NHL Power Rankings: Rating the Savviness of Each Team's GM in Free Agent Market

This is the busiest of times for NHL general managers. They often earn the bulk of their money for the work that is done in the offseason. During which time, general managers have to run their teams' drafts, negotiate contracts, make trades and sign free agents.

Many general managers have learned the lesson that you can't just throw money around and bring in expensive superstars to help their teams improve. It's the savvy GM who can bring in the right free agent that will often help them team more than the big name.

Here's our power ranking of the league's 30 general managers.

No. 30, Scott Howson, Columbus Blue Jackets

This franchise has gone backwards since Howson took over in 2007. Right now, his biggest priority is to move high-scoring forward Rick Nash because the Blue Jackets are in a rebuilding mode. He had been trying to move Nash prior to the trade deadline, but he still remains in Columbus.

How can Howson make any good free agency moves if he can't accomplish the first step in the rebuilding process? It seems as if Howson has no idea of what he is doing. He acquired Jeff Carter from Philadelphia last year and then moved him to Los Angeles prior to the trade deadline. Jakub Voracek was traded for Carter. He had been a big disappointment in Columbus but he enjoyed success in Philadelphia.

Howson is one of the biggest reasons the Blue Jackets had the worst team in the league last season.

No. 29, Garth Snow, New York Islanders

Snow has been on the job since June, 2006, but the Islanders have yet to make a serious run at the playoffs. This is not all Snow's fault but he has to bear some of the responsibility.

Let's face it: Few teams have the financial constraints the Islanders have and even if Snow wanted to make moves, he probably couldn't. But he is a somewhat savvy general manager who made a solid move at the draft when he traded for Lubomir Visnovsky of the Anaheim Ducks. Visnovsky is a veteran defenseman who will help the Islanders tighten up in their own zone.

With the young talent the team has on offense, a solid defender can play dividends. But as far as making moves in free agency, the Islanders can sign nothing more than minor role players because they don't have the cash on hand.

No. 28, Steve Tambellini, Edmonton Oilers

The pressure is starting to get quite heavy in Edmonton. The Oilers have had the top pick in the draft for each of the past three years and they have used those picks to bring home significant offensive talent.

Draft picks like Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins have already demonstrated their talent. Jordan Eberle is also a star on the rise and the Oilers added Nail Yakupov this summer. At a certain point, the Oilers' plethora of young stars will develop into a cohesive and dangerous unit.

But there's more to the game than young scoring. Insiders believe that Tambellini will go after Philadelphia defenseman Matt Carle, Florida defenseman Jason Garrison and Minnesota goalie Josh Harding. All would be savvy signings by the Edmonton GM.

No. 27, Marc Bergevin, Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens' general manager does not have a track record in free agency because he was recently named to his current position. He had been the Chicago Blackhawks' assistant general manager and also has 20 years of playing experience in the NHL.

While working under Chicago GM Stan Bowman, Bergevin had a chance to talk to and learn from current 'Hawks advisor and former Montreal legend Scotty Bowman. This made him a popular choice in Montreal and he knows he has his work cut out for him.

“I believe the pieces are really good,” Bergevin told the Associated Press. “Obviously finishing 15th in the conference, it’s a lot of work that needs to be done, but you have a good base.”

The Canadiens have many areas of need, but a priority needs to get some scoring help for Max Pacioretty and Eric Cole. The Canadiens also need players who can relieve the pressure on Carey Price by holding on to the puck and allowing the Canadiens to retain possession.

No. 26, Stan Bowman, Chicago Blackhawks

Stan Bowman officially has a Stanley Cup winner on his resume, but that's because he inherited the team that Dale Tallon put together. Tallon made some financial mistakes and the Blackhawks were forced to pare salary after their 2010 championship and those moves fell to Bowman.

Losing players like Dustin Byfuglien and Troy Brouwer hurt the Blackhawks, but it was not Bowman's fault. However, he has signed players like Daniel Carcillo, Sean O'Donnell, Sami Lepisto and Steve Montador. Those signees did not help the team. He also brought in backup goalie Ray Emery and forward Jamal Mayers to help the Hawks in 2011-12.

No. 25, Greg Sherman, Colorado Avalanche

Sherman is a general manager who is building slowly through the draft. If you want an example of his best work, it may be the selection of Gabriel Landeskog in 2011. He went on to win the Calder Trophy as the rookie of the year.

