Fitzgerald: 'This Is On Me' | FEATURE

“This is on me. Where we’re at right now is on me.”

Those were the opening remarks by Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald at the beginning of a nearly 40-minute discussion with over a dozen media members on Wednesday morning.

“I’m one to take accountability for myself,” he continued. “I will say we are a collaborative organization and we’re all in this together, my group. But I’m the leader of the group and this isn’t good enough. It is absolutely not good enough. We’re not meeting the standard and expectations that we’ve set.”

The Devils began the day with a 23-21-2 record for 48 points. That puts them five points out of a playoff position and just two points ahead of the NY Rangers for last place in the Eastern Conference.

The Devils have lost four of their last five games, which includes a 9-0 setback to the New York Islanders, and frustration has reached into the fanbase.

“I feel for the fans. I really do,” Fitzgerald said. “They’re used to Stanley Cup championship teams with players like (Ken Daneyko). Anything less is unacceptable. I take that on, and I believe that.”

Among the other things Fitzgerald discussed with the media were his own job security, the job security of head coach Sheldon Keefe and the coaching staff, the failure to acquire Quinn Hughes from Vancouver, the no-trade/minimum trade clause contracts on the team, the salary cap, the situation with Dougie Hamilton and much more.

Ultimately, Fitzgerald reiterated his belief in the team’s core of players and that the club has the pieces to be successful.

“We as an organization believe in this core. We’ve seen them at the top of their game and we all like it,” he said. “I believe in this group. For the fans, I know how passionate they are and how desperately they want a champion. I’m trying to continue to do what I set out to do, which is build a contender.”

The Devils have had an up-and-down season. While the team has struggled of late, there are moments where the Devils showed their potential. They opened the year with an eight-game winning streak. And as recently as Monday, the Devils picked up a 5-2 victory in Minnesota against the third-best team in the NHL standings. It was a strong performance against an elite opponent on the road. Those moments give glimmers of hope.

“When you watch how we played the other night, you say that’s the way we should look and how we should play consistently,” Fitzgerald said. “That’s what excites me moving forward. I do think what we saw the other night isn’t a fluke. When we put our minds together and commit to playing away from the puck, offense generates more when you do that.”

With that said, the team’s shortcomings aren’t being overlooked. Fitzgerald is actively working the phones and working to acquire depth and talent to move this team in the right direction.

“The standards and the expectations, they’ve been set by everybody in this organization, starting with me and starting with our team," he said. "“The one thing I’m trying to do is find solutions to help this organization move forward and become the team that we believe we can be."

Job Security

Fitzgerald is in his sixth season as the club’s general manager and 11^th overall with the organization. He has overseen the rebuild of the franchise that has resulted in playoff appearances in two of the last three years, and a second-round berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup tournament.

But with the team currently on the outside of a playoff spot, he was asked about his own job security.

“I don’t worry about that. Life is too short to worry about things like that,” Fitzgerald said. “Sitting in this position is a privilege. I’ve never taken that for granted. I’m constantly in communication with ownership, CEO Tad Brown, Bob Meyers, we all work together.

“We’re all in this together. We’re all trying to find solutions. We’re all pulling the same way. I’m in constant communications with (HBSE managing partner) David (Blitzer).”

While Fitzgerald still believes in the core, he also believes in his surrounding staff and in himself to push the organization to the ultimate prize.

“I’m very confident in where I’ve taken this team to and how we’ve built through the core and added the pieces that we’ve wanted to add to become a contender every year,” he said. “The passion I have for New Jersey, the Devils, ownership, and more importantly the fans, I love this. I love New Jersey. It’s been my home for the past 11 years.

“I do think I can be the one to help move this organization forward. The goal has never changed: to be a Stanley Cup champion. I believe I can do that.”

Fitzgerald also gave a vote of confidence to his head coach, Sheldon Keefe, and the coaching staff on down.

“We are in lockstep,” he said of the entire group.

Quinn Hughes Trade

It’s no secret that the Devils were among the teams trying to acquire defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. He would eventually find himself playing for Minnesota as part of a blockbuster trade.

Fitzgerald discussed that trade but wouldn’t get into the details surrounding the situation.

“I don’t want to speculate how close we came. I can just tell you, of course we were interested in Quinn Hughes’ service,” Fitzgerald said. “But I can’t speculate on what they got and what they wanted from us. I can’t comment on that.”

One thing he can, and did, comment on was the club’s various limited movement clause contracts and their impact on the potential Hughes trade. Fitzgerald dispelled the rumors that the reason the Devils couldn’t acquire Hughes was due to an inability to trade other players with limited trade clauses to free up cap space.

“Not true,” he said. “There were other pieces that couldn’t make it work.”

