Rich Chere | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
What happened and what needs to be done?
Devils' general manager Ray Shero conducted exit meetings with most of his players Monday. Then he spoke to reporters and took questions about what happened this season and what he plans to do over the summer to get the Devils back into the playoffs. (Hit the share button to send this to a fellow Devils fan)
New Jersey Devils
The Patrik Elias decision
Patrik Elias was not one of the players who met with Ray Shero Monday. That will come some time over the next few days. Shero will have to decide whether Elias still fits in the team's plans for next season and the GM was asked whether it will be hard to keep emotions out of his decision. “I’d like to say it’s not very hard at all, but it is," Shero said. "I’ve respected his game for a long period of time from the outside. I went into that (last) game saying to John Hynes, 'If we lose 6-0, Patrik is getting first star. I could pull an audible maybe.’ I didn't think he was going to earn it. It was great. What a story. It was fantastic for him.” So what's next? “You have to make decisions that are best for the team. Some might be bringing him back. Some might not be. I am not there yet at all. This is nothing that’s going to happen overnight. It’s been a privilege to be with him this year. We’ll see what the future brings.”
New Jersey Devils
How did his rookie coach do?
Coach John Hynes said Monday that there will be no changes to the Devils' coaching staff. But what did GM Ray Shero think about the job Hynes, Alain Nasreddine, Geoff Ward and Chris Terreri did? “I thought they had a real big impact on the way we played this year. They held the team to high standards. This is the room (the press room) where I actually had the training camp meeting with our entire staff — players, coaches, prospects — when I basically challenged them as to what was said and written. I think they all responded in a real positive way to prove that there was something to this team and something to this organization.
“We went to the last couple days and practices and (Hynes) was still demanding with two games left. He kind of pulled it back that last game, I think, but John did a real good job. The staff with Geoff Ward, Nas and Chris Terreri really complement each other very well. Hopefully that’s going to serve us well moving forward. We know we have to take another big step here. This was a small step the way our team responded to our coachers this year.”
Ed Mulholland | USA TODAY Sports
What must the GM do this summer?
The Devils were given some slack this season because they were rebuilding under a new management team. But what now? What does GM Ray Shero have to do this summer? “My responsibility is to add a little more talent. We fell short and there are certainly areas we need to improve. The common theme is we need to score more. We want to play a certain way and defend a certain way. We had top 10 penalty-killing and top 10 power play. But we need to find other ways to produce some offense.
“If the power plays slides back from eighth to 15th next year, where are you going to be? We had some guys that had 30-goal years. But, again, what if they slide back? That’s part of growing as a team. It might come from within. Some of it might come from younger players. Maybe we need a little more scoring from our defense as well. That falls a lot on my shoulders in terms of trying to get some added depth and some offensive talent if possible. It’s easy to say, harder to do.” Two potential offensive keys: Can Kyle Palmieri score 30 goals again and will Pavel Zacha play in the NHL next season? Both are pictured.
Roni Rekomaa / Finland OUTRONI REKOMAA/AFP/Getty
Is there a draft plan?
The Devils will have nine picks in the 2016 NHL entry draft, including two in the third round and two in the fourth. GM Ray Shero says his draft team hasn't yet met to formulate a plan, but he is excited. “I said when I was at the world juniors in Finland this year (Team USA's Auston Matthews is pictured during that tournament), you see some of these young guys and you’re thinking we should have more draft picks. Obviously we ended up with some more. As hard as it was to trade Lee Stempniak at the deadline to get those couple of picks, that’s the direction we have to go. We have to take advantage of those picks.
“This will be an interesting time for us. We’ll see where the lottery goes at the end of the month. Hopefully we can take advantage of it because we have to add some skills and talent to our pipeline.”
New Jersey Devils
What did he learn about this team?
This was Ray Shero's first season as GM of the Devils. What did he learn? “That we have to get better. I also learned that we have some real good pieces in place. When Lou (Lamoriello) left he had told me about guys like (Travis) Zajac and (Andy) Greene and (Adam) Larsson. We brought (Kyle) Palmieri in, but he knew about him and had known him and how he would fit in with (Adam) Henrique. I was happy to see the year Adam had. Zajac had a really strong year for himself.
“They’re a caring group and they were challenged. But we did fall short and they recognize that. I don’t think anybody is real happy to win the last game of the year and you’re not in the playoffs. The expectations are going to get higher every year. I think there has been some progress, but there is a ways to go.”
Ad Choices