The New Jersey Devils are entering uncharted territory.
With Columbus, Detroit and Philadelphia - the three teams the Devils had even a remote chance of catching - winning on Tuesday night, the Devils' chances of making the post-season went from improbable to nearly impossible.
As a result, reality is setting in, and one of the most successful franchises in sports over the last two decades is about to miss the playoffs for the third time in four seasons.
This is a results driven business, and when you don't have success over the span of a few years, changes are necessary, and will be made.
While I think the Devils have some glaring issues that need to be corrected, I don't believe Pete DeBoer is the problem, and think he should remain the head coach of the team.
I've been graphing some data behind the scenes which will help shed light as to why I'm on DeBoer's side, but for now all I'll say is I'm confident he isn't the issue.
The biggest problems with the team are due to talent, or the lack thereof on the roster. New Jersey needs some fresh faces, and they need some players who can score goals. They have a couple good prospects in the system, but the Devils won't be able to properly address their issues from within.
Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello needs to improve this team, and in order to make room for new faces, he'll have to ship some out.
That may be tough considering if Jaromir Jagr is re-signed (he should and likely will be), the entire group of top-9 forwards will be signed for next year, with five - and presumably Jagr - forwards having no-move or no-trade clauses in their contract, but it needs to be done.
If Lamoriello resorts to minor tinkering, the same issues that plagued the team this year will likely remain next year as well.
Lamoriello has a lot of work to do and if he can't get it done, an organization applauded for its consistent winning ways will likely fail to qualify for the playoffs four times in five seasons.
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Email: NHLToddCordell@Gmail.com