Sherman brought in former Stanley Cup-winning goaltender Jean Sebastian Giguere as a free-agent, but Giguere struggled with the Avalanche and has never been close to the form he displayed when the Anaheim Ducks won their only title.

Sherman is conservative. He recently signed his own free-agent defenseman Matt Hunwick. The Avs are not expected to make big moves this offseason.

No. 24, Jay Feaster, Calgary Flames

There's a lot of pressure on Feaster to return the Calgary Flames to glory ... or at least to the playoffs. Calgary usually makes a run at the postseason after the All-Star break, but by the time the Flames get to mid-March they are out of the running. The Flames haven't been to the playoffs since the 2008-09 season.

Feaster has to produce, and he may be forced to make a move like trading Jarome Iginla, the face of the franchise. If the Flames were ever going to cut loose and get fully involved in free agency that would be another story, but they are not enough of a high profile team to attract the best players anymore.

Center Olli Jokinen is probably Feaster's most productive free-agent pickup. The Flames signed him prior to the 2010-11 season after they had traded him to the Rangers. There's something about Calgary that made Jokinen want to come home.

Feaster's free-agent signings do not fall in the category of big-name signings.

No. 23, Kevin Cheveldayoff, Winnipeg Jets

The Winnipeg Jets very confidently and forthrightly turned over their operation to Cheveldayoff last summer following their move from Atlanta. This will be Cheveldayoff's first offseason at the helm of the operation during the free-agent season, but he build a reputation as a thorough and competent evaluator of talent during his time as an assistant with the Chicago Blackhawks and prior to that with the Chicago Wolves.

Cheveldayoff wants to keep his young talent intact. He re-signed goalie Ondrej Pavelec to a 5-year, $19.5 million deal June 25 and he also wants to keep restricted free-agent Evander Kane in the fold.

No. 22, Bob Murray, Anaheim Ducks

The Ducks have been one of the most consistent teams in the league, but that was not the case in 2011-12, when the team got off to a terrible start and Murray had to fire Randy Carlyle. He brought in ex- Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau to replace him and the team performed better, but it wasn't enough to challenge for a playoff spot.

Murray has largely built his team through the draft and trades. He has not gone to the free-agent marked very often, but he did sign Saku Koivu in 2009 when the Montreal Canadiens chose to let him go and did not make a suitable offer when he became a free agent. If the Canadiens thought Koivu had nothing left, they were wrong because he has scored 45 goals in the last three years.

Murray is not likely to change his ways and open up the team's purse strings to go after a big name.

No. 21, Chuck Fletcher, Minnesota Wild

Fletcher is under significant pressure to turn the Minnesota Wild into a winning franchise next season.

Despite what they may say in Michigan and Massachusetts, hockey is a religion in Minnesota, as life nearly comes to a standstill during the annual state high school hockey tournament. The fans were thrilled when professional hockey returned to Minnesota but they want the Wild to be more than a team that just shows up and sleep walks through the season.

Fletcher has not necessarily been the most aggressive when it comes to signing free agents, but that could change this year. Zach Parise of the New Jersey Devils is a Minnesota native and he would likely listen if the team made a significant offer. That doesn't mean he would sign with them, but a good case for signing with Minnesota could be made if the offer is sweet enough.

The Wild were in first place fin the Western Conference when the team went into a deep slump in December. Miko Koivu, Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Guillaume Latendresse were all injured. If they can stay healthy and the Wild sign Parise or Nashville defenseman Ryan Suter, Fletcher could have this team back in business.

Matt Cullen, who scored 35 points last year, is probably Fletcher's best free-agent signing to date. Obviously, Parise and/or Suter would be much bigger signings.

No. 20, Jim Rutherford, Carolina Hurricanes

Rutherford has been on the job since 1994, and the Carolina Hurricanes have not been a team that is overloaded with talent. Rutherford has mainly gone the draft and trade route to acquire his best players, and he pulled one of the best moves of his career prior to the start of the draft when he acquired Jordan Staal from the Pittsburgh Penguins in a trade.