Limited Trade Clauses

Quinn Hughes aside, the Devils do have players with limited movement clauses and high cap impacts.

Every team in the NHL has similar situations with players carrying such contract stipulations and high cap hits. The Devils are no different in that regard.

“It’s part of doing business,” Fitzgerald said. “When you’re selling your franchise and selling the upside of New Jersey and what we can offer here to players, it’s part of the decision making on both sides. When you do give it, you’re getting it from somewhere else. Maybe it’s a little less money, maybe it’s a lower cap hit. It’s real. We’re not the only team dealing with it, but we’re dealing with it.”

As far as when those incentives are given, they usually are used as a bargaining chip with unrestricted free agents. And often, it is the competition on the open market amongst other teams that dictates such measures. Those incentives can make or break an agreement between both sides. And for teams, it’s part of navigating free agency.

For example, the services of defenseman Dougie Hamilton were highly sought after in the summer of 2021. He was the highest valued free agent on the market and the Devils were in the midst of a rebuild that was still years away. The ability to offer such limited-trade clauses – and other incentives – helped the Devils land the biggest free agent on the market.

It's the cost of doing business.

“At that time that was what the numbers were and negotiating with their agents, and what other teams helped to set that market,” Fitzgerald.

Current Market Trend

Fitzgerald said he is working the phones daily trying to find a deal that can help the Devils improve their lineup. However, the current situation in the NHL is having an impact on potential deals.

The Rangers may be dead last in the Eastern Conference with 46 points, but they’re only seven points (53) from a playoff spot. A quick winning streak would put them right back in the mix. In fact, only 15 points separate the worst (Rangers) from the best (Tampa Bay, 61). Thus, every team in the East has a legitimate belief in earning a postseason berth.

In the Western Conference, it’s a similar situation. With the exception of Vancouver, every team in the West is within striking distance of the playoffs as Calgary (41) is eight points out (49).

The result is a league-wide stalemate with 31 teams in the mix of the postseason. So, the potential sellers are small and limited while the buyers are aplenty.

“That’s the reality of how tight this league is,” Fitzgerald said. “How good of a start teams have gotten off to and feel they may not have seen this coming. At the start of the year when you’re talking to teams and they’re willing to move, UFAs for example, to get future assets, things have changed. Most teams are in a sit and wait and watch where they’re team goes.”

Until there is real separation between potential playoff teams and those out of contention, the trade market will be quiet. But the NHL’s annual trade deadline is set for March 6. Teams will have to decide by then the best course of action for their club.

“Every team feels they can make the playoffs. Every team wants to see where they’re at,” Fitzgerald said. “Where do they go? Do they continue to rise or do they fall before they make personnel decisions and sell off. I’m trying to be patient there.

“It takes two to tango to find the right deals to add to this team.”

When it comes to areas the Devils want to add, Fitzgerald noted that he would like to bolster the club’s depth at forward.

“I’d like to add up front and continue to get more depth,” he said. “I think the entire league is looking for the same thing. That hasn’t changed since two summers ago and last deadline. You identify those areas and put your nose to the grindstone and work.”

With the NHL at a de facto standstill, a trade may not be imminent. It also can’t be looked at as the solution to the club’s current woes.

“You can’t trade your way out of this,” Fitzgerald said. “There’s still plenty of runway for this group to come together. Them looking at me to help pull things together, that hasn’t been lost. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Where we can get better and which teams can do that (with us) and when are they ready to work (on a trade).”

To compound the problem, with so few possible sellers nearing the deadline, it makes it a sellers’ market. Meaning the buyers may have to overpay for players as they compete with each other for so little assets on the market. Fitzgerald did note that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to make a deal if he deems it will help improve the club.

“I just want to get better,” he said. “If that means moving future pieces to improve this team, I’m willing to do it.”

Bottom Line

The Devils can’t wait for a savior to come along. They have to save themselves. And it’s on everyone to do their part.

“It’s on all of us. The players play. The coaches’ strategy. It’s on everybody,” Fitzgerald said. “The message is the expectations and standards haven’t changed. I want everybody to look in the mirror and hold themselves accountable on how I can get better, what can I do differently.

“The status quo isn’t good enough. What’s going to change?” Fitzgerald remarked. “You look to your leaders and your leadership group to say the right things, do the right things. Actions need to be held accountable.”

Fitzgerald will continue to try and improve his team. But he still believes in the core group in the locker room to right the ship. While consistency has plagued the Devils all season, they’ve also shown glimpses of what they can be. It’s a matter of getting back there.

“Can we get back to that good team that we were for the first 15-plus games?” Fitzgerald asked. “I don’t believe in the status quo, but I do believe that when we’re healthy, we can be that good team that we all envision.”