The New Jersey Devils have had some dismal free-agent signings since the 2005 NHL Lockout, but find out some of the more forgettable UFA’s since that time.
There was one point in time when the New Jersey Devils were perennial Stanley Cup contenders and in large thanks to free-agent signings and top notch skaters acquired via trades by the team’s former general manager Lou Lamoriello.
However, the Devils had some disappointing finishes to seasons after the 2005 NHL Lockout and in large thanks to some questionable moves made by the team during the NHL’s unrestricted free agency (UFA) periods.
With the start of this year’s UFA set to begin in less than one month, Elite Sports New York takes a look back at the New Jersey Devils top 7 most forgettable signings since the 2005 NHL Lockout. These past free agent signings are forgettable for various reasons, but primarily because both Jersey’s fan base and the skaters would like to forget that the transactions ever took place.
Rob Niedermayer
The Niedermayer’s were known as one of the more memorable and more skilled brothers to both skate in NHL during the same era. There’s no need to introduce Rob Niedermayer’s brother, Scott, to New Jersey Devils fans; as all Jersey’s Team has to do is look up to the rafters at the Prudential Center to see Scott’s No. 27 hanging proudly after it was officially retired in 2011-12.
However, the Devils signed veteran forward Rob Niedermayer to a one-year deal during the 2009 offseason, and in hopes that he could (help) fill John Madden’s uncanny checking-line role with the team at the center position.
There was hope that the Devils’ front office would be able to acquire Rob Niedermayer when both he and Scott were UFA back during the 2004 offseason, as the two wanted to team up for the first time during their NHL careers; but that wasn’t the case as Rob stayed put in Anaheim with the (then) Mighty Ducks and also inked Scott to a four-year deal.
The Niedermayer brothers would go on to finally hoist Lord Stanley together and in Anaheim during the 2007 campaign, but the two were set to become UFA again in 2008. Scott, re-signed with Anaheim while as noted above — Rob joined New Jersey.
The primary reason to have Rob Niedermayer join the Devils at some point during his career was to keep Scott satisfied and also have him retire as a Devils. It didn’t seem necessary to add Rob after that fact, and the center didn’t rejoin the team after his one-year contract expired.
NEXT: Players 6 and 5
Martin Havlat
Forward Martin Havlat had been a perennial point-getter for the Ottawa Senators from 2000 until the end of the 2006 season, and he still was an offensive threat after leaving Ottawa and dressing for the Chicago Blackhawks (2006-09) and Minnesota Wild for (2009-11).
During that time frame mentioned above, the Czech Republic native was reliable to record anywhere from 60 to 70 points a year. The winger was also a sincere threat on a team’s power play, and was known as one of the league’s better top-six forwards. Havlat was no stranger to the Devils, either. The playmaker had 20 points (6G-14A) in 25 career regular season games against New Jersey.
However, his days with the New Jersey Devils in 2014-15 were far from memorable or notable. A then 33-year-old Havlat not only dressed in 40 games due to being injury prone, but the former first-round draft pick (1999) only recorded 14 points in the process (5G-9A). There was hope that the Czech native could spark some sort of flashback chemistry with fellow countrymen Jaromir Jagr and Patrik Elias, but it never unfolded as Lamoriello had pictured.
Havlat was signed by New Jersey on July 1, 2014, to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million.
Dan McGillis
Another familiar name and face to New Jersey Devils fans, but when you hear “Dan McGillis” most will recall his days playing against Jersey’s Team and while donning a Philadelphia Flyers sweater. McGillis was one of the league’s more notable blueliners when he played in the City of Brotherly Love, but the tenth-round draft pick (1992) was signed by New Jersey when he was clearly out of his prime.
McGillis was signed by New Jersey on a two-year deal ($2.2 million AAV) after the 2005 NHL Lockout ended, but the hard-nosed defenseman only dressed in 27 games with the Devils and was then sent down to the American Hockey League by Lou Lamoriello. McGillis was a prime example of one of those odd signings that Lamoriello seemed to pull the trigger on after the 2005 lockout.
