Positional Breakdown of Devils' Roster as Draft and Free Agency Approach

Things have been quiet for the New Jersey Devils over the last month. 

Recently, they filled out their coaching staff, signed two prospects and added two European players. All these moves were worthwhile, but none stole headlines.

However, the most exciting time of the offseason is nearly here, and New Jersey must get the next two weeks right if things are to turn around in Newark.

The 2015 NHL draft, where the Devils have the sixth overall pick, begins on June 26, with the later rounds finishing up on June 27. 

Just days later, free agency opens on July 1.

Often, both of those periods coincide with an opening up of the trade market, giving the Devils yet a third option with which to add to the team. 

But before the Devils can add new players, they must take stock of those already on the roster. Though the last three seasons have been disappointing for New Jersey, the team can build around certain players. 

This list will look at the strengths and weakness in the Devils' roster entering this frenetic part of the offseason, as well as try to project the positions at which New Jersey seems most likely to add in the coming weeks. A good understanding of this positional breakdown is crucial for new coach John Hynes and new general manager Ray Shero to begin building success in New Jersey once more.

Goaltenders: Schneider and Kinkaid Look to Repeat 2014-15 Performances

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Cory Schneider and Jaromir Jagr congratulate Keith Kinkaid on a victory over the Florida Panthers.

Name	Games Started	Wins	Losses	Overtime Losses	Goals-Against Average	Save Percentage	Shutouts
Cory Schneider	68	26	31	9	2.26	.925	5
Keith Kinkaid	13	6	5	4	2.59	.915	0

What Is the Situation?

Every other position on the ice may be in disarray to an extent, but the Devils are set in goal going into the 2015-16 season. 

Cory Schneider got off to a slow start last season, but he had an exceptional January and February, which helped him finish fifth in the NHL in save percentage and ninth in goals-against average, despite the fact that New Jersey gave up the seventh-most shots per game in the NHL.

Keith Kinkaid was not as good as Schneider, but he was a more-than-acceptable backup after winning the job from Scott Clemmensen in November. If Kinkaid can keep his save percentage around .915 and the Devils can reduce the number of shots the goalies are forced to face, his numbers will be stellar for a backup goalie.

What Is the Need?

At the NHL level, there is no need. The Devils would benefit from having another promising, young goalie at the AHL level, where 37-year-old Scott Clemmensen led the team in save percentage. With the struggles of Scott Wedgewood and Maxime Clermont, the other two goalies who spent time with the Albany Devils last season, a new goaltending prospect might be a step in the right direction.

But such concerns should be at the bottom of the list of needs.

Defensemen: Young Corps Shows Promise, but Do Greene and Larsson Need More Help?

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Andy Greene and Adam Larsson have a discussion before the puck is dropped.

On Roster

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Jon Merrill	66	2	12	14	-14	24
Vojtech Mozik*	51	10	19	29	2	94
Andy Greene	82	3	19	22	1	20
Seth Helgeson (AHL stats)	49	2	10	12	3	58
Raman Hrabarenka (AHL stats)	47	9	18	27	0	26
Damon Severson	51	5	12	17	-13	22

Restricted Free Agents

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Eric Gelinas	61	6	13	19	-1	42
Adam Larsson	64	3	21	24	2	34

*stats from 2014-15 season with Plezn of Czech Extraliga

Unrestricted Free Agents

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Mark Fraser	34	0	4	4	2	55
Peter Harrold	43	3	2	5	-10	4
Bryce Salvador	15	0	2	2	-5	20

What Is the Situation?

The Devils are not short on bodies or options on the blue line. Experience, on the other hand, could be in short supply. 

Andy Greene leads the defense corps, both in terms of experience and talent, and he has a promising young cast around him. Leading that cast is Adam Larsson, who is a restricted free agent and will almost positively be back in 2015-16. He played most of the second half of the season on New Jersey's first pairing with Greene and will likely return to that role next season.

Past the first pairing though, things get significantly less clear. For much of last season, Jon Merrill, 23, played on the second defense pairing, but he struggled at times. His minus-14 rating was the worst among Devils defensemen last season.