Rutherford and the hockey world knew that Staal wanted out of Pittsburgh when he turned down a $60 million deal that would have paid him $10 million per season for six years. If he wanted to, Rutherford probably could have waited out the year and gotten Staal by signing him to a new contract next year and he wouldn't have owed Pittsburgh anything. Instead, he gets Staal to join his brother Eric a year early and the Canes should be a much stronger team in 2012-13.

Forward Chad LaRose is one of Rutherford's best free-agent signees, and that's not much considering how long Rutherford has been on the job. The Hurricanes could still use some more scoring, but it doesn't seem likely that Rutherford will go after any of the prime free agents.

No. 19, Darcy Regier, Buffalo Sabres

Regier is another long-term NHL general manager who has been on the job for a long time. Hired in 1996, Regier has not necessarily addressed Buffalo's needs on a consistent basis.

The Sabres have been a team that lack size and strength for years. Nevertheless, Regier doesn't seem to add too many players with size that would help them stand up to a larger and tougher division rival like the Boston Bruins.

Regier seems to be in love with smaller and quicker players and his team has regularly paid a price for them. In the 2011 offseason, the Sabres added forward Ville Leino and left wing Michael Ryan. Leino is a little bigger than most Sabres at 6'1" and 190 pounds, but he is not an overly physical player.

The Sabres got bigger on defense when they added defenseman Christian Ehrhoff, but he came in a trade prior to the draft.

Regier is usually interested in top free agents, but they usually finish second and "just miss" signing the players they need

No. 18, Brian Burke, Toronto Maple Leafs

Burke is the steward of a franchise with a glorious history that has not won a Stanley Cup since 1967. Passionate Leaf fans are tired of being asked to wait for their team to develop and they were angry when the team collapsed in the second half of the regular season and blew what appeared to be an excellent chance to make the playoffs.

Last summer was particularly disappointing because the Leafs were expected to have an excellent chance to bring home prized free-agent Brad Richards. It didn't turn out that way, as Richards signed with the New York Rangers and the Leafs were never seriously in the picture.

That doesn't speak well of Burke. He is a large and powerful man who is seemingly respected in hockey circles, but his record when it comes to bringing home free agents is ordinary. He signed players like Clarke McArthur away from the Sabres and Mike Komisarek out of Montreal, but neither of those signings brought the Leafs what they expected.

He also acquired restricted free-agent Phil Kessel away from the Bruins and that move has brought the Leafs a goal scoring presence. However, even though Kessel has scored 99 goals in three seasons with the Leafs, the Bruins used one of the draft picks they acquired to select Tyler Seguin, who may eventually become one of the top stars in the game.

No. 17, Joe Nieuwendyk, Dallas Stars

Nieuwendyk was a brilliant center during his playing career, and he earned a spot in the Hall of Fame. While great players don't usually make a quick transition to a vital front-office position, Nieuwendyk has showed that he has plenty of courage when it comes to signing free agents and that he does his homework.

Last year he did not have the ability to spend enough money to compete for A-list free agents, so he signed A-list players who were on the B- or C-list. Start with former Boston Bruins forward Michael Ryder, who often appeared disinterested in the regular season, but then turned it on during the playoffs. Nieuwendyk saw Ryder as a misunderstood player and put him on the Stars' front line where he scored a career-high 35 goals and connected on 16.6 percent of his shots.

Sheldon Souray also proved to be a solid pick-up on defense even though he had basically missed 1 1/2 years due to injury. Souray is a thumper at 233 pounds with a huge shot.

Nieuwendyk knows how to find outstanding talent.

No. 16, George McPhee, Washington Capitals

McPhee has tried to build his team through the draft, where he has been able to select stars like Alex Ovechkin, Alex Semin, Mike Green and Nicklas Backstrom. He has been able to fill open spots through trades and free agency, but he has not been able to reel in any of the big-name free agents.

Perhaps the best free-agent signee he made was Mike Knuble, who had been a star in Boston and Philadelphia prior to signing with the Caps. Knuble scored 29 goals in 2009-10 and followed that with a 24-goal season. He slowed down dramatically in 2011-12, but he set up fellow free-agent signee Joel Ward for the series-winning goal in overtime of the seventh game against the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins in the first round of the playoffs.

Look for McPhee to continue to use free agency to find supporting talent, not superstars.

