New Jersey scored 184 goals last season and averaged 24.4 shots per game, which ranked 30th in the NHL. A lack of scoring depth and injuries down the stretch also contributed to the failure to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a fourth straight season.
Hall joins center
Adam Henrique
and right wing Kyle Palmieri, who each scored 30 goals last season. Left wing
Michael Cammalleri
is healthy after being limited to 42 games because of an inflamed tendon in his right hand, and center Travis Zajac, who led the Devils with a .516 faceoff winning percentage, remains one of the best two-way forwards in the game. A full season of right wing Devante Smith-Pelly, and the addition of free agent acquisitions Beau Bennett, Vernon Fiddler, Luke Gazdic and Nick Lappin will bolster the depth on offense. Veteran forward Patrik Elias is an unrestricted free agent.
The loss of Larsson created a hole on defense, but the Devils believe the combined efforts of Jon Merrill, Damon Severson, John Moore and first-year pro Steven Santini will make up for his absence. General manager Ray Shero signed forward Ben Lovejoy, who helped the Pittsburgh Penguins win the Stanley Cup last season, to a three-year contract, and signed veteran defenseman Kyle Quincey to a one-year contract on Sept. 28. Captain Andy Greene enters his 11th season to help anchor the defense.
The Devils might have uncovered a diamond in the rough, left-handed France-born defenseman Yohann Auvitu (6-foot, 200 pounds), who signed a one-year, two-way entry-level contract in May. Auvitu, 27, played for HIFK Helsinki last season and was named the best defenseman in Liiga, Finland's top professional league.