The Devils have struggled finding consistency on defense and their goaltending. They’re tied for 26th in the NHL in goals-against per game (3.49) and tied for 17th on the penalty kill (79.2 percent). New Jersey ranks 31st in team save percentage (.882), ahead of only the Ottawa Senators (.880).
Goalie Vitek Vanecek, out since Feb. 10 with a lower-body injury, is 17-9-3 with a 3.18 goals-against average and .890 save percentage in 32 games (29 starts). Nico Daws is 8-10-0 with a 3.47 GAA and .887 save percentage in 18 games. Akira Schmid is 5-8-1 with a 3.09 GAA and .897 save percentage in 18 games (14 starts).
Green was hired June 22 to help coach the forwards and run the power play after Andrew Brunette was named coach of the Nashville Predators on May 31. The 53-year-old previously coached the Vancouver Canucks from 2017-22 (133-147-34) and reached the Western Conference Second Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2020. He was fired Dec. 6, 2021, after 25 games (8-15-2).
New Jersey has finished 26th or worse in the standings in five of the past seven seasons and won the NHL Draft Lottery twice, selecting center Nico Hischier No. 1 in 2017 and center Jack Hughes No. 1 in 2019. It chose forward Alexander Holtz with the No. 7 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, defenseman Luke Hughes No. 4 in the 2021 NHL Draft and defenseman Simon Nemec No. 2 in the 2022 NHL Draft.
The Devils lost veteran defensemen Damon Severson (via trade with the Columbus Blue Jackets on June 27) and Ryan Graves (via free agency to the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1) but were busy signing key free agents who made significant contributions in the offseason.
Timo Meier signed an eight-year contract June 28. Meier could have been a restricted free agent but the 26-year-old forward, acquired in a trade with the San Jose Sharks on Feb. 26, bought into the Devils and everything they had to offer. Prior to retaining Meier, the Devils signed forward Jesper Bratt to an eight-year contract June 15, and forward Erik Haula to a three-year contract eight days later.
New Jersey acquired versatile forward Tyler Toffoli from the Calgary Flames on June 27 and defenseman Colin Miller from the Dallas Stars on July 1. Toffoli has one season remaining on a four-year contract. Miller has one season left on a two-year contract.
Forward Tomas Nosek signed a one-year contract July 19 and defenseman Kevin Bahl got a two-year contract July 31.
The core group of forwards Jack Hughes, Hischier and Ondrej Palat, and defensemen Dougie Hamilton, John Marino and Jonas Siegenthaler were all previously signed to long-term contracts. Hamilton is out indefinitely after surgery for a torn left pectoral muscle Dec. 1.
Injuries have limited Jack Hughes and Hischier to 45 and 50 games, respectively.
Ruff replaced Alain Nasreddine, who was 19-16-8 with New Jersey before the NHL season was paused March 12, 2020, due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. Nasreddine was named coach when John Hynes was fired Dec. 3, 2019.
Ruff has coached 23 seasons in the NHL, 15 with the Buffalo Sabres and four with the Dallas Stars, before he was hired as an assistant by the Rangers on July 10, 2017. The 64-year-old is fourth in NHL history in wins (864) and fourth in games coached (1,774).
The Sabres advanced to the 1999 Stanley Cup Final, a six-game loss to the Stars, in Ruff’s second season. He won the Jack Adams Award voted as NHL coach of the year in 2005-06 and was runner-up to Alain Vigneault of the Vancouver Canucks in 2006-07 after Buffalo had its best season (53-22-7, 113 points). As an assistant to Doug MacLean, Ruff helped the Florida Panthers reach the Cup Final in 1996, when they were swept by the Colorado Avalanche.
Ruff is the seventh NHL coach to be fired this season, joining Todd McLellan (Los Angeles Kings), Lane Lambert (New York Islanders), D.J. Smith (Ottawa Senators), Jay Woodcroft (Edmonton Oilers), Dean Evason (Minnesota Wild) and Craig Berube (St. Louis Blues).