No. 15, Don Maloney, Phoenix Coyotes

Maloney has seemingly difficult circumstances to work with because the Coyotes are technically run by the league.

While he has no constraints on him and the same salary cap to work with, it's clear there is an inherent handicap. When a team does not have a private owner in control, the message being sent to prospective free agents and their representatives is that the situation is not optimum. As a result, players who have other opportunities seem likely to go elsewhere. That will likely be the case with Coyotes captain Shane Doan at the start of free agency.

Given the environment, Maloney has done an excellent job. He made an excellent free-agent signing last year when he brought in goalie Mike Smith from Tampa Bay. Smith had been the backup with the Lightning but Maloney liked his game and knew he could be a winning No. 1 goalie. Smith led the Coyotes to their first playoff series victories this season.

Maloney has also brought in free agents like wingers Ray Whitney and Raffi Torres along with stay-at-home defenseman Adrian Aucoin. Whitney's a sniper while Torres plays with an edge and has crossed the line on several occasions. Aucoin doesn't make mistakes and is dependable.

Maloney will look for dependable veteran and not the flashy free-agent talent.

No. 14, Bryan Murray, Ottawa Senators

After a disastrous 2010-11 season, the Ottawa Senators were one of the feel-good stories of the year.

Not only did they make the playoffs, the pushed the Boston Bruins hard in the Northeast Division and even took the lead for a brief time in March. While Boston eventually secured the division, the Senators won a playoff berth and then pushed the top-seeded New York Rangers to seven games in their opening round series before finally losing.

Murray hadn't had a lot of luck on the personnel side in recent years, but he turned things around in 2011-12. No defenseman was better than Erik Karlsson and he came away with the Norris Trophy. Murray brought in backup goalie Alex Auld and enforcer Zenon Konopka through free agency last year. Auld played in 14 games last year while Konopka had 193 penalty minutes.

Murray has also brought in free-agents Bobby Butler, Sergei Gonchar and Matt Carkner through the years.

No. 13, Mike Gillis, Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks have been a dominant team in the Western Conference but they have fallen short of their goal of winning the Stanley Cup.

After getting all the way to the seventh game of the Stanley Cup Finals in 2011 where they were vanquished at home by the Boston Bruins, the Canucks were eliminated in the first round by the Los Angeles Kings this year. Los Angeles would go on to win the Stanley Cup.

That's a familiar pattern for the Canucks. In 2010, they were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks.

Gillis does not usually go out of his way to sign big-name free agents. He is confident that his team will remain strong and that by continuing strong drafts and consistent minor-league development, his team will remain a contender.

Gillis does look to refine his team through free agency and he signed superb faceoff man Manny Malhotra as a free agent before the 2010-11 season.

No. 12 Doug Wilson, San Jose Sharks

The former Chicago Blackhawks star defenseman has built one of the most consistent regular-season teams in the San Jose Sharks.

Unfortunately for Wilson, they don't give out the Stanley Cup during the regular season. The Sharks have been met with heartbreak in the postseason many times. After losing to the St. Louis Blues in the first round this spring, you have to wonder if Wilson is running out of opportunities to win the Cup.

The Sharks have a lot of homegrown talent and have also made some trades -- including the blockbuster for Joe Thornton in 2005 -- but the Sharks don't usually venture into free agency. Wilson signed center Michal Handzus last year, but he struggled with injuries and was not at his best.

Wilson could decide to be more active this time around as the window of opportunity closes on San Jose.

No. 11, Paul Holmgren, Philadelphia Flyers

Holmgren is in sync with Philadelphia Flyers owner Ed Snider, who wants another Stanley Cup winner in Philadelphia. It's been a long time since the Flyers won their second of back-to-back titles in 1975.

The Flyers are hungry to win and they will do it through the draft, trades and free agency. After they suffered with poor goaltending in 2010-11, Holmgren traded for Ilya Bryzgalov with the hope of turning a weakness into a strength. It was a bit of a mixed bag.

Holmgren went to the free-agent market to bring in a pair of ex-Pittsburgh Penguins. Not only did signing Maxime Talbot and Jaromir Jagr give the Flyers more depth and talent, it also got under the skin of the Penguins and their fans. That had to put a small smile on the craggy-faced Holmgren, who was one of the toughest players in the league when he skated for the Flyers.

