As reported by Pierre Lebrun earlier today, preliminary discussions have begun between Nico Hischier’s agent, Allain Roy and new Devils’ General Manager, Sunny Mehta. The discussions were described by Mehta as “amicable and positive,” which is good news for Devils fans.
Lebrun did add that while he thinks an extension is likely, if not there will be no shortage of suitors knocking at the Devils door. With a player like Alex Tuch rumored to get over $10m per season, you have to wonder where Hischier’s contract may fall. With the cap rising steadily, $11-13m per seems to be a range I would not be upset with. Closer to the $11m AAV would be a fair deal that gets the Devils’ Captain a ton of security yet leaves extra cap space to ensure they can contend throughout the duration of the contract.
Mehta’s Meddling, Mostly Behind The Curtain, For Now…
Just a few weeks after another round of phony Simon Nemec stories came from overseas, the positivity, from a solid source in Lebrun should be music to the ears of this fan base. On the face it’s been a somewhat slow start to Mehta’s tenure as GM in Jersey as he assesses internally and gets his ducks in a row. However, I believe we will some rapid changes around draft day as well as the weeks following July 1st when free agency kicks off. Dougie Hamilton’s final teamed owed bonus of $7.4m is paid by the team. The bonus is most likely why team’s shied away from Hamilton at the deadline, knowing he’d be easily available this off season, without having to dole out the additional payment.
Jack and Jersey
The rumors of Jack and his brothers being “Michigan” guys in the off season are losing a ton of steam as Jack Hughes has been spending a ton of time down the Jersey shore. Perhaps the craving for boating and water activities have been satisfied with the great beach towns of New Jersey, while still keeping him close to NYC, where he has also been seen with pop princess and newest love interest, Tate McRae. Jack, Quinn and Tate were spotted at Parker House in Sea Girt this past weekend, celebrating Memorial Day. The couple also made their way to Rod's Tavern for dinner(no third wheeling by Quinn here) where they posed for photos with fans and staff.
In addition on The Wingman podcast with Matthew and Brady Tkachuk, Brady(who spends summers at his home in Manasquan) named Jack as his “Wingman of the week.” Jack, on his own birthday invited Brady to golf at the super prestigious Due Process golf course in Colts Neck, NJ. For those unfamiliar with the club, Due Process is one of the most spectacular golf courses in the world. The elite club has just 109 members and a hefty initiation fee of $350,000 to join(plus annual fees estimated in the six figure range). Members must be invited to join by the existing brotherhood, of which Jack secured a tee time as someone’s guest.
Tkachuk continued to praise the great golf that Jersey offers, as brother Matthew drooled at the opportunity to partake himself. All of this makes me very happy as I’ve been preaching the “what does Minnesota or Detroit have over NJ?” For years now when talking about the Hughes family(and really all free agents) and their future decisions.