It was an offseason of change for the New Jersey Devils, with Sunny Mehta coming in as the new general manager. He has taken care of some housekeeping business within the front office and on the coaching staff. Mehta kept on head coach Sheldon Keefe, and his next order of business is to extend captain Nico Hischier.
Lots were made of Hischier’s comments toward the end of the season when he told reporters after Tom Fitzgerald got fired, “I’m focusing on playing hockey here. I still have one more year. So I’m with the Devils right now, and then we’ll see what happens.”
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Later on, he cleared up those comments, telling MSG Networks he wants to win in New Jersey, and then, at locker cleanout day, he reiterated those comments.
“I love it in New Jersey, and obviously, I think when we see who’s coming in, I’m sure we’ll talk with each other, and we’ll go from there,” Hischier said.
At the time, the New Jersey Devils had yet to name a general manager, but now that Mehta is the new man in charge, Hischier, his agent, Allain Roy, and Mehta have discussed an extension. Again, these are just preliminary discussions with more to come.
Hischier is eligible to sign an extension on July 1st, 2026. He is entering the final year of a seven-year, $50.75 million deal that carries a $7.25 million AAV that he signed in the fall of 2019. Many teams will be keeping a close eye on what happens with the Devils’ captain to see if this lingers into the start of the season. Not to mention, how much of a raise Hischier gets from the $7.25 million he is currently making.
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There are several teams keeping a close watch on what happens this summer with Nico Hischier, the 27-year-old New Jersey Devils captain who has one year left on his contract, carrying an average annual value of $7.25 million.
As TheDevilsNation.com has written, new GM Sunny Mehta wants to put a perennial winner on the ice. Keeping Nico Hischier is a priority as he plays in all situations for Keefe. Not to mention Keefe gives him the toughest matchups and has thrived in New Jersey, turning into one of the better two-way centers in the NHL.
So the goal is to get Hischier signed, but what number would it be? $10 million? Does it go higher than that? Even with a rising salary cap, the Devils are still up against the salary cap constraints Mehta inherited from the previous regime. Plus, when Hischier gets the extension, is he going to be the highest-paid Devil?
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As reported on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio last month, Hischier has been in the playoffs only three times, winning one playoff series. He has missed the playoffs six times in his nine NHL seasons and is getting tired of losing. So what’s the rush?
“I wouldn’t be shocked if this thing goes into the season without a contract extension,” as mentioned on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio Hotstove Program. “What’s the rush? In his case, he wants to see change. He wants to see this team progress. And they haven’t.”
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These are the same questions Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews are asking their respective clubs, the Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs. Except that those situations are more amplified. But most of the league would be calling the Devils, as Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic noted, if Hischier became available.
Teams like the Minnesota Wild, Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, who have been linked to him before by Marco D’Amico of BPM Sports, and others would see if they could get their hands on him.