If Holmgren can clear some room, he will be busy in free agency once again.

No. 10, David Poile, Nashville Predators

The Nashville Predators have been a playoff team for three consecutive seasons. However, while it seemed like they were interlopers who did not belong during those first two years of postseason activity, it seemed obvious that they were one of the better teams in the Western Conference all season and that they had a chance to do some serious damage.

That's because David Poile had built a dangerous team that could score, defend and played with an edge. The most notable players were goalie Pekka Rinne and defensemen Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. That triumvirate could be broken up this year as Suter will be one of the most sought-after free agents.

Poile intelligently built his team with strong drafting and player development. However, he has not used free agency very often. He did sign defenseman Francis Bouillon away from the Montreal Canadiens prior to the 2009-10 season, but the hard-hitting defender has been slowed by injuries.

Poile may have to get more active this year, especially if he loses Suter.

No. 9, Steve Yzerman, Tampa Bay Lightning

Yzerman has proved to be quite accomplished as a hockey executive. Not only did he help get the Tampa Bay Lightning to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2010-11, he put together the gold-medal winning Canadian Olympic hockey team in 2010.

Yzerman depends on homegrown superstars like Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier, but he has filled in holes with thoughtful free-agent pickups like goalie Mathieu Garon and defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron. Garon is not a star but he played in 48 games last season, while Bergeron is a solid offensive force.

No. 8, Dale Tallon, Florida Panthers

Tallon is a confident and proven leader who should be among the most respected general managers in the game. He put together a Chicago Blackhawks team that won the Stanley Cup in 2010 and was replaced by Stan Bowman. While Tallon had a few salary cap issues that forced the team to dump some of its high-priced depth, he put the team in a position to win its first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

Tallon has turned a usually idle Panthers' franchise around and he has shown he will make aggressive free-agent moves. He added center Marcel Goc, forward Scottie Upshall, left wing Tomas Fleischman, right wing Matt Bradley and goalie Jose Theodore as free agents last year. He also traded for offensive defenseman Brian Campbell last year. Tallon not only brings the right players in, he makes them feel welcome so they produce.

Tallon's team won the division title last year and was the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference and pushed the New Jersey Devils to seven games in the first round of the playoffs.

No. 7, Doug Armstrong, St. Louis Blues

Armstrong was honored with the league's general manager of the year award. The Blues were one of the most surprising teams in the league this season, finishing second in the Western Conference during the regular season and challenging for the President's Trophy (first overall) for much of the season. He brought in Ken Hitchcock as head coach and prefers to do most of his team's building from within, but he added defensive center Scott Nichol as a free agent last year.

The Blues will have quite a bit of work to do because Nichol and Jamie Langenbrunner are free agents, while T.J. Oshie and David Perron are restricted free agents. 

No. 6, Dean Lombardi, Los Angeles

While Doug Armstrong won the general manager of the year award, Lombardi did a spectacular job in turning the Los Angeles Kings into the Stanley Cup winners. His biggest moves were hiring Darryl Sutter as head coach to get the most out of the team and then bringing in forward Jeff Carter in a trade deadline move from Columbus. The Kings had everything but enough goal scoring and the Carter move turned out to be the turning point in their run to the Stanley Cup.

Lombardi has made some solid free-agent moves, including bringing in underrated defenseman Rob Scuderi from Pittsburgh and center Simon Gagne from Philadelphia. He also brought in defenseman Willie Mitchell as a free agent and he was quite valuable during the Stanley Cup run.

Lombardi also turned the culture of the team around with his offseason trade for Mike Richards from Philadelphia. He gave up a solid player in Wayne Simmonds, but Richards has that competitive fire to go along with his talent and versatility that helped turn the Kings into winners.

No. 5, Ray Shero, Pittsburgh

Shero knows how to play the general manager's game as if it was a chess match and he was a master. Look at what he did as the draft unfolded. Rather than react with indignation when Jordan Staal turned down his team's $60 million offer, he traded the reluctant center to the Carolina Hurricanes. Shero could have dug in his heels and kept Staal around for another years before losing him, but he moved quickly and brought in center Brandon Sutter and defenseman Brian Dumoulin and a high draft pick.

The move has set up the Pittsburgh Penguins to become one of the primary players at the start of free agency as they are expected to make big moves for Zach Parise and Ryan Suter.

