Devils' Ruff Era Ended Similarly to His Stars Tenure

What can the New Jersey Devils learn about how the Dallas Stars approached team building after they moved on from Lindy Ruff?

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The New Jersey Devils' Lindy Ruff era ended in an eerily similar fashion to his Dallas Stars tenure. Ruff spent four seasons with the Devils and had a 50-win season in his third year, just as he did in Dallas. 

The Stars moved on from Ruff after four years due to many similar problems. Their defense regressed, and goaltending struggled in the fourth year. How did the Stars go about making these changes? And is it a path Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald should follow this offseason?

Don't Get Away From Ruff's Offensive Mentality

The biggest change the Stars arguably made after moving on from Ruff was a change in philosophy. After playing high-event, run-and-gun hockey under Ruff, they pivoted to a more defensive style, hiring Ken Hitchcock for another go-around behind the bench in 2017-18. 

Hitchcock only spent that 2017-18 season behind the Stars' bench before they hired Jim Montgomery, but there was a noticeable difference in how they played. The Stars were a low-event, defensive team under Hitchcock, generating 2.35 expected goals per 60 minutes and only allowing 2.07 expected goals per 60 at five-on-five. 

That was a significant change to Ruff's final season in Dallas (2016-17), as the Stars generated 2.49 expected goals per 60 and allowed 2.51 expected goals per 60. Those numbers may seem low, but it was a different era when scoring and offense weren't as high as now. That 2.51 xGA/60 ranked third-worst in the NHL. 

It's clear the Stars wanted to change things up from the Ruff era, but it didn't just stop with Hitchcock. Their more defensive style of hockey continued under Montgomery, too. The Stars generated 2.32 xGs per 60 in Montgomery's first season in Big D and allowed 2.25 xGs per 60, similar numbers to Hitchcock's only season with Dallas. 

Even after the Stars moved on from Montgomery for off-ice reasons, their defensive style of hockey continued under Rick Bowness. They were one of the best defensive teams in the NHL under Bowness. It even helped them get to the Stanley Cup Final in the playoff bubble during COVID. 

The Stars had success playing defensive hockey in the post-Ruff era. But general manager Jim Nill eventually realized the team couldn't continue this way with how the league was evolving. They moved on from Bowness after the 2021-22 season despite the team going 46-30-6 during the regular season. 

Nill knew he had to shift back to a system that would help the team create offense. That's why he hired Pete DeBoer ahead of the 2022-23 season. The Stars were one of the better offensive teams at five-on-five this season, ranking in the top 10 in xGs created per 60 minutes. 

The Devils and Fitzgerald should recognize that as they complete their coaching search. Hiring Craig Berube, which probably would be OK in the end, would mark a change in their philosophy over the last few years. Berube would signal a shift to a defense-first system, but that's not how the league is trending, so they will likely fall behind. 

That's why Sheldon Keefe and Jay Woodcroft are probably the best fits for the Devils. Fitzgerald may believe that, too, if he hasn't hired Berube yet. And that may be why Keefe is atop the list, even though he just came into the process a few days ago.