Damon Severson, 20, showed tremendous potential before injuring his foot and missing the middle third of the season. After returning, rust and inexperience showed, as he failed to replicate his early-season form while playing with Merrill. 

Though Merrill and Severson both struggled toward the end of 2014-15, both still have tons of potential and are young enough to vastly improve their play. It would be surprising if both did not find their way into the opening-day lineup in some capacity. For these two, the question is whether they will play on New Jersey's second or third defensive pairing. 

The rest of the Devils' options are largely inexperienced. Eric Gelinas, the most experienced of the group, has yet to earn the trust of any Devils coach because of his questionable defensive play. Though he is a restricted free agent, it is almost certain he will sign a new contract with the Devils. Vojtech Mozik (recently signed from the Czech Republic), Seth Helgeson and Raman Hrabarenka have played a total of 23 NHL games combined.

The unrestricted free agents—Mark Fraser, Peter Harrold and Bryce Salvador—all have experience but do not have the quality to be notably better than the younger options the Devils have. One of these players may return to provide depth, but if the Devils want to improve, these players should not play a significant role going forward.

What Is the Need?

How much help New Jersey needs on the blue line is still unclear, because there is a real possibility that the team could trade one or more of the glut of young defensemen to help bring in offensive talent. 

If the Devils don't trade a defenseman, then they will still likely want to bring in, at the very least, one defenseman via free agency or trade. It would be unwise, if New Jersey is committed to at least trying to be competitive, to have its regular defense pairings be Greene/Larsson, Merrill/Severson and Gelinas/another young defenseman. If the Devils want to have a chance to win, both the second and third pairings would need an upgrade.

If they move one or more defensemen, the Devils might need to bring in one or more defensemen to be able to have confidence in the back end of their defense corps.

New Jersey may be best served moving Merrill and Severson to the third pairing and bringing in two more experienced defensemen to play on the second pairing, but whether or not that makes sense in terms of finances and personnel will be unclear until the Devils decide what they need to do to improve their forwards.

Left Wing: Will Adam Henrique Join Michael Cammalleri on the Left Permanently?

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Michael Cammalleri picks the top corner against the Arizona Coyotes.

(Note: The Devils signed Sergey Kalinin, a Russian forward, on May 29. It is unclear which forward position he will play, so I have elected not to put him in these considerations. But it is worth remembering that he will also be in the mix, potentially at every forward position.)

On Roster

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Reid Boucher (AHL stats)	62	15	15	30	-6	36
Michael Cammalleri	68	27	15	42	2	28
Ryane Clowe	13	1	3	4	-1	4
Adam Henrique	75	16	27	43	-6	34
Stefan Matteau (AHL stats)	61	12	15	27	9	40
Tuomo Ruutu	77	7	6	13	-3	28
Dainius Zubrus	74	4	6	10	-9	42

Unrestricted Free Agent

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Martin Havlat	40	5	9	14	-11	10

What Is the Situation?

Much like on defense, the Devils have a fair number of options at left wing. But, past their top two players at this position, they lack proven talent.

Michael Cammalleri was easily New Jersey's best forward last season, leading the team with 27 goals. He will surely be the left wing on one of the top two lines.

The other top-six left wing may well be Adam Henrique. Though he spent most of his first two NHL seasons as a center, he spent much of 2014-15 as a left wing. His goal-scoring ability and decent speed (both of which the Devils lack on the whole) make him a better fit at wing, given how the rest of the forward corps looks.

Ryane Clowe's health remains a gigantic question mark, with his concussion issues keeping him out almost all of last season. There is a definite possibility that he never plays hockey again.

Tuomo Ruutu and Dainius Zubrus both had putrid 2014-15 seasons, combining for only 23 points in 151 games. Zubrus is 37, and Ruutu is 32, so neither is particularly likely to have a bounce-back season in 2015-16. 

Martin Havlat was a healthy scratch for most of the final third of the season, so he will almost certainly not return next season.

Reid Boucher and Stefan Matteau are the Devils' top two forward prospects, but whether or not either is ready for the NHL is unclear. Neither Boucher nor Matteau had an impressive season in the AHL last year, and both have only limited NHL experience.

What Is the Need?

