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After making the playoffs ever year for over a decade, things have gone off the rails a little bit, and the Devils have failed to qualify for the playoffs in three of the last four seasons.

In an effort to stop this downward trend, Lou Lamoriello and his front office staff have been quite active in making changes this summer.

From buying out Anton Volchenkov and letting Martin Brodeur walk, to signing Mike Cammalleri and Martin Havlat, the Devils have made a barrage of moves that have generally been considered good ones.

In part due to those moves as well as some other factors, I think the Devils will seriously contend - and make - the playoffs next season.

Here's why:

No More Brodeur

Brodeur is the most accomplished goaltender in NHL history, but his best days are long behind him. You never like to move on from a player who has done so much for the organization, but letting Brodeur go is the best thing the team could have done going forward. Not only will Cory Schneider, who leads the NHL with a .928SV% since 2010, become the team's undisputed No. 1, but Brodeur and his .901SV% won't be eating up 50% of the starts. Again, nobody can argue what Brodeur has accomplished in the past, but him being gone is addition by subtraction for the team.

5 vs 5 Goal Scoring

The Devils ranked 29th in 5 vs 5 goal scoring last year, only behind the Buffalo Sabres. What did they do to address that? They signed the most efficient 5 vs 5 goal scorer that was available in Mike Cammalleri, who was 7th in the NHL in 5 vs 5 goals per 60 minutes played last season. Add that to Martin Havlat, who scored at a 20+ goal pace, and the Devils' offense should be much better.

Going Young On Defense

One of the most exciting aspects of the Devils' 2014-15 team is it will feature three of the team's top young blue liners playing regular roles. Adam Larsson is ready for the NHL full time, Jon Merrill fared very well in top-4 minutes last season, and Eric Gelinas was the NHL's most efficient power play defenseman during his rookie campaign. If they continue to get better, which they should, the Devils blue line should be very good moving forward. With Volchenkov, and to a lesser extent Mark Fayne, gone New Jersey's back end is much younger, mobile and possesses more offensive ability. For a team that doesn't score much that's a welcome thought.

Shootouts

The Devils were putrid in shootouts last season. Absolutely abysmal. They couldn't have been worse. Not if they tried. Garbage. Terrible. Dreadful. New Jersey was all that and more in the shootout.

They added some skilled players who can put the puck in the net in Cammalleri and Havlat, and realistically the rest of the team couldn't be worse if they tried. Chances are they'll be better this year. No, they absolutely will. How much better remains to be seen, but they should be able to win at least 40% of their shootouts. With an improved roster, I wouldn't bank on them playing in 13 shootouts, anyways. And if they do, they'll win some. I think.

Factor all these things into the equation, and there's reason to be optimistic about the Devils' playoff chances in 2014-15.

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On Travis Zajac and Mike Cammalleri

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How much is Eric Gelinas worth?

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