Shero has signed free-agents like Arron Asham, Ben Lovejoy, Matt Cooke and Steve Sullivan in the past. Those players are solid role players and he is going to attempt to procure at least one more superstar through free agency this year.

No. 4, Glen Sather, New York Rangers

Glen Sather was a gritty and hard-working player during his 11-year playing career that saw him spend the bulk of his time with the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers.

Once his playing career came to an end and he became a coach and then an executive, Sather has been an undeniable superstar. He was behind the bench during the majority of the Edmonton Oilers' championship run and he has since proved to be a bold and decisive executive.

He has money to spend with the Rangers and he often comes up with big names. Last year, the Rangers were successful in bringing in center Brad Richards, who was the top name in free agency. Richards proved to be everything the Rangers wanted and turned out to be a fine leader, as well as a productive player. Sather also signed top free-agent Marian Gaborik prior to the 2009-10 season and he has topped the 40-goal mark in two of his past three seasons.

In addition to superstars, Sather has also signed role players like Mike Rupp, Anton Stralman and Ruslan Fedotenko. While Fedotenko may not have much left in the tank, Rupp and Stralman have been solid contributors.

No. 3, Peter Chiarelli, Boston Bruins

Chiarelli has made many bold and astute moves since becoming Bruins general manager. One of his first moves was the signing of free-agent defenseman Zdeno Chara prior to the 2006-07 season. At the time, Chara was a solid and imposing player but he was not the dominant superstar he is today. There was not much fanfare before the signing, Chiarelli just brought Chara in and he was almost immediately made the team captain.

The Bruins also added key role player and locker room factor Shawn Thornton as a free agent. Many other Bruins stars came in the draft (Patrice Bergeron, Milan Lucic and Tyler Seguin) or trades (Rich Peverley, Nathan Horton, Chris Kelly. But when the Bruins venture into free agency they usually profit from Chiarelli's manipulations.

Last year the Bruins picked up talented but enigmatic Benoit Pouliot as a free agent and he had 16 goals and 16 assists last season. It was not stellar but it was enough for the Bruins to get an asset when they traded him to Tampa Bay for minor leaguer Michel Ouellet. While it looks insignificant at the time, if Ouellet is able to contribute anything it will be another savvy by maneuver by Chiarelli, who manages to get the best out of most of his trades and draft picks.

No. 2, Ken Holland, Detroit Red Wings

Holland is a very responsible general manager who has been the mastermind behind the Red Wings' consistent and excellent performances since the mid-1990s. Holland likes to use the draft to build his team but he has made some excellent pickups that help the team win games and playoff series.

One of his best additions has been Dan Cleary, who was an insignificant player before signing with the Wings in 2005. Since then, he has scored 20 or more goals in 3 out of 6 seasons and often finds a way to score important goals. Left wing Todd Bertuzzi is no longer a superstar, but he is a valuable player who is especially effective in shootouts. Ty Conklin has been a decent backup goalie for them.

Holland will make whatever move he needs to do to keep the Wings near the top of the NHL heap. He has proved it over a very long tenure. 

No. 1, Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey Devils

When it comes to all aspects of the job, Lamoriello is simply at the top of the class. The Devils' general manager may not have competed for the best free-agent talent on a year-in, year-out basis, but that's because of the financial circumstances he works under in New Jersey.

Lamoriello simply does not have the same money to spend as the Rangers, Flyers or Canadiens. But what he does have is savvy and know-how. Whether it's a draft pick, trade, hiring a coach or free-agent signing, Lamoriello knows what he's doing and he will almost always get the best of the deal. He's simply smarter and sharper than the competition in all aspects of the game.

That doesn't mean he's perfect. But unlike many executives, Lamoriello will try to repair his mistakes and won't let his own ego stand in the way of admitting when he has been in error.

Lamoriello has brought in solid players like Dainus Zubrus, Petr Sykora, Johan Hedberg and Steve Bernier. Those moves all help the Devils remain near the top of the Eastern Conference on a consistent basis.

This year, Lamoriello has the difficult job of keeping free-agent forward Zach Parise in the fold. The Devils' financial issues may prevent them from offering as much money as the competition, but Parise is loyal to the team and may surprise the hockey world by re-signing with New Jersey.