The Devils are probably content with their top two left wings, provided that Henrique does indeed stay at left wing.

The third- and fourth-line left wing options that the Devils have right now are somewhat underwhelming, but it seems unlikely that they will look outside the organization to improve there. Both Zubrus and Ruutu have sizable contracts ($3.1 million and $3.8 million, respectively, according to Spotrac.com), so it is less likely that the Devils will be willing to bench them.

Boucher and Matteau have both played parts of two seasons in the NHL already, so the organization will be eager to see if they can be contributors at the top level. Thus, they will probably get opportunities as well.

So, though there is room for improvement, the Devils have passable options for their third- and fourth-line left wings and would be better served to pursue upgrades at other positions.

Center: Who Will Play in the Middle in Addition to Travis Zajac?

Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Travis Zajac tries to capitalize on a breakaway.

On Roster

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Patrik Elias	69	13	21	34	-20	12
Stephen Gionta	61	5	8	13	4	12
Jacob Josefson	62	6	5	11	0	24
Travis Zajac	74	11	14	25	-3	29

Unrestricted Free Agent

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Scott Gomez	58	7	27	34	-10	23

What Is the Situation?

Travis Zajac had a disappointing 2014-15 (as did most of New Jersey's forwards, in fairness), but he remains the closest thing the Devils have to a top-line center. 

Patrik Elias, who has spent most of his career as a left wing, played much of 2014-15 as a center. With his speed continuing to decline, the middle may continue to be the best place for him. How much he can still contribute at any position at 39 years old remains to be seen, though.

Stephen Gionta and Jacob Josefson are similar players. Both are strong defensive players with good speed but lack size. Josefson has shown more offensive upside than Gionta but has not done so frequently enough to guarantee a place in the 2015-16 lineup. 

Perhaps the most interesting question surrounding the Devils' centers has to do with Scott Gomez, the 35-year-old who had his best season last year since 2010-11. Whether or not John Hynes and Ray Shero believe he is worth keeping around for next year is still unknown.

What Is the Need?

The need at center may be harder to assess than at any other position. 

On the one hand, the Devils could feasibly not acquire any new centers. Zajac, Elias, Josefson and Gionta could center the first, second, third and fourth lines, respectively. This seems unlikely, but it is possible.

Alternatively, Shero could re-sign Gomez and have him center the second line, Elias center the third line and one of Josefson or Gionta center the fourth line. 

But perhaps most radically, the Devils could completely overhaul the middle of the ice. Hynes and Shero could decide to put Elias back at wing, not re-sign Gomez, demote Zajac to the second or third line and bring in one or more new centers.

New Jersey could go with any of these options and any other options in between before the season starts.

Right Wing: No Top-Six Forwards, Depth on the Right Side

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Jordin Tootoo (center) celebrates a goal with Travis Zajac, Eric Gelinas and Mark Fraser.

On Roster

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Jordin Tootoo	68	10	5	15	1	72

Unrestricted Free Agents

Name	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points	Plus/Minus	Penalty Minutes
Steve Bernier	67	16	16	32	2	28
Michael Ryder	47	6	13	19	-1	30

What Is the Situation?

One of the top reasons that the Devils may choose not to spend money, draft picks, prospects or other resources to upgrade at left wing or center is because they have such a glaring need at right wing.

The Devils have only one right wing who spent significant time in New Jersey last season under contract. That player is Jordin Tootoo, who proved to be a useful asset on the third or fourth line but is by no means a goal scorer or playmaker. 

Michael Ryder will almost certainly not be returning after spending much of last season as a healthy scratch.

Steve Bernier had a career year in 2014-15 but has not been re-signed as of yet. He very well may return in the end, but even if he does, he is not a top-six forward.

What Is the Need?

The need, in a word, is dire.

The rest of the team's top forwards are not skilled enough to carry two or more mediocre right wings, so it is crucial that the Devils add two talented right wings if they are to improve on their scoring record from last season. 

That New Jersey allowed itself to be in this position, with no top-six forwards, little depth and few promising prospects at right wing, is both maddening and disappointing. It shows exactly how much Shero and the Devils must do over the next month to make the team a contender once again.