendly deal fairly quickly. Hischier, a No. 1 pick himself, also went that route a few years ago with the contract he’s on now, one that could have served as a cautionary tale for Hughes. Hischier hasn’t been able to produce at a top-line rate so far although he is coming off a career-best 60 points last season. He’s at least a higher-end second liner so they’re doing okay with this deal so far but it has not proven to be the bargain they hoped he’d be at this point. Palat comes over from Tampa Bay with one of the pricier contracts given to a winger in free agency. He’ll add some experience to their top six and while this deal might not age too well, he should give them a good return for a couple of years at least.