At the time, the contract was not salary-cap friendly to the team, which was also another main reason why he was left out to dry in the minors the following season.
NEXT: Players 4 and 3
Henrik Tallinder
There was much promise and hope when New Jersey signed defenseman Henrik Tallinder to a four-year contract worth $13.4 million in 2010. However, the Swedish born defenseman only lasted parts of three seasons with the Devils before he was traded to the Buffalo Sabres during the 2013 offseason.
Tallinder had made a name for himself as a dynamic blueliner with the Sabres from 2001 until the end of the 2010 campaign. The hope was that he would be a puck-moving defenseman to support veteran Andy Greene and company, but Tallinder goes down as one of those signings that the Devils would like to forget, or most fans may have already forgotten his brief tenure in Jersey.
The 6-foot-4 skater only played in 146 career regular-season games with New Jersey, while netting six goals and chipping in 20 assists for 26 points. Tallinder played out the final year of his four-year contract and with the Sabres in 2013-14 (played in 64 games), but then retired from the NHL that same offseason.
Richard Matvichuk
With the eighth-overall selection at the 1991 NHL Entry Draft, the Minnesota North Stars (now Dallas Stars) drafted defenseman Richard Matvichuk, who would go on to the be one the league’s more dominant defenseman during the 1990’s and early 2000’s.
At 6-foot-3, Matvichuk helped anchor a Dallas Stars blue line for over a decade (1993-2004), and the Edmonton, Alberta native was a key factor in helping the organization hoist its first ever Stanley Cup back in 1999. Like many other notable hockey stars from the 1990’s and 2000’s, Matvichuk switched teams after the lockout and was exposed by the “new NHL.”
The blueliner was inked by the New Jersey Devils to a four-year deal worth $7.2 million during the 2005 offseason. The only problem was that he lasted one season with the Devils, while playing in 62 games during the 2005-06 campaign. Matvichuk would go onto retire after playing in one game the following season with Jersey.
NEXT: Players 2 and 1
Michael Ryder
New Jersey’s fan base and former NHL forward Michael Ryder would both like to forget his short tenure with the Devils from 2013 until 2015. Ryder had made a name for himself as a consistent point getter with the Montreal Canadiens (2003-08) and Boston Bruins (2008-11) and even got his name on Lord Stanley’s Cup back in 2011 after the B’s were crowned as champions.
Ryder would sign a two-year deal worth $7 million with the Devils during the 2013 offseason, but the forward never lived up his expectations of helping boost a Devils offense that had just lost a plethora of offensive firepower in Zach Parise, David Clarkson, and Ilya Kovalchuk during the same summer season.
The former eighth-round draft pick had career lows with the New Jersey (34 points in 2013-14 & 19 points in 2014-15), and hasn’t played in the NHL since his contract expired with the Devils three years ago.
Alexander Mogilny
One of the game’s purest and most electrifying goal-scorers will always have a special place in New Jersey Devils fan’s hearts, but forward Alexander Mogilny’s return to New Jersey in 2005-06 is without a doubt a forgettable one.
Moginly was acquired by the Devils during the 1999-2000 campaign via trade from the Vancouver Canucks and went on to help New Jersey hoist its second Stanley Cup in franchise history later on that year. The Russian native returned to the Devils’ lineup the following year and had an 83 point campaign, which still stands as one of the best statistical seasons in the team’s history (tied 10th with Ilya Kovalchuk).
Surprisingly, GM Lou Lamoriello had reacquired the one-time 70 goal-scorer, but his second stint in New Jersey only lasted 34 games before he was sent down the minors. Mogilny had posted 25 points (12G-13A) prior to being demoted to Albany and he then retired at the end of the season.
Honorable Mention: Two-time Stanley Cup champion, Bobby Holik, was re-acquired and signed by the Devils during the 2008 offseason. Holik had originally left New Jersey for the New York Rangers via UFA in 2001 and only played two seasons with the Broadway Blueshirts prior to being traded to the Atlanta Thrashers in 2005-06.
The former beloved Devil surprisingly played in 62 games with Jersey in 2008-09, but only netted four goals and chipped in five assists for nine points on the year.