Devils 2025 Offseason Puck GM 1.0: Goals & More Goals

Using PuckPedia's Puck GM mode, let's add more offense to the New Jersey Devils' roster this offseason.

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This weekend marks three weeks until the NHL Draft begins, so the offseason will be here before you know it. It'll likely be a busy few weeks for the New Jersey Devils, but what moves could they pull off?

Using PuckPedia's GM mode, let's put together a roster of different transactions that the Devils could make in the next month in order to take a step forward in 2025-26.

First Off: Clearing Cap Space

Rumors are ramping up, and more will surely come in the next few days and weeks. We already have a good idea of who could be available and make sense for the Devils, but first, we need to clear cap space to make improvements.

The first bit of business is moving Ondřej Palát's $6 million cap hit. In this scenario, he goes to the Anaheim Ducks, along with one of the Devils' 2025 second-round picks, in exchange for a 2026 fifth-round pick.

Next up is dealing Erik Haula. Because of the shallow UFA class, I think there'll be a market for him, though it won't be anything robust. In this scenario, he goes to the Chicago Blackhawks for the New York Rangers' 2025 fourth-round selection.

The Devils free up $9.1 million in cap space with those two moves. Kurtis MacDermid also gets buried in the AHL, freeing up an additional $1.15 million in cap space.

Next, the Devils have to take care of some housekeeping. Luke Hughes is the biggie since he's an RFA and due for a significant pay raise. I'm not going to try to predict contracts, so for Hughes, and any addition here, contracts will be courtesy of Evolving Hockey.

The Devils re-sign Hughes for seven years at a cap hit of $7.511 million. They also have Cody Glass to re-sign, with him coming in at a cap hit of $2.7 million for three years.

Now, with that taken care of, we can focus on external additions. Everything is cap-compliant so far, and we'll review that at the end of this article.